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

“It seems like our well pump is running nonstop.”

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 all over. It’s desperately trying to maintain pressure within the system.

Why? The well pressure tank, which contains water drawn from the well prior to use, has a problem. 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, hold water in a bladder within their metal shells. Surrounding air pushes on the balloon, keeping the water under pressure.

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

Homeowners in Fox Lake, it’s time to replace the tank … which necessitates a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank experts in Fox Lake. 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 indication of a broken bladder. If the problem isn’t already fatal, it soon will be.

Not all Fox Lake homes with well water systems have bladder tanks. Some use an air volume control tank, part of the well’s vertical in-ground pipe. The system employs bleeders, which allow a controlled volume of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in more water.

Problems ensue when these bleeders become stopped up over time, reducing 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 operating.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which annually. Usually used 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 goes down.

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

Fox Lake residents: Tired of hearing your well pump run constantly? 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.