Questions regarding well pump coming off/on...

My well pump comes on intermittently when no water is running. It stays on for a few seconds, then shuts off. This happens (maybe) once every couple or 3 hours. I called a plumber to look into the issue; he replaced an outdoor spigot and pipe. It reduced the number of times the pump comes on, but didn't eliminate it.

NOW, the same thing happens when CERTAIN FAUCETS are used. I turn on the faucet in the bathroom or kitchen and the pump comes on for a few seconds, then goes off. Obviously, the pressure varies when that happens, too.

It DOES NOT happen when the washer is used, or the shower, or the toilet. I don't know if it cycles on and off when the dishwasher is used, or not.

FYI, in 2009 I had to have a new water softener and hot water heater installed. At that same time, a whole house water filter was installed.

Does anyone have any ideas regarding what the issue might be? Thanks!

Running a few seconds before it goes off means your pressure tank is bad. The fact that it comes on when you are not using water, means that you have a leak somewhere. The leak could be in the check valve, as they wear out from cycling on and off just like the bladder in the tank and everything else in the system.

Where is the check valve? On the pressure tank? And why do I keep having to replace tanks? I've lived in this house 20 years and am on tank #3!

DanFromMI said:

Where is the check valve? On the pressure tank? And why do I keep having to replace tanks? I've lived in this house 20 years and am on tank #3!

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Cycling, cycling, cycling! The bladder in a tank bends back and forth when the pump cycles on and off, like bending a wire until it breaks. The brand of tank makes a lot of difference as well. I can't believe you haven't needed to replace the pump a few times. A new pump probably won't last as long. The check valve should be right on top of the pump. You may have another before the pressure tank. If so, they both maybe bad. If you have a shut off valve after the pressure tank, close it. If the pump still cycles on , you have a bad check valve. If the pump does not cycle, you have a leak after that shut off valve.

Remove any disposable cartridge filter and see what happens.

Check the air pressure in the pressure tank and adjust it to 1-2 psi less than the turn the pump on pressure switch setting with no water in the tank and see what that does. 30/50 psi gets 29-28 psi with no water in the tank. You may find you have a bad 'bladder', you'd not be able to drain all the water and/or you'd get water out the air valve.

Thanks for the replies, all! One question - WHY are only SOME of the faucets being turned on making the pump go on and off? Does that STILL mean it might be the filter, the check valve, or the bladder in the tank?

I'm sure all of the faucets will make the pump come on. How many GPM the faucet can draw down your storage and how many GPM the pump can provide to replenish that storage will determine how fast and how often the pump will cycle. The system needs to be examined and treated as a whole. Pump should be sized to well recovery rate and demand, pressure tank storage sized to pump and demand, fixtures sized to supply and demand, pressure adjusted for all of the above etc..

Valveman says:

Running a few seconds before it goes off means your pressure tank is bad. The fact that it comes on when you are not using water, means that you have a leak somewhere. The leak could be in the check valve, as they wear out from cycling on and off just like the bladder in the tank and everything else in the system.

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I'm surprised he didn't mention installing a Pside-Kick. A Pside-Kick will give you constant pressure and prevent cycling if you don't have a leak somewhere.