16 yr old well - what do do?

[mike2100]

Hello everyone, let me start by describing my house and well, followed by my dilemma.

House was built in 1996. My wife and I bought it from her parents in 2010.

It was originally built with only well water in mind. But because it's in a suburb, the city eventually plumbed water to the neighborhood, so one of the expansion tanks and the water softener were removed and the well now only provides water to the sprinkler system. The house has 2.5 bathrooms to give you an idea of how the well might have been planned.

The well is a deep well, two pipes, drilled in the corner of the garage (underneath the water heater of all places). The pump sits atop the expansion tank about 3 feet from the well, and 3 feet on the other side of the pump are the plumbing connections to the house and sprinkler system. All of this is in the garage.

The current pump is a Wayne JCU50. Specs here:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...1417_200311417
This is the second pump the house has had. Tomorrow I'll ask my father-in-law if the original pump was the same model, and if not did he replace the ejector at the same time.

My problem and dilemma: The pump is leaking, a slow drip that is making a wet, rusty mess of the garage floor. My first inclination was to replace the pump with something from Home Depot, until I did research and realized I needed to use the same pump that's in there because of ejector-to-pump matching. Upon further research I found that as wells age, the ejector is subject to scale buildup... and my current conclusion is that in the near future I might as well re-dig a new well and change to a submersible pump - since I'd have to replace the ejector anyway (and that sounds like a labor-intensive job).
To further complicate matters, we're going to have to move at the end of this year (military) and rent out the house. I need to come up with a solution that will 1) last a long time, 2) survive renters, and 3) not be that expensive.
To be honest, I'm considering just connecting the city water to the sprinkler system and letting the renters decide whether they are willing to pay to water the lawn... then find a permanent solution when I move back into the house. That is, unless I'm overestimating the amount of repairs required for my well.

What do you experts advise?
Thanks in advance

[valveman]

To be honest, I'm considering just connecting the city water to the sprinkler system and letting the renters decide whether they are willing to pay to water the lawn... then find a permanent solution when I move back into the house.

I would hook up to the city water for now. If you have a pump that requires any maintenance, it won't get done. It is not like renters are going to take care of the yard anyway. Either hire an irrigation firm to take care of the pump and yard, or don't worry about it until you get back.

[mike2100]

If I decided to not be cheap, what would the ideal solution look like and about how much would it cost? Thanks!

[valveman]

New Pump DIY 500 bucks. Contractor installed $1,000.
Pull pipe and install new ejector DIY $200. Contractor installed $500.
New well drilled ???