Is my pump too big

Hello Plumbers,

I have a sizing question. Here are the particulars of my set up

-25' overall well depth
-19' static water level
-4' stainless steel point
-1 1/4 galvanized pipe
-14 gallon wel x trol bladder tank
-1 1/2 F & W shallow well pump set up for 230v
-I use a pitcher pump to prime the pump

I used the pump a little toward the end of last year but experienced a problem with holding a vacuum on the suction side of the pump. I am going to eliminate two unions in the suction line by moving the pump from the pit (well head) horizontally 10 feet to my cottage basement.

My concern is that although I got a great deal on this pump, it may be pulling too much vacuum.

-Should I trade down to a 1/2 or 3/4 hp.
-Should I sink the point to the previous depth of 31' (same hole) Dont know why I stopped at 25!!
-is the slight kick back on my pitcher pump handle due to not having approx 2 times the point length of water in the pipe (25' minus 19'=6') If I went to 31 I would have 12' of water.

Thanks for you input!

Mayfly

It sounds like it is but do you have a foot valve and is it preventing a loss of prime?

I do not have a foot valve. I was wondering if you could only put a foot valve in if you had a casing. Can I put a foot valve in with just the 1 1/4 inch galvanized pipe if I use the same hole?

I am going to pull the point this weekend anyway to check all the connections. I have two 10 foot sections, the 4' point and an 18" section down the hole currently and will put a 5 foot section on instead of the 18" to get the point down to the original depth of the point.

Sound good to you?

Thanks!

If a pump tries to draw more water than the point can give, it will cause cavitation. This means you are sucking the air molecules out of the water. This can cause you to lose prime the same as a suction leak. Getting rid of the unions on the suction side is good. A check valve on the suction side would also be good. If your pump is trying to suck more water than it can get, you can throttle the discharge with a ball valve to limit the amount it can pump.

If it worked there before, I would go there again. If this is an 1-1/4" Well, you can't use a Foot Valve. Try to get the Check Valve as close to the well as possible.

bob...