Well Pump Keeps Running? No Pressure – but it’s Probably Your Well Pressure Tank

“It seems like our well pump is running all the time.”

If this resembles your water system, there’s a professional term for it: “short cycling.” No sooner does the pump stop running, than it starts up again. It’s desperately working to sustain pressure within the system.

Why? The well pressure tank, which holds water drawn from the well prior to use, has an issue. The exact issue depends on the type of water pressure tank.

Most likely it’s “waterlogging,” which happens in a bladder tank. These well pressure tanks, the most common type, store water in a bladder inside their metal shells. Surrounding air pushes on the balloon, keeping the water under pressure.

All is well until the bladder springs a leak … and the air pocket fills with water. Bye-bye, water pressure.

Homeowners in Waukesha County, it’s time to replace the tank … which necessitates a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank experts in Waukesha County. They’ll put in a new pressure tank the same day, and halt your well pump’s endless short-cycling.

Air spitting from faucets? It’s another symptom of a broken bladder. If the problem isn’t already fatal, it soon will be.

Not all Waukesha County homes with well water systems have bladder tanks. Some use an air volume control tank, a component of the well’s vertical in-ground pipe. The system uses bleeders, which allow a measured volume of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in additional water.

Problems ensue when these bleeders become stopped up over time, lowering the initial water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system drops. The pump cycles in an endless effort to provide additional water to sustain required pressure, and keep the system going.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which nessitates) that its internal air supply be manually replenished {each year. Usually installed in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Similar to an air volume control tank, the well pump operates near-constantly to sustain pressure as the internal water level drops.

Galvanized and air volume control tanks can also be compromised by mineral buildups. These restrict water flow from the tank into the home. Low water pressure results. Again, replacement is the only workable choice.

Waukesha County residents: Tired of listening to your well pump run endlessly? Let Kelly James Service bring back the peace – not to mention water pressure – that you appreciate. You’ll be amazed how short a time they require to stop your pump’s short-cycling.