Well leaking


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Old 10-15-09, 04:11 PM
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Well leaking

I have a 90 foot deep well with a submersible pump that is leaking. All summer the ground has been wet around the casing and I noticed water coming out of the cap and the top of the casing. Any ideas where I should start looking for trouble? I noticed that my water filter in the house is plugging up much faster than it used to.
 
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Old 10-15-09, 04:48 PM
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Most likely the pitless adapter is leaking or the fitting just below the pitless adapter is leaking. Looking down the casing to try to find may be near impossible as it is probably a large leak if it you can see it coming out around the cap. If you plan to look down there and try to see it, make sure you turn the power off before you remove the cap and pull the wires out of the way. Once you have an unobstructed view down the well try to see where it's leaking from. If it's leaking too fast and you cannot see your only option is to disconnect the pitless adapter and pull the the pipe out of the well far enough to inspect it. Unless you are familiar with the procedure I would recommend calling a professional as certain brands can be very tricky to disconnect and reconnect after the repair - if needed - is made.

Most leaks I encounter are underground and cause water to work up around the well casing and puddle in the yard. If you are certain it's leaking inside the casing then follow the above instructions and post results.
 
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Old 10-15-09, 07:21 PM
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Originally Posted by shane21
Most likely the pitless adapter is leaking or the fitting just below the pitless adapter is leaking. Looking down the casing to try to find may be near impossible as it is probably a large leak if it you can see it coming out around the cap. If you plan to look down there and try to see it, make sure you turn the power off before you remove the cap and pull the wires out of the way. Once you have an unobstructed view down the well try to see where it's leaking from. If it's leaking too fast and you cannot see your only option is to disconnect the pitless adapter and pull the the pipe out of the well far enough to inspect it. Unless you are familiar with the procedure I would recommend calling a professional as certain brands can be very tricky to disconnect and reconnect after the repair - if needed - is made.

Most leaks I encounter are underground and cause water to work up around the well casing and puddle in the yard. If you are certain it's leaking inside the casing then follow the above instructions and post results.
Thanks for the advice. I was present when my pump was replaced 10 years ago by a well contractor. I remember him telling me the well is 90 ft deep and noticed the pump was attached to 1" PVC pipe. I have a couple of questions to ask if you don't mind:

To open the pitless adapter he used a section of 3/4 or 1" black pipe that he had modified to open the adapter. If I remember correctly it was oblong or even figure 8 shaped. He mentioned you can buy a specific tool to do the job but his modified piped worked just as well. If I were to buy that tool what would I ask for?

If the pitless fitting is leaking do I replace the entire fitting or does it have o rings or seals that are replaced.

Once you have released the pipe from the pitless is it possible to drop the pump/pipe assembly so deep in the casing that it would be difficult to retrieve or does the pump rest on or very near the bottom?

Thanks again for your time.
 
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Old 10-16-09, 11:42 PM
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Originally Posted by djmacc
To open the pitless adapter he used a section of 3/4 or 1" black pipe that he had modified to open the adapter. If I remember correctly it was oblong or even figure 8 shaped. He mentioned you can buy a specific tool to do the job but his modified piped worked just as well. If I were to buy that tool what would I ask for?
Well this is where it gets tough for me to help you. There are 4 common pitless adapters (and even more less common) and all 4 require different techniques to remove them. I suggest looking down the well and either taking a picture of it (the more light the better) and either start comparing it to images you find using google or post it here and see if I or someone else can help you identify it.

Originally Posted by djmacc
If the pitless fitting is leaking do I replace the entire fitting or does it have o rings or seals that are replaced.
It does have o-rings and they can be replaced if needed. It is rare for a pitless to fail suddenly without something happening to it. Of the thousands of pitless adapters I've worked with, I can count one one hand the number of pitless adapters I have had to fix/replace due to leaking without the adapter having been adjusted or removed immediately before. More than likely you have broken/rotten fitting or split pipe.


Originally Posted by djmacc
Once you have released the pipe from the pitless is it possible to drop the pump/pipe assembly so deep in the casing that it would be difficult to retrieve or does the pump rest on or very near the bottom?
Yes there is a very good chance you could drop the pipe and struggle to recover it. Most well service techs use a pipe with some type of clamp or tee fitting on it to support the weight of the pump after they detach the pitless adapters so they can then get a better grip on it before pulling it. Most often the pump will be set within 10 feet of the bottom of the well but it may be 30 feet off the bottom in which case dropping it would be a bad idea. I would suggest folding the wires over the casing and securing them so that they will support the weight of the pump if you happen to lose you connection. Assuming the pump is less than 1HP and the pipe is flexible poly it should not weigh much and the wires will be able to hold the weight easily. If the pump itself is hanging on steel pipe or is excessively large it may be too heavy to lift but again this is VERY unlikely in a 90' well.


If you are unsure of what to do it may be worth calling a service tech to solve the issue. If it is a leak inside the well as you describe and it is near the top (almost certainly it is if it's leaking out the top around the cap) I know I would charge under $125 to repair the problem unless of course the pitless adpater itself was damaged (HIGHLY unlikely). To avoid the hassle and worry of losing the pipe down the well this may be your best option.
 
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Old 11-07-09, 06:36 PM
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[QUOTE=shane21;1635216]Most likely the pitless adapter is leaking or the fitting just below the pitless adapter is leaking. Looking down the casing to try to find may be near impossible as it is probably a large leak if it you can see it coming out around the cap. If you plan to look down there and try to see it, make sure you turn the power off before you remove the cap and pull the wires out of the way. Once you have an unobstructed view down the well try to see where it's leaking from. If it's leaking too fast and you cannot see your only option is to disconnect the pitless adapter and pull the the pipe out of the well far enough to inspect it. Unless you are familiar with the procedure I would recommend calling a professional as certain brands can be very tricky to disconnect and reconnect after the repair - if needed - is made.

Well I shut the power off, open the line in the pit to drain the casing down below the cap so I could see where the leak is coming from. Eventually I had no water in the house and then the water quit draining in the pit (about 4 feet deep) but the water never quit leaking out of the top of the casing. The pace did not change at all after 2 hours? I noticed that this year my pond has stayed unusually high and several of my neighbors have artesian wells. Could this water be from another source than from my pump? If so what kind of problems could this cause to my well water?
 
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Old 11-08-09, 07:25 AM
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"I noticed that this year my pond has stayed unusually high and several of my neighbors have artesian wells. "

I think you are on the right track. Could be that your well has temporarily become "artesian" meaning that water is naturally flowing up. What do your neighbors do about this?
 
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Old 11-08-09, 08:58 AM
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Originally Posted by Vey
"I noticed that this year my pond has stayed unusually high and several of my neighbors have artesian wells. "

I think you are on the right track. Could be that your well has temporarily become "artesian" meaning that water is naturally flowing up. What do your neighbors do about this?
I have not spoke to them but I will. Do you know if this could impact my water quality?
 
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Old 11-08-09, 09:07 AM
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Originally Posted by djmacc
I have not spoke to them but I will. Do you know if this could impact my water quality?
I don't think so. Water coming up isn't a problem for water quality.
 
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Old 11-08-09, 12:37 PM
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Originally Posted by Vey
I don't think so. Water coming up isn't a problem for water quality.
Can the water drain down the casing and past the pump into by aquafier? Maybe I have the wrong impression of what a well looks like at the bottom but it seemed me that there is nothing stopping the water from mixing down below.
 
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Old 11-09-09, 05:57 AM
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Originally Posted by djmacc
Can the water drain down the casing and past the pump into by aquafier?
Yes, it can. If water goes down the well, but your problem is that water coming up (or so I read things) and as long as it comes up, there is no problem. When the water level goes down and the water in the pipe goes down, still not much of a problem because it was only exposed to the inside of the pipe, not the ground surface if you keep dirt from around the top of the pipe.

New wells require 18" above the surface so that water doesn't go down the well even if there is a minor flood. If you like, you can extend the pipe up higher if it isn't already.
 
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Old 11-09-09, 09:58 AM
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Originally Posted by Vey
Yes, it can. If water goes down the well, but your problem is that water coming up (or so I read things) and as long as it comes up, there is no problem. When the water level goes down and the water in the pipe goes down, still not much of a problem because it was only exposed to the inside of the pipe, not the ground surface if you keep dirt from around the top of the pipe.

New wells require 18" above the surface so that water doesn't go down the well even if there is a minor flood. If you like, you can extend the pipe up higher if it isn't already.
Thanks for the help. Looks like my biggest problem will be freeze protection in the winter.
 
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Old 11-09-09, 11:14 AM
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It sounds like you and Vey have diagnosed the problem. I iguess I assumed the water coming out of the top of the casing originally was under pressure as in "spraying" and not flowing evenly around all edges.

If it is flowing as an artesian then I know in Ohio we install a drain line on the well and let it flow and use the piping to take it where ever we want it. There are some particulars as to how this needs to be done to make sure the well water isn't exposed to possible contamination but the point is it can be drained to wherever you want. Freezing shouldn't be too much of a problem (depending how cold it gets) as well water is generally about 54 degrees F. As long as it's flowing it will usually not freeze. My parents have an artesian well and it continues to flow year round in Ohio even when it gets to -10 degrees F.
 
 

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