I have a house with a well (shallow about 40 feet). The pump (jet pump) is above ground. Recently, I have gotten some air coming out of the faucets (some amounts). Is a sign of a dropping water table or something else? This has only happen a couple of times.
yes
Well, it means you are pumping air -- ie -- no water at the pump, so it pumps in air instead of water.
The real question is why is this happening. In my house, it usually means someone sets out three or four hoses and turns them on high, runs the washing machine and flushes a couple of toilets all at the same time.
IF YOU HAVE NOT been using any excessive amount of water, then you have more of an issue -- also -- remember, at least for North America, this is the end of the summer, and some water tables are lower than usual and will stay that way until winter rains.
Thanks.
I suspect the water table is low. I couldn't figure out any other way air could get > >
When I had that happen a few years ago, it turned out a section of the old well pipe above the water line had rusted through. Replacing it took care of the problem.
Good point on the possibility of a broken line between the well and the house.
You might check the likely line "run" area between the well and the house see if you find a soggy patch of ground, indicating a leaky pipe.
Another method is to pump compressed air through the line and see if you can hear the hissing as it escapes at the break.
Finally, if it is not too big a run, you can dig carefully along the line of the pipe and see if you find anything. In my case the well is about 130 yards from the house, running through heavy trees -- so none of the above really works at my place.
If I had to bet, I would guess you are just suffering from an usually dry summer. You can always check the static water level in the well and see what is going on from that end, also.
Before you start digging up pipes and all of that. Shut off every faucet in the house and be sure there are no drips. Shut off the toilet valve (under toilet) because toilets can run a little bit without being noticed. Now open a faucet (there is likely one on the tank next to the jet pump), or any other one, until the pump runs. As soon as it starts to run, shut off the faucet. When pump shuts off, read th pressure on the gauge (there should be one on or next to the pump or tank, and i it's bad, replace it).
Now, watch the pressure gauge. It should NOT drop in pressure for quite a while. If you dont want to stand there watching it, shut off the pumps electrical switch and check a half hour later. If you have a large pressure drop, you might have a leaking pipe in the well, or the horizontal pipe from the well to the house. If there is no pressure drop, your pipes should be ok. (If it drops a couple pounds, that's probably normal, but if it drops a significant amount, you likely have a leak.
If no leaks, take the cap off the well, and take a piece of nylon string (you want string that wont break easily. Not that cheap string for packaging). Tie a metal weight on the bottom, (like a bolt nut, a
5/8" or 3/4" nut should do). Drop the weighted end down the well till it hits bottom (you can feel it when the string starts getting slack). Pull it out and measure how much is wet. The next time you start getting air, do the same thing and measure it. If it's dropped quite a bit, you are likely low on the water table. (which cant be fixed other than a new well). On a 40' well, you can likely see down there fairly easily with a hi-power flashlight too.Good Luck
I've had the check valve fail in the past which sort of resembles a leak. It is a leak but internal.
Interesting - do they always have such valves integral to the pump? We've got a jet pump on an 80' 2" well; once I did have the water shut off for a couple of hours while I was working on the water heater, and the pump spluttered (and threw out a few bits of sediment amongst the water) for a couple of minutes after I turned it back on until it sorted itself out. That surprised me because I expected the pump body to still be primed.
Maybe that's natural behavior - but maybe it could also be explained by a check valve that's not working properly?
(our pump and motor are dated 1977, so if there is an integral valve it's getting a little on the old side!)
cheers
Jules
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