Sys. Details

age of well-unknown
dia. of well- 2 in.
depth - 78 ft.
water level- aprox.18 ft. (would be higher except there is a leak and water appears to be pouring out of a hole in the side)
-new bladder style preasure tank- 20 gal.
-new 1/2 hp. shallow well jet pump from Tractor Supply. Country-...something.?

Basically my problem is that the pump is not meeting the demand of even one fixture in the house. I resorted to putting a new 1 inch pvc drop pipe with foot valve aprox. 30 ft. into the well ( realize now after research more about this that could be part of my problem) I originally attempted to put 1 1/4 pipe with ordinary couplings and a pvc well screen and could not get the first coupling past somewhere around 20 ft or so. I assumed it was just mineral deposits or something as i have really hard water.
Not only does the pump not keep up with the demand of even one faucet it takes an extremely long time to fill the preasure take and build preasure. I have witnessed it taking ten min. to cycle but my wife says 20. Any how to long...
I have put a t on the suction pipe and every time i take the plug off there is no absence of water. When i put my hand over i can feel suction on the palm of my hand. It takes a little time (maybe 10-20 sec.) but it feels like it gets stronger and stronger. Not sure what that may or may not mean.

I'm thinking about trying the 1 1/4 w/ insert couplings for the drop pipe (im almost certain it will pass) with a pve well point/screen on the bottom and check valve up top. But, at what depth? Or does it really matter since the water inside the pipe should not drop below that 18 ft. mark. Unless recovery is an issue and i have not witnessed while troubleshooting, this should work, right? Any feedback will be greatly appreciated. Im not looking for much here, if i could just get this to meet the demand of a filling washing machine, I d be a happy man and my wife would let me sleep in the bed again.

 

One of the water guys should be along, but right off the top of my head I don't think you have enough pump for that depth. That's the size pump I have on mine and mine's about half your depth.

 

Oops, may have had a brain fart there; your water level is 18' down from the surface? I was thinking 60 feet down.

 

yes water level is about 18 feet. my current drop pipe is about 30 feet with a foot valve and from what I read and I understand this may be increasing the total suction lift. Therefore basically making my pump work harder then what has two. also I should add that I am now experience a considerable amount of air at my fixtures in the house.

 

hey tow guy do the water guys usually answer these posts. Just wondering how long it might take to get some feedback

 

OK js, looks like the guys who know something are on vacation – so you are stuck with someone like me poking in their nose. I’m just a newbie.

Are you sure that a shallow well jet pump is correct for your situation? I thought about 25’ was the depth limit for shallow well jet pumps? If your water is down 18’ then it seems like you are almost at the limit before you hit water? Is a 30’ drop pipe OK?

My well is about 75’ and a submersible pump is used here. Maybe you need a deep well jet pump or a submersible pump?

Just a thought. As I said I’m a newbie and if this is pure nonsense you don’t have to waste one nanosecond of your time responding. You got a problem to deal with.

Good luck however!

 

I saw a YouTube video where a guy had a similar problem with his two inch well. the only difference was he had a major sediment problem. He used well leathers on both sides to isolate the hole in his well from his new drop pipe. Does anybody have any experience with this method? I'm wondering if this might increase the static pressure in my drop pipe. If I need to explain the idea better I will if someone wants to collaborate.

 

18' is fine for a shallow well pump. The "theoretical max" of a jet pumps is about 33 ft at sea level. Most well guys use 25' as a good rule of thumb. You can put 30' of suction line in, it won't hurt anything.

Just use 1" PVC, it will fit nicely in the 2" casing. If you HAVE to go 1.25 you have to use thin collars and a special foot-valve as it will not fit otherwise.


There is also a nozzle on the backend of every shallow well pump. Look for a plug in the 1/4" range just below the suction pipe. Pull the plug and insert a coat-hanger wire or welding rod. Clean the nozzle out and even flush some water through. If this nozzle gets plugged ( this is the JET in jet pump) then the pump will not make any pressure.

 

You really worry me with the comment about having some sort of hole in the casing at 20'. Did I read that right?