Pressure Switch Problems

I don't know how many others have this problem, but my fear is my system is acting perfectly, but it is not what I want it to do. I have a well with two pressure tanks and a pressure switch in my basement. The pressure switch is a basement type which has the standard 40 psi cut-in and 60 psi cut-out. That usually works just fine. However, I have to irrigate my grass with the well, and if the pressure gets down to 30 psi, the pump turns off, because it is a basement switch, and it was designed to have the pump turn off as it "thinks" that the pump is flooding the basement since it is pumping against such a low head. At least I thought that is how they were designed. So, I have done everything I can to adjust my irrigation use in order to prevent the pressure from going below 30 psi. But we cannot do laundary, take a shower, or run the dishwasher when the irrigation is going since it will drop the pressure below 30. The pump is running fine, the tanks are fine (I replaced them when they became waterlogged a couple of years ago). The pressure switch is fine (I replaced it a couple of years ago). So, what I am seeking is a pressure switch where the pump cuts in at 40 psi, cuts out at 60 psi, and the pump won't shut off until I get down to say 10 or 20 psi. Anyone have any thoughts on this or am I totally nuts?

Thanks.

You have a low pressure cut-off switch with the little brass lever on the side. You can get a standard pressure switch without the lever, and it won't shut the pump off on low pressure. However, it won't shut the pump off at low pressure. So if you have a line break, it is going to flood. You might try cutting your sprinkler zones in half, and run them twice as long. Just have to make sure you don't cut the zones down so small, that it makes your pump cycle on and off.

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately that is what I thought as well. It would be difficult to cut my sprinkler zones in half in order to fix the problem as the lawn and flower beds are extensive and well established. Maybe I could go ahead and use the standard pressure switch during irrigation season and then replace it with the basement switch in the winter....

I also have a second well that I have been attempting to get going on the property and got all running and isolated from the house well, but unfortunately the well is a cascading well (sounds good but it just means that the case has failed somewhere, and I don't think that there is enough depth to keep the pump covered because when I pulled it last fall, there was only about four feet between the bottom of the pump to the bottom of the well and the inlet to the pump was at the water surface. So, my alternative may be to get a driller out there and deepen the well......lots of bucks......just for some green grass......

Thanks,

If the good well will supply enough water, you could put in a larger pump to keep the pressure higher.

You can get a pressure switch that doesn't have a low-pressure cutoff. In fact, that is the more usual switch.

The low pressure cutoff is set at about 10 psi less than the cut-on pressure on many of the switches and is not otherwise adjustable. Maybe there are some that have an adjustable cutoff.

You could get a standard (no cutoff) switch and connect both switches. Set the no-cutoff switch to the tank pressure range you want. Set the cutoff switch to the minimum cut-on pressure around 20 psi. The low-pressure cutoff will then be about 10 psi.

That won't solve your pump-capacity problem. You could use a reverse-acting switch to cut off the irrigation when the pressure drops too low.

If you can break into the irrigation control and get access to the wire that powers the valves without disabling the timer logic you could put a 30/50 psi reverse acting switch in that line. When the pressure drops to 30 it cuts off the irrigation, and when it rises to 50 it turns on the irrigation before the pressure is high enough to shut off the pump.

The pressures mentioned are for illustration purposes. You can pick the pressure settings that accommodate your needs and the pump capacity.

I don't think you can use a low pressure cut-off switch in conjuction with a standard switch. The low pressure swith will still work the pump on and off at 20/40, and not let the standard switch work.

Putting a reverse acting switch on the sprinkler wires, will just shut off the spriklers when you are using water in the house. Then your timer won't make up for the irrigation time lost.

Thanks for all of the ideas. It looks like it boils down to either getting a larger pump, if a well test demonstrates that there is enough water, living with the potential of a flood in my basement, or potentially deepening my second well. I think that my insurance agency would have a problem if I replaced the basement switch with a standard switch and I actuall did have a break in the basement that would not stop, so that is out. It's down to either replacing the pump, or deepening my second well....or just take showers, wash clothes, and the like during the day time since my irrigation runs at night.