Sharing well and pump--how much should we charge?

[Swm1954]

replying to JohnnieMarr, Swm1954 wrote: I'm in a similar situation. I own a rental house that has a well that is shared with a neighbor. The well is on my property & the pressure tank is under my house. My lawyer says if there is nothing written in the deed concerning the shared well, then I can do what I want with what is on my property. I just put in my fourth pump, have replaced wires 3 times and pressure switches maybe 4 times. The neighbor has never paid for any expenses, but does sometimes help with friends and relatives of his when we need to pull out the pump. When I started doing it all myself, I asked him to pay $50 per month to help cover costs. He did this for about 2 years & then that stopped about 8 months ago. I couldn't figure out what the problem was this time & I didn't have the time or help to do it myself, so I hired a professional to do the work. They replaced the pump & wires again, so I have to try to get money from the neighbor, while his wife is going through serious health problems. I can legally cut off their water, according to my lawyer, but I don't want to make any enemies & would feel guilty about making his wife any sicker. But choosing to cut off their water is easier when I see them buying new cars as I continue to repair & drive my old one. Also, I just found out that he has his own well, but he just can't afford to put in the pump, pipe, wiring, pressure tank & switch so he can have his own system. Anyway, my suggestion to you is to check the deed & the laws in your state & county. If there is nothing in writing requiring you to keep the water running for your neighbor, you may be legally able to cut them off. Of course, like in my case, you risk making an enemy.

[Step2001]

replying to Harry K, Step2001 wrote: Lmao zim in that situation now.

[ralph]

Tell the lazy free-loading democrats to get a job and pay to have their well fixed. Don't molly-coddle democrats, it just makes them even lazier.

[Thomas]

Figure out what the cost is and charge full price.

[Ben Wronged]

Years ago I might have done that, today not so much.

Lazy democrats are always looking fo free money. If they have their water tested and find something wrong with it, they'll get one of those sleazy late-night tv lawyers and sue yo ass. Even if you win, it will cost you thousands to defend yourself. There's nothing to gain and everything to lose. Send them packing ASAP.

[debi randel]

replying to JohnnieMarr, debi randel wrote: I also have the same question..howerever I think you are wanting to be paid for the existing well and all the happy crap that goes. With it...usage fine fees like the phone conversation...all that stuff was already paid for when it was installed by whoever....done deal..your sharing the daily cost of it operating now....put a clause in saying you will split cost if it breaks

[steve a.]

replying to JohnnieMarr, steve a. wrote: you answered your on question..you said "we agreed" We agreed that we would pay for the electricity along with the rest of our electricity,..why cry now?if your neighbor had of made the same agreement i sure if he was trying to go back on his word you would have a problem

[Leslie]

replying to Andy, Leslie wrote: Well said

[T Long]

replying to RBM, T Long wrote: Cost of electric used by pump .28 a hour to take a hour long cold shower cost $ 0.28 according to co Mo electric co op people have been paying way to much....

[VOTE out dumocrats]

replying to ralph, VOTE out dumocrats wrote: I agree with you 100%! MAGA.

[jessica69872006]

Did you ever find out what to do ? I am having the same issue . We rent and the water pump is in our yard. But the landlord said that will paying for the neighbors down below us also.

[trader_4]

From the limited info, it sounds like the water pump for a duplex is on your meter. Not unusual. Presumably the landlord told you this before you signed a lease or moved in. The landlord should have it in the lease. If you knew about it before, what's the issue? I hope the landlord didn't tell you to go collect money from the other tenant. The electric used for the pump isn't much, I'd think it's no more than $5 a month or so, unless it's used for lawn watering or similar.

[invalid unparseable]

Interesting to me as a well owner. Google tells me it could be costing about $2 a day for electricity. Landlord should adjust your rent to account for this. Maybe he already has. At least as a renter you are not responsible for well. I needed a new one two years ago and it cost me $7,000. I have enough water to supply our small development but thankfully do not have to.

[trader_4]

Sure, if you're watering an acre of lawn. A 1hp pump is about 750 watts. at 0.13 per kwh, that, 0.10 per hour. To get to $2, the pump would have to be running about 20 hours a day. If it runs an hour or two a day, it's ten or twenty cents.

The issue is if he told them before they rented. And even if he didn't when it's a few bucks a month in a rent that's probably 200 times that, I wouldn't go looking for trouble over it.

[Ed Pawlowski]

The only satisfactory answer is to never share a well. Either spit cost equally or put meters and split proportionally.

[trader_4]

Not really practical. There are many duplexes and similar, houses with two different tenants. Two meters would require two pumps and two separate water systems. Many, probably most of these were never built with that in mind. Even two pumps isn't possible, if it's a submersible, which is the most common type today. As I see it, it's a $2 a month issue. But if this renter plans on going to the other tenant to ask them to pay, I can see $2000 problems before it's over.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Can be done with one pump and pressure tank. In an older house it may be harder to split the systems but from scratch it is just a tee fitting and meters. In reality, the cost of the meters is probably 10 years of pump electricity.

[trader_4]

I would take bets that the cost of meters and all the other BS to solve a problem that does not exist is going to be a lot more than 10 years of pump electric usage. By my calculations, it's a couple bucks a month. So, to even it out, so that the other party is paying their $2 a month accurately, it would seem to me that it's going to cost a lot more than $240 bucks, ie ten years amount. And where does it end? I'm sure there are plenty of duplexes where the landlord told one on the tenants that they were responsible to mow the lawn. So now, what? Calculate that value to the dollar? If you were a landlord that had a duplex where the pump was on one tenant, what would you do? Tell the one tenant that's the way it is, you're paying it, or go re-plumb the place, put in more electric meters, etc?

[Ed Pawlowski]

Simple solution is the landlord pays the water bill. If it is $20 a month you factor $15 into each apartment.

[trader_4]

It isn't a water bill that the landlord receives. It's a water pump that is wired in to one tenant's electric meter and not separate from all their other usage. The simple solution is to explain that to the tenant, that they will be paying about $2 a month for the power attributable to the water for the other tenant, that the rent is $1000 a month and that's factored in. The alternate solution is to install water meters on both sides and an electric meter for the water pump, then periodically read them, calculate how much each tenant should pay and for the landlord to bill one $2 and send a check for $2 to the other tenant, or quarterly $6. That doesn't sound simple to me. And what do you think the new plumbing and electrical will cost? If I did that, the rent would be $1025. Is everyone better off?