***Help***Pressure tank/pressure switch/pump

[s4orce]

Here is a little history:
I woke up Friday morning and I noticed the pressure was really low, I paid no mind because I thought the wife was doing some laundry. On the following Monday, I still noticed low pressure so I decided to check the pump. It was spraying water from a hairline crack and the pump was constantly running. I repaired the pvc fittings both before and after the pump, but it still keeps running. I checked the pressure on the pressure tank since it has a tire valve on top, it was approximately 15-18 psi. I seeked tha advice of a person whom I thought was knowledgeabe and was advised to bleed the tank, so I let the air out. The pump still runs non stop. I seeked the advice of my neighbor who is more knowledgeable on pump set ups...it appears that the pressure switch is very hard to move. Is this normal? I have been reading the forums here for the past 3 days, sometimes it gets a little confusing as to the steps necessary. I am relatively handy, I just need to know what is wrong since I don't know how to test the pressure switch or the pressure tank.
What I have:
-I live in FL, so the well is about 60-70 feet deep.
-I have a 3/4 hp sta-rite pump next to the pressure tank.
-I have a blue pressure tank, but I am unsure of the size, it is probably about 2 ft.-2.5 ft. high. It has a valve on top. I don't know if it is a bladder tank or any other for that matter, I am not familiar with these setups at all.
-I think I have a 30/50 pressure switch.
-I checked the pressure on the tank this morning and it had none---0--- was this because I drained it?

My questions:
1. Do I need to pump air back into the pressure tank? Do I do this by a regular pump into the valve on top? To what pressure, 28 psi?
2. Do I need to replace the pressure tank?
3. Do I need to replace the presure switch?
4. Please don't tell me I have to replace the pump!

Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks!

[vleespet]

Let me try if I learned anything from the pro's here on the forum.

Cut the power off and drain the water from the pressure tank.
Then put 28 PSI of air in the tank(2 PSI below cut in pressure of 30).

turn the power back on and see what happens...if it has a 30/50 pressure switch it should stop at 50.
If not maybe the line from the pressure switch is clogged or the pressure switch is bad.You can buy a 30/50 square D pressure switch pretty cheap at the HD.

Worse case scenario is that you might have a busted line somewhere between the pump and the house.

But let some of the pro's react on this one...I might be going in the right direction though

[Gary Slusser]

To have zero pressure (on a good water pressure gauge), you have no water.

The PVC may have gotten hot and breaked... as my daughter used to say. If so expect the pump impeller to have breaked too. If so you won't get much if any water (to cause pressure).

Yes get the air back in the tank, and don't check the pressure there when there is water in the tank because you measure water pressure then (it will be the same as on the water pressure gauge if they both are good, not the air pressure.

Then shut off the water to the house. Turn on the pump, you may have to prime it, and see if the water pressure gauge rises. If not, the pump isn't moving water from the well. It could be a leaking foot valve in the well if there is no pressure or if you can't prime the pump. Go get the dumbass that told you to bleed the air pressure and have him help pull the drop pipe to replace the foot valve. Tell'im the beer is on him.

[s4orce]

Here is the thing though...I have water in the house with the pump on. Pressure in the house is as it was before this incident. It is just that the pump never stops running. So I have to manually turn it on and off which is becoming a pain in the A**. Could the fact that there is no pressure in the tank be causing the pump to run non-stop or caould it just be a bad pressure switch. The pump has a spiget at the top, with the pump on, the pressure from this spiget is great, as it always was. I will put 28 psi back in the tank with it empty, then turn the pump back on and let it fill with water. If the pump still does not shut off, then I will change the pressure switch. Do you think those are good ideas?

[jadnashua]

One thing that can happen is that the line to the pressure switch becomes clogged and the switch can't sense the pressure properly. You definately need pressure in your tank, so do that regardless. You might want to disconnect the pipe to the pressure switch and check thatit is clear of rust/debris.

[Raucina]

Be sure to have a new pressure gauge, they fail often and reliably.

What is the pressure at the pump when it is running forever?

Is it less than the shut of setting of the switch?

Seems you have a leak or a pump that is weak.

Shut off the pump manually when no water is being used. Watch the pressure gauge. If it goes down, its a leak.

What was the cause of the original broken pipe? If it was an overpressure condition because of a bad switch you may have more breaks underground.

[s4orce]

I guess I just give up! I increased the pressure in the tank to 32 psi...should this be at 48 psi for a 30/50 pressure switch? What happens now is the water pressure drops to about 30psi then the pump kicks on, but the time it gets to 30 psi, the water pressure on my second floor is really low, so low, it is at the point of almost no flow, but then the pump kicks on and the flow increases. This hapens about every 30 secs or so. I am at the point where I just give up. Do I need to increase the pressure in the tank to 48 psi?

[sammyhydro11]

What type of pump do you have,is it a deep well jet pump??With your well depth i would imagine it would be a single pipe deep well jet setup.If your pump is turning on at 30 psi you should have 28 lbs. of air in the tank. What is the highest pressure that pump gets to?? Do you have any filters inline?

SAM

[MaxBlack]

Any advice will be appreciated.

Time to call-in a professional.

[Rancher]

I increased the pressure in the tank to 32 psi...should this be at 48 psi for a 30/50 pressure switch? What happens now is the water pressure drops to about 30psi then the pump kicks on, but the time it gets to 30 psi, the water pressure on my second floor is really low, so low, it is at the point of almost no flow

I'm assuming you drained the tank of all the water and then raised the pressure in the tank to 32 psi? Correct? If so that was wrong, for a 30/50 switch it should be set at 28, do not set it for 48.

Rancher

[speedbump]

it appears that the pressure switch is very hard to move

You said the switch was hard to move. What did you mean by that? What part is hard to move?

You need a good gauge to be sure of these pressures.

bob...

[s4orce]

*******Yaaaaay!!!! It has been fixed...after a week of frustrations, failed attempts to DIY and $485 later ...the professional came out and installed a Goulds J10s Plus, 1 HP jet pump . Apparently the pump was weak and was not putting out more than 35 psi . I guess I could have just bought the pump and installed it myself, I was just at my wits end.

Thanks to all for their input in m attempt to DIY!