Air bladder pressure rises

[Jack Goetz]

I have been living in this house since 1990 with a deep submersible pump, a diaphragm holding tank and a water conditioning system. Other than normal issues over the last 22 years the system has worked flawlessly.

Within the last two months a strange thing has been happening. I notice the pump cycling frequently and when I watch the pressure gauge as water is being used in the house, it runs to full pressure and then as soon as the pressure begins to drop the pump comes back on and it continues to cycle maintaining maximum pressure (about 65 lbs.).

My low pressure cutoff is set to 40 lbs. I keep the air bladder pressure at about 35-38lbs.

What I have noticed recently is when I shut the power off to the pump and drain the tank the air pressure will be 55-65 lbs. How could the pressure be rising in the bladder once I have set it to 35lbs? When I let pressure out of the bladder the system cycles normally between 40 and 65lbs. It takes about 1-2 weeks until I notice the same issue.

So my question is: What would cause pressure increase in the diaphragm of a holding tank?

[LLigetfa]

The bladder has a leak. Sometimes a leak can be uni-directional, resulting in the pressure jacking up. It's time to replace the bladder or the tank.

[valveman]

When the bladder is leaking, the water gets on top of the bladder and increases the pressure in the air chamber. You are going to need a new tank. Cycling on and off is what causes the bladder to break, like bending a wire back and forth until it breaks. Then when the bladder is broken, the excessive cycling will soon take out the motor as well. The following link will show you how to replace that tank and solve your cycling problem at the same time.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jANyiSSWD9U

[craigpump]

I bet if you hold the down the core in the air charge valve on the tank some water will come out. A sure sign the bladder or diaphragm has ruptured. Replace the tank.