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

“It seems like our well pump is operating 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 occurs in a bladder tank. These well pressure tanks, the most common type, store water in a bladder inside 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 Okauchee, it’s time to replace the tank … which means a call to Kelly James Service, the well water pressure tank specialists in Okauchee. They’ll install 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 serious, it soon will be.

Not all Okauchee residences 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 measured amount of water into the pipe. The water creates an air pocket, which generates pressure when the pump cycles to push in additional water.

Problems start when these bleeders become plugged over time, reducing the initial water level in the pipe. With less water, pressure in the system falls. The pump cycles in an endless effort to provide additional water to sustain adequate pressure, and keep the system functioning.

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. Typically installed in older homes, these tanks eventually leak. Similar to an air volume control tank, the well pump runs near-constantly to sustain pressure as the internal water level diminishes.

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 viable option.

Okauchee residents: Tired of hearing your well pump run constantly? Let Kelly James Service restore the peace – not to mention water pressure – that you value. You’ll be amazed how short a time they need to stop your pump’s short-cycling.