well pump pressure switch change

i believe the pressure switch on my well pump is bad, is a swap pretty straight forward? shut if off, drain the system, disconnect, reconnect, turn back on???

Set the air pressure in the tank to 2 psi less than the cut-in on the new switch. Make sure the switch mounting nipple isn't plugged.

331camaro wrote:i believe the pressure switch on my well pump is bad, is a swap pretty straight forward? shut if off, drain the system, disconnect, reconnect, turn back on???

Yep that pretty much sums it up. However it may be possible that the little tube from the water line to the pressure switch may be just clogged with gunk. If you are in a hurry, I would first off check that tube. Just follow your order above.


Final thing to add is to monitor the pressures after installing the new switch. I think most are preset to come on at 30 psi and off at 40.




Rick

the nipple on the housing is just a galve nipple with a small piece of rubber house, take it out blow it out with the air gun?

im tempted to first try and blow out that line first, we have hard water pump hasnt been service in who knows how long. pump is outside in a small well house, i ran an extension cord and plugged in the heat trace for the night. momma aint gonna be too happy when i tell her no showers lol

Set the air pressure in the tank to 2 psi less than the cut-in on the new switch

howcome? please explain further

Usually the pressure switch is set at 30/50psi but you can buy preset 40/60 which i use as it pumps up a hill. Does this help..

http://inspectapedia.com/water/Water_Ta ... Adjust.htm

331camaro wrote:im tempted to first try and blow out that line first, we have hard water pump hasnt been service in who knows how long. pump is outside in a small well house, i ran an extension cord and plugged in the heat trace for the night. momma aint gonna be too happy when i tell her no showers lol

Its the galvanized nipple that usually clogs. That requires removing the switch and pushing some wire or using a small drill bit to make sure it is fully open from the pipe into the switch. You may have to disconnect the wires to unthread the switch from the "T."




Rick

I installed an M4 switch so that when the pump loses pressure as in when water demand is too high the pressure drops to say 20psi the pump switches off and the system has to be reset:

http://www.waterwell.cc/m4howto.htm

You don't have one of these do you? If so they have to be manually reset.

line going to pressure switch was clogged thanks so much for the tips guys. just a small rubber jumper with galve fittings

With the power and pressure off the system the air pressure in the tank is set at 2 pound less than cut in because....

After the power is back on & the tank is full, as you use water, the pump does not run at first. The air pressure pushes the water out of the tank, as the bladder pushes the water out, the pressure drops, drops, and just before the bladder empties the tank, the pump comes on. If the air pressure was equal or more then the cut in pressure, the tank would empty, pressure would drop to zero for an instant, water at the faucet would stop briefly, then the pump would come on with a slam. By having 2 pounds of air pressure below cut in, it insures an uninterrupted supply of water and a smooth transition from pump off to pump on. With it set that way, the tank does not quite empty before the pump comes on.


<edit for typo & addition of last sentence>

331camaro wrote:......... momma aint gonna be too happy when i tell her no showers lol

So I guess you were a hero last night ????



Glad to hear you got it up and running. But go out and get a spare switch and short nipple.
Better to have it and not need it rather than posting on a forum on a Sunday night..........



Rick

Freddy wrote:After the power is back on & the tank is full, as you use water, the pump does not run at first. The air pressure pushes the water out of the tank, as the bladder pushes the water out, the pressure drops, drops, and just before the bladder empties the tank, the pump comes on. If the air pressure was equal or more then the cut in pressure, the tank would empty, pressure would drop to zero for an instant, water at the faucet would stop briefly, then the pump would come on with a slam. By having 2 pounds of air pressure below cut in, it insures an uninterrupted supply of water and a smooth transition from pump off to pump on. With it set that way, the tank does not quite empty before the pump comes on.

Excellent explanation Freddy.

thanks guys. deffinetly putting one on the shelf. cant fail on a nice sunny day in july, had to be snowin n blowin.

331camaro wrote:line going to pressure switch was clogged thanks so much for the tips guys. just a small rubber jumper with galve fittings

I need to clean the silt from the pump housing to the pressure switch every 6 months