Pump runs continuously

[GaWebneck]

A little background - I'm buying a foreclosure home with a well. The house was "winterized" to keep pipes from freezing. I'm assuming this just means that the pipes were drained and water was turned off. Yesterday I opened all the water valves, turned the power on, and turned the power to the well on. The well immediately started pumping water, faucets, toilets, everything running great. However, when I went under the crawlspace to check the hotwater heater I noticed that the pressure release valve was open and water was draining from the hotwater heater. I immediately looked at the pressure tank for the well and the PSI was around 120+.

Shouldn't the pressure switch have cut the pump off? By the way, the pressure switch is a square D 20/40. Should I just try adjusting the cut out pressure on the pressure switch? I can't imagine that the previous owner would have had it set that high.

 

[GaWebneck]

Fixed my own problem

Looks like no one had any suggestions on this one...thats OK though because at long last I figured it out.

I replaced the pressure switch to no avail - as as soon as I turned the pump back on the pressure would immediately climb nonstop over 100psi. I guessed correctly that the switch itself wasn't getting pressure from the nipple. When I removed the nipple it was almost completely sealed with mineral deposits. I replaced the nipple and everything works great.

 

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[Raucina]

Good thing you had a water heater. You should add a relief valve at the switch area also. If you have a lot of junk in the water you might add a "Y" type screen valve at the pressure switch to reduce such issues.