Thread: Tank losing pressure within minutes

I have a shallow well pump maybe as old as 15 years. My bladder tank was replaced when I bought the house 5 years ago. Lately I've noticed that the pump runs long (and loud) and sometimes comes on for no reason when there is no water usage.
This has gotten much worse in the last 2 days. Sometimes the water runs out completely before the pump kicks on.

After reading quite a bit here at this forum I checked my tank pressure. When the pump finally kicks off the tank pressure reads 56 psi. Then within minutes slowly drops to 32 psi (maybe 15-20 minutes). It even does this with the shut-off valve fully closed.
Does the pump itself have a check valve in it? Or is the check valve further up the line to the well?

The pump is a Flint & Walling model 135365 1/2 hp
What do you recommend?

You said it's a shallow well pump so the check valve should be in the well. That's not to say it is though. There are other ways of stopping the water from going back down the well. They are just not the approved method. You should look at the line coming into the pump and see if there is a check valve there or not.

You could have a totally waterlogged tank. That could explain the drop in pressure when there is not water use. Just a little drip in the sink or toilet could cause this to happen. If the tank is not water logged (check by turning off pump, letting all pressure out of the system then measuring the air pressure) then you must have a leak somewhere. Turn off the main valve to isolate the house. If the pump still comes on, then the leak would be from the valve to the well somewhere.

If turning off the valve stops the pump from cycling, check your toilets for leaks.

The fact that your pump doesn't come on when it should, could mean the tubing of fittings feeding the pressure switch could be plugging up.

bob...

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I did isolate the house pluming by turning off the main supply valve. The pressure still goes down in the tank.
The piping coming from the basement wall is pvc. There is only about 3 feet of piping and non valve to be seen. I was thinking of replacing the pump/motor assembly if i can find one with an internal check valve. Does such athing exist?

Also can anyone explain the term waterlogged?
Does this mean a tear or hole in the bladder?
How can I tell is this is the case?

The only pump I know of that contained a check valve was the old Sears SWJ pump. And you don't want one.

The valve should be in the well. This way when you do have a leak, the water going back tells you there is a problem. This leak could be in the suction line going out to the well. You know what Dog's and Cats do on your lawn, and with a small leak in the suction line, some of this stuff could end up in your house water. I would start looking for the leak by starting in the well. If it's not there, replace the suction line.

Waterlogged means full of water instead of having a lot of air to compress. It can happen to Galvanized tanks or Bladder tanks if the bladder is ruptured.

bob...

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