Water in well power line

Let me begin by saying I don’t know if this is a problem. I noticed a small puddle near the pressure tank. I found the source of the water to be the conduit with the power lines to the well. The pump is in the well, maybe 75-100’ down. The well is located uphill from my house with the top about level with head height on the first floor. The pressure tank is in the basement, so maybe 8’ below that. We have had a lot of rain over the last month so the water level in the well could be high but I haven’t looked. Other than dealing with the water in my basement, is this a problem and what should I do?

 

Water in a buried conduit is considered normal. Hence the need to use waterproof wiring such as THWN.

You do have to protect other equipment in the basement from intrusion by the water that entered the basement including via the conduit.You could branch the conduit carrying the wires up to the next electrical device while branching down to an open end let water drain to your sump pump.

The conduit itself is for physical protection against digging, etc.

 

That’s my understanding also: you’ll get water in the conduit but the wire is rated for underground use. So that’s acceptable. I think a while back I just used some of that Gardner Bender Duct Seal (it’s like a bar of malleable clay) and I packed that all around the wires on the end of the conduit coming into the basement, sealing the conduit. It had been dripping down on the floor.

Wasn’t a whole lot of water and that did the trick. As far as I know there isn’t anything wrong with doing that.

 

What wire is being used which is rated for underground use?

THWN is rated for wet locations such as in buried conduit, but not rated for underground (direct burial) like UF-B or USE-2 wire is.

 

I think well pump cable is designated UF. UF is allowed in conduit.

 

Yes. I thought you were referring to THWN that AllanJ mentioned when he said; 'Water in a buried conduit is considered normal. Hence the need to use waterproof wiring such as THWN.

 

The OP posted that he had water coming out of the conduit that fed his well pump.
THWN IS the correct wire for conduit use and is designed to be used in the presence of water.
There is always water present in underground conduits.

It doesn't matter how the conduit is installed or what it's made of.... there will always be water in it.
Sealing the inside end is one way of handing it but I prefer to leave it open and let the water drain out.

 

I was referring to zoesdad 's Post #3 in which it seemed he implied (by his quote above) that the use of THWN wire that was mentioned in the previous post is rated for underground use.

I wanted to clarify that THWN wire is rated for wet use when installed in conduit which might be underground, but the THWN wire is not rated for underground ( direct burial) use like UF or USE-2.

 

I think maybe I confused the issue and the OP about the cable type. I guess it doesn’t make a real difference because the issue is with water and so there is no reason at all to believe that there is an improper cable being used in barryds’s situation. Sorry about that.

But just to clarify what I meant; the link below shows the kind of pump cable used in my house. My understanding is that is the typical type cable used in submersible pump installations.

That type cable ran from the well head to the basement through a galvanized steel conduit (which I replaced with PVC; the steel conduit was in real bad shape). My understanding was, that cable can either be buried directly (does that mean UF?) or can be run through a conduit for protection. My understanding is that in my area they customarily install that type cable through a conduit.

And I also found a place once that said that type of pump cable is designated as UF. Maybe that’s wrong. Anyway, the point I was trying to make with barryds was that there was no problem with the well pump cable getting wet. That’s the first thing that alarmed me when I saw water coming out of the conduit in my basement, and so I just assumed maybe that would be one of his major concerns also. Maybe not.

Southwire 150 ft. 12/3 Solid CU W/G Submersible Well Pump Wire 55173604 - The Home Depot

 

zoesdad - That linked Southwire submersible pump cable is an unjacketed twisted assembly of conductors that likely has Thermoplastic Rubber (TPR) or Ethylene Propylene Rubber (EPR) insulation that is rated for wet location use. A PVC jacketed version of submersible pump cable is available and similarly rated for wet location use too but the jacket provides a bit more conductor containment and protection from rubbing in the well casing. I'm not so sure all unjacketed submersible pump cable can be direct buried.

Some manufacturers state that their submersible pump cable can be direct buried, but I think there may be a doubt in the mind of some experts about that. Tolyn Ironhand would be a good one that may know for sure about that

Personally, if I was going to bury submersible pump cable I'd want it to have a durable jacket like UF-B cable that encompasses the all conductors with their individual insulation, or have it run in conduit and buried a proper depth.

 

Thanks guys. I’m glad it’s not something to worry about for a change. I like the idea of sealing it so maybe I’ll try that and maybe I’ll do nothing.