I’m attempting to help out a neighbor who’s having problems with her water supply. A month or so ago she had ‘a pump guy’ come in and he installed a new relay. Then a week or so, no water. She called him (to his obvious annoyance), he came down, and told her it was “her 100A main.” Since other electrical circuits are working, this is obviously incorrect. It’s an OLD house, and the wiring is . . . perplexing . . . I’ve been down there three times now, the last time with a local guy who may have been an electrician (he did the wiring at our new local library), but may also just be a handyman who knows the basics. He did strike me as being reasonably competent and honest (he didn’t charge her anything for several hours of work). So, here’s the situation. First, we’ve confirmed that we have 240V to/from the branch panel, and to/from the relay, which suggests the problem is in the pump. However, there are several anomalies that have me confused, and basically, I’m trying to do my best to ensure someone doesn’t sell her a pump she doesn’t need. First, the red (start) wire is consistently hot. I guess this could mean that the pressure switch is sending the signal to start and since it’s not getting turned off, it just keeps signaling. Is this reasonable? Could the presence of constant voltage on that line have damaged the pump? Second, and more confusing: there is a 12V duplex outlet mounted next to the main service panel. A small lamp is plugged into that outlet. The branch panel for the pump, which contains two cylindrical fuses, is located at the other end of the basement. When you turn off the knife switch on the side of the branch panel, the light next to the service panel turns off. Okay, doesn’t make sense to me why someone would run a wire across the house and back, but not TOO confusing, however . . . There’s the expected 240V double breaker in the panel, and when you turn it off, as expected, there is no power to the branch panel, and the light goes off. BUT, there’s also a single (120V) breaker in the panel, and when you turn THAT off, there’s also no power to the branch panel and the lamp turns off! Do’H! Now, I’m not an electrician, but my experience has been that when two separate breakers connect to a single circuit, something is amiss, and when one of those is a 240, well, I can’t even hazard a guess. I’m not even certain what I can check next. Oh yes, when I reset both breakers, she seems to have pressure for a while, though I couldn’t hear the pump, and observed no movement in the pressure tank gauge, but I didn’t observe it for that long. However, the pressure only lasts a short time. Also, when the water fails, several outlets in the house go dead as well. Yeah, biggest mess I’ve ever seen, and I’m pretty sure I’m not the one to resolve it, but I’d like to at least advise her whether to get a (different) pump guy in, or an electrician first, and be there to ask them some intelligent questions, and spot any blatant BS (such as “It’s your main.”) She’s a sweet old lady, virtually destitute, and unfortunately, I’m not in a position to help her out in that respect, or I certainly would. At this point she’s been relying on a hose from my outdoor hose bib, in through a window, for a week, however, once the temperature gets any lower (we’re in North East PA, and that will probably happen by Tuesday), this will no longer be an option. ANY suggestions will help. Thanks. Joe

Yesterday I was pulling an estimated 3,000 watts out of three outlets (1,000 each outlet; 2 of which are GFCI), when the power stopped on all three. My first thought: one of the GFCIs must have tripped, but both GFCI outlets are not able to be reset and are not receiving any measurable power--measured with a Volt-Alert fluke. What could have caused the power to die? Where should I look next? Thank you.