well tank problem

[Ralph Mowery]

I have a well that has an above ground pump. There is a bladder tank that holds about 2 to 3 gallons of water. Lately I noticed the water pressure cycling too much, like about 3 times in the time it takes to fill a one gallon jug.

Checked the bladder tank and the pressure at the tank was about 60 psi. Cut the well pump off and drained the pipes to the house. Then let air out of the tank to the recommended 2 psi below the cut in pressure switch to about 38 PSI. Worked better for a day or so. Then noticed the short cycling again. Cut well pump off and drained water pipes. The bladder tank was back up to almost 60 psi. I have done this several time.

Just how is that bladder tank making air ? There does not seem to be any water comming out of the air valve at the top of the tank that normally the bladder keeps the water out of. Looks like I should be getting water out of the valve if the bladder has a hole in it.

[invalid unparseable]

I'm not sure but thought you had to add air to bladder in tank. Also sounds like a very small tank. I've had to have my tanks replaced about every 10 years - the last one even though it seemed OK.

[Ralph Mowery]

Normally The tank should not gain or loose air. If anything it may leak out a small ammount of air just like your car tires.

I just can not undrestand why I have to let air out to matain the 38 psi with the pump off and the water pipes open.

It would be similar to having to let air out of your car tires just to matain the normal pressure.

That tank is somewhere around 5 years old. I am not sure how much it should hold, but the tank is about 3 to 4 feet tall and a foot and a half in diameter.

[invalid unparseable]

That is not as small as I thought. I think my old ones were that size but newer is bigger. I never had to deal with putting air in and once checked measured OK.

[Ralph Mowery]

I think this tank is suppose to hold about 3 to 4 gallons of water. There was one about half this size or smaller when I bought the house about 15 years ago. It went bad, but the bladder had burst or had a hole in it as water would come out of the air valve at the top when the stem was depressed.

So far this tank has not put out any water through the air valve so I am thinking the bladder should be ok. I can see adding air due to slow leaks over a number of years, but can not see how in a day or two it can gain air.

[gfretwell]

I am not sure why you are seeing what you see but I bet a new one fixes your problem.

[trader_4]

I only can think of one way this is possible. That would be if the bladder has failed and there is a small leak in a suction line from the pump to the well, if it's a conventional pump. Air can't be getting into a bladder that is intact and with the tank drained, that's the only pressure you're measuring. What happens if you slowly let all the air out of the bladder, with some pressure still in it? If the bladder is intact, no water should come out. Haven't tried that, but seems like a way to test for whether the bladder is intact or not.

[Ralph Mowery]

The bladder may have failed. That is the only way I can think of the tank holding pressure with the water line open . I guess it could have a small hole in it that is not letting much water in for now so it will not have any water comming out of the air valve. It sure puzzles me as to how I can let the air out to 38 psi and the next day it will be back up to 60 psi, but no water comming out of the air valve.

I think I will replace the tank and hope that solves the problem. I don't see any other way out.

[invalid unparseable]

Let us know how you make out. Over 2 years ago when I needed a new well the well digger put in a new bigger tank which he said old tank was failing but the plumber who first looked at my problem said pressure was OK in the old tank. The old might have been 10 years old and that was about all the lifetime I was getting from them.

[gfretwell]

You are lucky, I usually end up replacing them at around 5, just about when the warranty is up. Funny how that works.

I did have the original, true bladder, tank (fiberglass vessel) that came with the house and it lasted over 20 years. I tried to just find another bladder but it was an exercise in futility. I still have the tank.

[Ralph Mowery]

I have a plumber lined up for nextg week. I could replace the tank myself, but I hate dealing with plumbing problems. I did put that tank in myself a number of years ago,but forgot how long. If the bladder had a hole in it, I would think that the tank would work ok if it had air in the top and I may need to add air from time to time. Just do not see how it can keep building pressure and I keep letting air out.

[invalid unparseable]

I do little of my own work anymore. Might have the tools and knowledge but at my age things are tougher to do.

Have not had a well problem with the new one but if I do I will use the well contractor as problem could not be solved by the plumber.

At this very moment I have an appliance repairman looking at our electric stove which has been tripping breaker. Last week he could not find the problem and blamed the breaker and suggested we get an electrician to look at it. Electrician could find nothing wrong with the box or the breakers.

[hubops]

Re-check the cord < kink issues ? > and the connection block. ... although both the appliance guy and the electrician _should have_ checked this ...

I had a dryer cord fail at the connection block once .. after working fine for 5 years or more ..

John T.

[Ralph Mowery]

If those tanks are only good for about 5 to 10 years, then I guess it is time to replace this one as it is over 5 years old. I have been here for aboutg 15 years and have no idea how old the first one was as this house was about 20 years old when I bought it.

Replacing the tank would be easy for me, but as I have gotten older I would rather pay a reasonable ammount to someone else. I hate plumbing more than anything around the house other than painting.

Many companies have research teams to determin how long something will last. The they warrenty the items for about 10 % less.

[invalid unparseable]

That is a possibility but electrician did not pull out the stove to check. Repairman has it out now. When electrician was here he had all the burners on along with the stove and broiler and breakers held. Now with repairman here, oven breaker is popping. He's on the phone with Whirlpool service. My concern is that this repair bill might exceed cost of the stove.

Might also mention for ng that while electricians were here I had them check out cause of blinking lights in kitchen when wife was in the dining room. Turned out that it was due to led lights in the kitchen that are on a regular switch but dimmer switch in dining room can cause kitchen lights to blink since they are on the same circuit.

[invalid unparseable]

Plumber told us once that the main difference between water heaters with longer warranty was the higher price.

[Ralph Mowery]

I found a youtube video that shows the same thing my well pump system was doing. More air pressure building up in the bladder tank. It shows the bladder tank gaining air pressure when the bladder is bad. I still don't see how it can gain air pressure with the pipes open, but it does. Maybe if I let all the air out of the tank by the air valve water would start comming out.

Anyway I have a plumber comming out Monday morning to replace the tank. While it is simple enough to do it, I just hate plumbing so bad I am willing to pay a man a reasonable ammount to do it. Found some paper work on the tank and it is 6 to 7 years old so I guess that is about what others are getting out of their tanks.

[Ralph Mowery]

Iment to include the youtube link.

[trader_4]

Makes no sense to me that these tanks fails so quickly. It's just a plastic bag, inside a tank, not exposed to weather, UV, etc. I recall seeing ones, maybe they all have it, with a good size plug on top that the air fitting comes out of. I assumed you can get a new bladder and replace just that. Which would be a lot easier and cheaper, assuming the plug will come out and that's what it's there for. Also I still can't fathom how a broken bladder results in the tank gaining air. I would expect it to lose air, as the air is slowly absorbed into the water.

[Ralph Mowery]

I guess they fail because of all the flexing. One side is next to the water so if the water has something in it that could also make them fail sooner.

I can not think of how it makes and ar pressure. That is what had me puzzled before I found the video and another showed his gaining air. I know on the older tanks with out a bladder people often had to add air. Maybe the air pressure builds up from a small hole and I did not leave the water line open long enough for the air to bleed out of the bladder.