pulsing water and questions concerning moving system
#1
07-29-21, 09:31 AM
pulsing water and questions concerning moving system
Hello there!
I've just purchased a home with a well that's pretty terrible. Waste pipes, toilet tanks and filters full of mud, icemaker unusable, pulsing pressure at all outlets, water is tinted brown and everything is stained. We're looking to add a filter system and are leaning toward the biggest whole house system Aquasana provides but I still need to solve other issues.
First: the pulsing. I'm told that it's usually caused by mud/debris in the pressure switch. Is that the small box in front of the pressure tank? Is that something I can clean out or do I need to just replace it?
Second: What is that metal cylinder furthest away? Is that just a reservoir so the system has more water on hand when the pump can't keep up? Is it a "keep" item? I ask because I've never seen it on another well system. If so, I probably need to clean it out.
Finally, I'd like to move the tanks and switch out to the back of the house for a few reasons. First, accessibility. Second, single location for these items and the newly added filter system. I intend to insulate the structure surrounding the system and add some form of heating for the cold temps. Is there anything else I need to take into account when building the structure?
This is the filter system I plan on installing. I'll move the coarse filter all the way to the first position in front of everything else so I can get rid of the current coarse media filter.
Thanks for your time!
I've just purchased a home with a well that's pretty terrible. Waste pipes, toilet tanks and filters full of mud, icemaker unusable, pulsing pressure at all outlets, water is tinted brown and everything is stained. We're looking to add a filter system and are leaning toward the biggest whole house system Aquasana provides but I still need to solve other issues.
First: the pulsing. I'm told that it's usually caused by mud/debris in the pressure switch. Is that the small box in front of the pressure tank? Is that something I can clean out or do I need to just replace it?
Second: What is that metal cylinder furthest away? Is that just a reservoir so the system has more water on hand when the pump can't keep up? Is it a "keep" item? I ask because I've never seen it on another well system. If so, I probably need to clean it out.
Finally, I'd like to move the tanks and switch out to the back of the house for a few reasons. First, accessibility. Second, single location for these items and the newly added filter system. I intend to insulate the structure surrounding the system and add some form of heating for the cold temps. Is there anything else I need to take into account when building the structure?
This is the filter system I plan on installing. I'll move the coarse filter all the way to the first position in front of everything else so I can get rid of the current coarse media filter.
Thanks for your time!
Top Answer
07-29-21, 12:15 PM
Group Moderator
What is the horizontal tank (Yea, I know you asked as well)??? It appears to have two pipes and one hose connected to it.
What type well pump do you have? It's a judgement call installing a filter between the pump and pressure switch if you have a submersible pump. Many submersible pumps are capable of quite high pressure. If the filter clogs the switch won't turn off the pump and it just keeps running until something bursts.
Does your well have a steel or plastic well casing? If you are having a big problem with mud and sediment I would have a good well company come inspect. You may have a rusted out well casing. It is common in our county will older steel cased wells. It can be sleeved with PVC to prevent surface water, mud and sediment from entering the well.
What type well pump do you have? It's a judgement call installing a filter between the pump and pressure switch if you have a submersible pump. Many submersible pumps are capable of quite high pressure. If the filter clogs the switch won't turn off the pump and it just keeps running until something bursts.
Does your well have a steel or plastic well casing? If you are having a big problem with mud and sediment I would have a good well company come inspect. You may have a rusted out well casing. It is common in our county will older steel cased wells. It can be sleeved with PVC to prevent surface water, mud and sediment from entering the well.
#2
07-29-21, 10:17 AM
Can you describe the system better, preferably with a diagram? Show what is connected to what and what is in between (piping wise, not physical left to middle to right).
Does the pump actually try to start and then shut off in rhythm with the pulsation which means it is creating the pulsation?
Does the pump actually try to start and then shut off in rhythm with the pulsation which means it is creating the pulsation?
schwim
voted this post useful.
#3
07-29-21, 10:32 AM
Hello @AllenJ and thanks for the help!
I don't have a diagram handy but will do my best to explain the system as I understand it.
From the pump out in the front yard, the system goes into the crawl space entering the cylinder tank .
The water then exits that horizontal cylinder and goes through a coarse media filter(woven rope style)
Next, it enters the pressure tank.
From the tank, it enters the house. No more elements are inline anywhere.
If needed, I can take more detailed photos of any part of the system. The water quality is so bad, the POs just removed the aerators from all of the faucets I suspect because you simply can't keep them from clogging. We noted almost an inch of sediment at the bottom of the toilet tanks.
I don't have a diagram handy but will do my best to explain the system as I understand it.
From the pump out in the front yard, the system goes into the crawl space entering the cylinder tank .
The water then exits that horizontal cylinder and goes through a coarse media filter(woven rope style)
Next, it enters the pressure tank.
From the tank, it enters the house. No more elements are inline anywhere.
If needed, I can take more detailed photos of any part of the system. The water quality is so bad, the POs just removed the aerators from all of the faucets I suspect because you simply can't keep them from clogging. We noted almost an inch of sediment at the bottom of the toilet tanks.
#4
07-29-21, 12:15 PM
Group Moderator
What is the horizontal tank (Yea, I know you asked as well)??? It appears to have two pipes and one hose connected to it.
What type well pump do you have? It's a judgement call installing a filter between the pump and pressure switch if you have a submersible pump. Many submersible pumps are capable of quite high pressure. If the filter clogs the switch won't turn off the pump and it just keeps running until something bursts.
Does your well have a steel or plastic well casing? If you are having a big problem with mud and sediment I would have a good well company come inspect. You may have a rusted out well casing. It is common in our county will older steel cased wells. It can be sleeved with PVC to prevent surface water, mud and sediment from entering the well.
What type well pump do you have? It's a judgement call installing a filter between the pump and pressure switch if you have a submersible pump. Many submersible pumps are capable of quite high pressure. If the filter clogs the switch won't turn off the pump and it just keeps running until something bursts.
Does your well have a steel or plastic well casing? If you are having a big problem with mud and sediment I would have a good well company come inspect. You may have a rusted out well casing. It is common in our county will older steel cased wells. It can be sleeved with PVC to prevent surface water, mud and sediment from entering the well.
#5
07-30-21, 03:00 PM
Since you have sediment clogging faucet aerators and sediment in toilet tanks, you no doubt have sediment settled in the large horizontal tank. You will want to get most of the sediment out of that horizontal tank. A thick layer of sediment in the tank can cause new water entering from the bottom to pulsate.
Moving the pressure switch to near where the pipe from the pump enters the horizontal tank will give more protection for the pump in case of a clogged pipe.
I would not want to bother to move the tanks but if you do, be sure to empty them out first. Water is heavy. You will have to hold down the air valve at the top of the upright tank to be sure all the water comes out.
Moving the pressure switch to near where the pipe from the pump enters the horizontal tank will give more protection for the pump in case of a clogged pipe.
I would not want to bother to move the tanks but if you do, be sure to empty them out first. Water is heavy. You will have to hold down the air valve at the top of the upright tank to be sure all the water comes out.
schwim
voted this post useful.
#6
08-04-21, 09:10 AM
Hi there guys, thanks for all the help!
Very sorry for the delayed reply. Had to wait for the gent to come out to check the system. As suspected, the expansion tank was bad(water escaping release valve). The horizontal tank he called a sand trap and he thinks it's rusted inside, causing all the orange water and what looks to be black metal bits in the household water.
They replaced the tank and switch so now it's time for step two, that being installing a filter system. I have done quite a bit of reading and I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with the Aquasana system with all the bells and whistles: https://www.aquasana.com/whole-house...100237393.html
It's quite pricey but the water really is unusable here until something is added so we don't want to underbuy and have to continue chasing potable water. I'm not quite sure yet if I'll find another "sand trap" tank but I'm pretty sure I'll be moving everything to a structure outside the house so I can have easy access to the system. I'll place the filter system ahead of the expansion tank to protect it against the filth that is in the water, then just pipe it to the tank, then back into the house. That's the plan at the moment anyway.
Very sorry for the delayed reply. Had to wait for the gent to come out to check the system. As suspected, the expansion tank was bad(water escaping release valve). The horizontal tank he called a sand trap and he thinks it's rusted inside, causing all the orange water and what looks to be black metal bits in the household water.
They replaced the tank and switch so now it's time for step two, that being installing a filter system. I have done quite a bit of reading and I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with the Aquasana system with all the bells and whistles: https://www.aquasana.com/whole-house...100237393.html
It's quite pricey but the water really is unusable here until something is added so we don't want to underbuy and have to continue chasing potable water. I'm not quite sure yet if I'll find another "sand trap" tank but I'm pretty sure I'll be moving everything to a structure outside the house so I can have easy access to the system. I'll place the filter system ahead of the expansion tank to protect it against the filth that is in the water, then just pipe it to the tank, then back into the house. That's the plan at the moment anyway.
#7
08-04-21, 09:55 AM
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Southeastern Pennsylvania
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Maybe you have already done this, but I think you should get a water test before you settle on the treatment equipment.
I think on a properly constructed and working well, I don’t think you should have a bacteria problem. I do have a bacteria problem and so I do have a UV filter – which does the trick. But unless I’m mistaken, I don’t think a bacteria problem always exists – even though the water may contain sand.
Also, there may be other things you might want to correct – maybe iron, ph, etc. - so those would factor into the overall system design.
Just my opinion.
Maybe you have already done this, but I think you should get a water test before you settle on the treatment equipment.
I think on a properly constructed and working well, I don’t think you should have a bacteria problem. I do have a bacteria problem and so I do have a UV filter – which does the trick. But unless I’m mistaken, I don’t think a bacteria problem always exists – even though the water may contain sand.
Also, there may be other things you might want to correct – maybe iron, ph, etc. - so those would factor into the overall system design.
Just my opinion.
schwim
voted this post useful.
#8
08-05-21, 07:12 AM
Maybe you have already done this, but I think you should get a water test before you settle on the treatment equipment.
As an update to the entire pulsing water issue, it's gone now. The company that replaced the expansion tank gave me the name to the trusted well guy in the area because cleaning out the sand trap resulted in large piles of grey sand. I called the well guy and he said to give it a couple days that when the expansion tank goes bad and the entire supply burden is put on the pump, it will create a slurry as it cycles on and off at full throughput, causing it to pull sand into the system. He said usually, a couple days after the tank replacement, it will settle down and stop being an issue. If it didn't, he would suspect that the pump is pulling more than the well will provide(10gpm pump when the wells here will only support >= 5gpm) in which case he could choke down the supply, allowing the well to keep up with what the pump is asking of it.
So pulsing water issue is solved. I imagine I'll need a new thread concerning my upcoming filter system installs as I plan to move the entire system to somewhere it can be accessed easily. I've got some questions with pipe diameter and distances when that happens.
Take care and thank you all for your help!
#9
08-05-21, 07:31 AM
Group Moderator
I always recommend having water sampled and tested by the county or state health department. They are not in the business of selling you anything so I trust their results to be unbiased.
schwim
voted this post useful.
