Proper pressures for well/acum. tank

[erupert]

I see that there are lots of questions on the board about low pressure. I am wondering what is the proper line pressure High/low for good pressure in the house.

Some Background:
House built in 2000, 4 full baths plus a 1/2 bath. Separate HW tank for the master bath. 220' well. WellXtrol accum. tank.

I checked the bladder in the tank the other day and it was reading about 48PSI. The tank instructions say to make it about 3PSI lower than the cutoff. I seem to remember that adjusting the screws is how the high/low is set. What should be the "normal" high pressure be? What's the best way to cycle the system to check the high/low kickout. Use someone in the house to run the water and tell them when to stop?

Pressure is just lame in our master shower. The other's aren't too bad. I've tried changing out the whole cartridge insert in the shower but it hasn't helped.

[jadnashua]

The static pressure when the pump is off is the high side...you indicated 48 pounds, so (since the gauges aren't super accurate), I'd guess that your turn off pressure is set at 50. There is typically a 20 pound difference, so it would turn on at 30. Just run some water and watch the pressure gauge...it will probably cycle between those two numbers.

You could try bumping the pressure to 60/40 from what you have. You'd need to adjust the bladder tank pressure up to about 38 pounds though. I'm not sure if you would need a new pressure switch...as I'm not sure if both the turn-on/off are adjustable. One of the pros can answer that.

An alternative might be to replace your constant speed pump (cycle on/off) with a continuous pressure pump. This will likely cost more to both operate and purchase, but you can get one to provide pretty much whatever 'normal' pressure you want in the house.

My unprofessional experience.

[rshackleford]

Take of the lid of the pressure switch. Inside should be detailed isntructions on how to adjust the switch.

[erupert]

Take of the lid of the pressure switch. Inside should be detailed isntructions on how to adjust the switch.

I looked once before, seems like you turn the sec screws to adjust. The tag on the bladder indicated that bladder should be inflated to 3 PSI less than the high-pressure side. That would indicate an increase to 57 PSI for a high side of 60 PSI. Was 38 a typo (previous message).

While I am sure that I can read the directions on setting the pressures, I was really consulting the board to make sure that I didn't set too high a pressure and cause damage. Also, is 20PSI the common "spread" for high to low?

Thanks!

[jadnashua]

The bladder needs to be just below the LOW pressure turn on point, or the pump will not store any water in the tank! So, for a 40/60 system, about 38 pounds is correct. If not, you'll short cycle the pump, and it will run each time you open a faucet.

[speedbump]

If you have a switch with two adjustments, you can use the short one to increase the differential to 30 psi. This will put a little more water in the tank and make the pump run a little longer when water is being used. This can save wear and tear on the motor.


bob...

[erupert]

The bladder needs to be just below the LOW pressure turn on point, or the pump will not store any water in the tank! So, for a 40/60 system, about 38 pounds is correct. If not, you'll short cycle the pump, and it will run each time you open a faucet.

Thanks for the clarification. So, is 40/60 a common setup? Would 40/70 yield a better flow or is that dangerous as far as blowing a line is concerned?

[speedbump]

We do it all the time with no consequences.


bob...