HELP! my pump is driving me insane!

Okay! I think my pump is trying to drive me and my husband insane! Help me please. I live north of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

We have a:
Shallow well with lots of water in it (we checked and we're tapped into a underground vein of water)
Mastercraft 1/3 hp jet pump
Red Lion captive air tank model R14 #604456 (max working pressure 100psi)
and a really big head ache!!!

About 3 weeks ago, when we would use the water, after about a minute, the water would cut out on us and then start up again after a few seconds. Then those few seconds would get longer and longer. Until, you'd be in the shower and it would cut out for like 10 minutes. We checked the pump and the pressure gage said 0 and then it would build up and work. We were asking around if anyone knew why but were getting different answers.

About a week ago, the pump started working all the time. The minute we realized the pump was on even when no water was being used, we unplugged it. Because my husband was working so much, he couldn't get to it right away, so we would plug in the pump when we needed it (flush the toilet, take showers,do dishes and fill containers) , and unplug when we were done. Once he could get to it a couple of days later, it went caput! We plugged in the pump and nothing happened.

My husband has gotten it working again by installing a new the pressure switch (i think that's what you call it) it's a 30/50. Then it wouldn't keep the prime so he pulled up the pipe in the well and discovered the foot valve had come off. He installed a new foot valve, the check valve, and got a new gage for the pump.

Now we have very low water pressure and the pump will get hot were the water comes in (at the front of the pump),

Is there something that needs to be tweeked? Can anyone help??? before my husband takes a sledge hammer to the damn thing?

I don't know if this info will help any, but last summer we changed ALL the plumbing in the house from old ratty 1/2 inch pipes to 3/4-1/2 inch flex-pipe.
(3/4 mains to 1/2 inch run offs). Could this mean we need a stronger pump? Is this part of the problem?


Thank you for reading this long thing. any help will be DEEPLY appreciated.

Check the static pressure in the bladder tank. If it is too high (or higher than the turn-on pressure), you'll run out of water prior to the pump starting. The pressure switch may have been fried by frequent starts. If the pressure is off on the tank, then that could cause it. If the pressure in the tank is too high, it won't hold much water (if any) causing the pump to turn off before it has had a chance to store much in the tank. Again, causing it to run more frequently.

To check it, turn off the pump, open a faucet and leave it open until the water stops running (leave it open for now). Using a tire pressure gauge, check the pressure in the tank. Set it to 2# less than the turn-on (28). Let it sit for a few minutes, check it again to see if it is leaking down. If you get any water out of the valve, the tank is almost certainly shot. If it holds water, close the faucet, turn on the pump and see what happens.

Almost all pressure switches are adjustable. Make sure your pressure gauge is working.

I don't know how big your tank is. If you don't know the gallons, can you give us height and diameter. We do both cm and inches so give us what is convenient. I still have to look up the conversion for psi to kPa but I can deal with kPa if necessary.

A 1/3 HP jet pump is pretty small for most modern household demands. Higher pressure puts more demands on the pump and reduces capacity.

I would start by adjusting the pressure to 20 psi start and 40 psi off. The point is to try to get the system working reliably while it is easy on the pump. A 1/3 HP pump may have trouble making 50 psi if it is not in top condition. You will increase the pressure later if all is working well.

Then, put about 15 psi of air in the tank when the tank is empty. That is lower than I would usually start with, but I want to give you some water after the pump comes on before you run out of water.

Now, make sure the pump is primed and pumping well.

If you can't get the pump to fill the tank and shut off when there is no demand, then there is another problem. You could have a plugged jet, or an air leak in the suction line, or a plugged screen, or a worn out pump, or other things I haven't thought of. If it still doesn't work, come back and tell us the results of trying the first things.

If the motor was stopping completely and the switch points were closed, your overload protector is tripping. This means you have something wrong with the motor. More than likely a burned winding which means the motor is on it's way out.

You say you plugged it in. Is that like a wall plug? If so, this motor should be hard wired to a breaker.

If your tank is bad, that could be the reason the motor is going bad. They don't like to cycle.

bob...