Does anyone know how underground wells work? We have a new house with well water and are trying to figure?

Question

out why our water is suddenly not working. There is no water coming out. Wondering if we have our own well or if it is a shared well with other neighbors. Any insite is appreciated. Thanks

Answer 1

2 choices of pumps 1 submersible..will be in well...could be bad or have broke wire going to it...2 jet pump...above ground...2 types ...deep well and shallow well...1 deep well has 2 pipes going into well with jet and footvalve at bottom of pipe...2 shallow well has one pipe and will not be over 35 feet...jet is either bolted on pump or made into it... will have footvalve at bottom of pipe....With either pump could be knocked breaker or it might have a low pressure cutoff switch, this is a pressure switch with a handle on the side of it that you have to hold up to get pump to start....jet pump could have lost its prime..no water in pipes...this happens if footvalve is bad or well was pumped dry or your lines going to well bursted....could be water tank is water logged and it has a low pressure cutoff switch that shut the system down...there will be a water tank and it should be a captive air tank(airbag tank)...air pressure needs to be 3 psi less than kick on pressure of pump with power off and faucet open with no water in tank....if pump kicks on at 30 psi should be 27 psi air...if pump kicks on at 20 should be 17 psi air in tank.....check breaker first...then switch...

Answer 2

well(no pun intended), since it's a new house, did you get what is known as a 'well disclosure' with the house from your real-estate agent? Most states require one with the sale of a residence. Basically, that gives you the information about the well. Contact your real-estate agent and ask them, if nothing else they can put you in contact with the previous owner.
As mentioned before, there are usually two types of wells. A shallow well, and a deep well. A shallow well is usually serviced by what is known as a 'shallow well pump' or a 'jet pump'. Find the well in your yard ( or in some cases, it's in the basement). Is there a building of some sort built over it? If there is, look inside and see if there's a tank with a motor on top with piping attached to a pipe going to the ground. That's a shallow well, with a shallow well pump. There should be a pressure guage on the tank, and it should show in the neighborhood of 35 psi to 60 psi. If it shows 0, and the pump isn't running, there's your problem. It could be a simple thing like a pressure switch(a switch that senses how much pressure is in the tank and dictates when to turn on the pump) or the motor or pump itself could be bad. Check fuses first, then if you still have no luck, try plugging the pump into an extension cord to a different outlet that you know works, if there's a standard plug in on it. If the pump is running, and no pressure, it's cheaper to just go to the hardware store and buy a new pump. You can first try to prime it, there's a square plug looing thing on the top of the pump (the cone shaped end) That you can dump water in. As you do this, if water starts shooting out, then you've successfully reprimed it. The sound will noticably change, and you'll have water in no-time. Otherwise, go buy a new pump(just the pump, you shouldn't need a tank).
If there's just a pipe hangin' out in the middle of the yard somewhere, with a small conduit running to a cast iron cap, then you've got a deep well, with a submersable pump. Inside your house there should be a pressure tank. It's where the plumbing comes into your house from the well. Find it. Get a tire pressure guage, if there isn't a guage already installed on it, and check the pressure. Again, you're looking for the 35-60 psi. If that's not there, then you can pretty much go through the same steps as a shallow well pump(without the priming part, obviously). There should be a pressure switch on or near the tank. It's a small square box, with wires or conduit coming out of it, and it's plumbed into the tank. Try replacing that first. If that doesn't solve your problem, then you'll have to look into getting a plumber or well driller in to replace your submersable. I wouldn't reccomend that task yourself.

Oh, if you have pressure, in a deep well, and no water, then there is a possibility that you have a bad pressure tank.

One last thing....If your water filter is plugged, you won't have water either....Check that too. It's a large jar looking thing with a pipe coming into the top from two sides.

Hope this gives you a few ideas!

Answer 3

It is not likely that you shaer a well. Check the circuit breaker to see if the one for the well is tripped. If it is try resetting. If that is not it, or if it trips again you will need to check the pump. I would call someone for this if you have no experience. Depending on the type of pump it may have to be pulled up from the well which involves disconnecting the water line from the pump. Of course the well could have run dry. Have you been using a great deal of water? If that is it you may ahve to wait a couple of days for the well to recharge.
Sorry, forgot one other thing. Turn on a faucet and look at the ground between the well and the house. If you see a wet patch the water line may be broken.

Answer 4

do you know if it is a shallow well or is it a drilled well?
We had a drilled well where we lived and once it happened that the motor that pumps the water broke and the well lost the prime.
If you have a shallow well perhaps the water table is too low because the rain was scarce during the year so you need to buy water until the water table reaches the proper height .

If you have neighbours connected to your well the pressure is low because you either use the water in large amount at the same time . You need to find out who dug the well and how deep it is!

Answer 5

it's an electric pump on the end of a pipe lowered all the way down to the aquifer, could be a broken pipe, electric is dead, long list of possibilities

Answer 6

Broken pipe?
Frozen pipe?
Pump failure?
Breaker tripped?
Wires cut or broken?
Valve closed?

You don't give much info so it could be any of a number of things.