Confused on my well system

[JonSap]

Recently bought a house that's on a well which is a first for me. I still don't quite understand how my well works exactly. The part that is confusing me is that as far as I know I don't have a submersible pump. According to all of my neighbors the wells in my neighborhood all range from 300-600 feet deep. I've attached a sketch of my setup as well as some photos. My main question is this: How exactly is the water from the well getting pulled up into the aerator tank if there is no submersible pump? I only have 2 shallow well jet pumps, one for the house and one for the yard. Any insight on how this all works would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Valveman]

I guess it is possible you have an Artesian well that flows and gives a couple PSI, which is all you would need to fill that cistern aerator tank. But if so the tank should have an overflow line that dumps water somewhere all the time. If there is some kind of float valve in the aerator tank it could work without an over flow. If there is a float switch in the aerator tank then most likely there is a pump in the well. But I do not see any wires going down the side of the pipe, so I don't know what to tell you. If it is an Artesian well closing the blue handle valve and opening the red valve on top should get flow directly from the well. If it had a pump there should not be a shut off valve there at all.

 

[JonSap]

I guess it is possible you have an Artesian well that flows and gives a couple PSI, which is all you would need to fill that cistern aerator tank. But if so the tank should have an overflow line that dumps water somewhere all the time. If there is some kind of float valve in the aerator tank it could work without an over flow. If there is a float switch in the aerator tank then most likely there is a pump in the well. But I do not see any wires going down the side of the pipe, so I don't know what to tell you. If it is an Artesian well closing the blue handle valve and opening the red valve on top should get flow directly from the well. If it had a pump there should not be a shut off valve there at all.

I think you're right. I have heard one of my neighbors mention Artesian water here before. The aerator tank has a float valve inside, similar to what you'd see in a toilet, which cuts off the water when it raises to a certain point. I tried what you recommended and closed the blue handle valve and opened the red, and the water continuously flowed out. Thanks for the insight, I think the mystery is solved!

 

[Valveman]

That is great! I wish I had a water well that just magically shot water up in the air. Most people aren't that lucky. Now you just need to study how pumps work and figure out those pump cycling on and off like that is not a good thing. Adding a Cycle Stop Valve to each of those pumps would make a world of difference.