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

“It seems like our well pump is operating 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 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 model, store water in a bladder within their metal shells. Surrounding air presses on the balloon, keeping the water under pressure.

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

Homeowners in West Allis, it’s time to replace the tank … which means a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in West Allis. They’ll put in a new pressure tank the same day, and stop 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 West Allis houses 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 employs bleeders, which allow a modulated amount of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in more water.

Problems start when these bleeders become plugged over time, lowering the starting 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 sufficient pressure, and keep the system working.

A third type of well water pressure tank is made of galvanized metal, which annually. Typically used in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Like an air volume control tank, the well pump runs near-constantly to sustain pressure as the internal water level drops.

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

West Allis residents: Tired of hearing your well pump run nonstop? 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.