Well/Pump HELP!!!

I am a recent homeowner. I'm 25 and I bought this place 3 years ago. I've lived in a city all my life and this is my first experience on a well and septic. I'm having some really strange well/pump issues and I need some help. A little background - about a year ago the well did run out of water but has always recovered no problem if i let it sit. i would always kill the breaker so i wouldn't harm the pump.

Now all of a sudden I'm in the shower and the pressure dies off just like it used to.... no problem. I go into the basement while my roommate is in the shower to watch the guage.... it was fine the whole time and didn't run out on him. While i was watching it i noticed about every 2-5 seconds there is a banging on the inlet pipe and the pressure builds VERY slowly... like 1/2 hour to get from 30 to 55. as it is it hasn't built up enough pressure to hit the pressure switch. I cut the breaker. Now i know the well has water, there is no sediment and it is just not acting like it does when its out of water. I have no idea where to go from here? I let it sit for approx an hour and a half and same thing happens when i turn it on. the water out of the faucets isn't filled with air or anything, it seems to come out of the tap ok. I'm concerned about the banging and the pressure building so slowly. when it bangs you can watch the guage bounce a little and it barely moves 1 psi. normally when it runs dry and recovers the guage just goes up and up. i'm not sure what to do here and i'm kinda worried im in for a hefty bill i'd really appretiate the you experts helping out a n00b.

Thanks in advance guys.

Wayne

Questions - Submersible pump in well or jet pump at surface

deep well or driven well with screen

depth of well

how do you know its not running dry

is the pressure gauge reliable

If you are a newbie to mechanics, electricity and troubleshooting, you should call the WELL pro and get a estimate before allowing them to replace anything - maybe stop here and share it.

submersible sorry. deep well about 350+ feet.

i guess i don't know for sure its not running dry.... all i can say is that the water is clear etc.

the pressure guage has never been wrong before.

def not a n00b to mechanics or any of the rest. i just redid the kitchen last year, just came in from doing a motor swap in the garage etc. i just don't know about wells.

i just went down there after reading on here and checked the tank air valve to see if water or air came out and it was just air. i don't really think it has anythingn to do with my prob but i wanted to check what i could. i've had the breaker off since around 645 and i just put it back on at 11:00 my time to see what it'd do (let the well recover if it was dry etc) same thing banging every 2-3 seconds barely noticeable pressure increase if any. i'm worried.

Air in the tank, should be a good and correct thing, as it sounds like a captive air tank with a schrader valve on top.

Banging likely means the pump is running okay and moving some air with it, you might be running low on water. You might open the pipe from the well and turn it on, see what pushes out - color of water, spurts of air, nothing?

before you pull it, be sure the voltage and amp draw are within reason, and your control box, [ box with capacitors and relay for starting the pump] - if any -is working correctly.

I assume the banging is not from the pump turning on and off quickly and repeatedly.

it appears as though my "control box" is bypassed. i took the cover off and the wires are spliced together with the twist connects... the RED wire for "starting" is completely disconnected and hanging out in the box, tracing the wire reveals that the disconnected red wire is coming from down in the well. must've had to yank it when they bypassed the control. ugh not good. pressing and holding the reset on the control does nothing that i can tell. thats why i pulled the cover. a quick look at the diagram on the face is what lead me to believe it was bypassed.

i'll have the pump guy come tomorrow.

as it is now the power comes from the house box, into the pressure switch, then into a lightning protector, then to the twist connects and out to the well.

If it worked previously like that, it means that the original 3 wire pump with above ground starter box was replaced with a 2 wire pump that did not need the control. That's okay as it stands. Its not a neat and nice fix, but it does happen in order to get things going.

If the red wire was bypassed on a 3 wire pump it would never have moved water. So you are probably short on water...

have the well guy put in some low water protection - pumptec is around 140 bucks or so.

pump guy coming at 430 tonight to check it out. i turned i tback on this morning to see if it had recovered or anything had changed and it still does the same thing.

to better describe the noise its a small bang followed right away by a larger one. listening to the pipe with a metal flashlight reveals a slight whirring noise inbetween bangs, nothing else.

i will take your advice on the low water protection and get that put in. i gotta feeling shes gonna need a pump too

I just got home after some research on the internets led me to believe the pump was cycling. Turned off pump, drained tank, checked air pressure in tank - right at 30-32 psi which is right where it should be according to everything i've read regarding cut-in etc. turned pump back on. came immediately to 32-35 psi on the guage and same thing bang bang, very little pressure increase. hmmm tried calling the well guy (haven't heard from him all day) no answer. any ideas?