Is my well drying up

[Matty1053]

Hello,
I am curious on how can I tell if my well is drying up. We are in a moderate drought here in Michigan.

It seems like my well is kicking on more than usual. (We do have a family of 4 in the house, take showers just about every day. Sometimes every other day. We use about average 175 gallons a day. That's what the softener says.).

We have not been watering grass. We don't anyways. It's a waste In my opinion. I have a iron filter, which I'm sure uses a lot if water. (It is before the softener so it is not included with the average water usage a day.) I have it set to every 3 days for 15 minutes (the iron filter).

Anyways... is there a way to tell if the well is drying up? No my faucets aren't spurting or coughing air out. It could be me, but it feels like the well pump kicks on more. We have a deep well (according to the company who installed it... ~145 feet). We don't have the money to get a new well dug. If that has to occur, time to put the for sale sign up.


Not to blame anyone but I think my neighbor could be using a lot of the water in the water table up.
My one neighbor, she waters her entire grass every night. Which is a massive use on her end. (Must use at least 300 gallons a day.......) We live in a tiny subdivision with about 75 homes in it.

When I place my hand around a pipe by the well, I feel it vibrating. I think that's normal since the pump has a motor.

Sorry for my mixed up text!! I'm not a 200%know it all for well water lol.

Thanks a lot!

 

[Valveman]

When you can feel the vibration and no water is coming out, the well is most likely dry. But it sounds to me like your pressure tank is bad, which is what causes pumps to cycle on and off more often. If the pump is cycling on and off, you are not out of water, the pressure tank is simply out of air.

 

[speedbump]

Check to be sure the pump isn't running when you haven't used water for 10 minutes or more.

 

[Matty1053]

There is water coming out. When the pump kicks on I just feel a vibration on the pipes.

And no the pump doesn't kick on if I don't use the water after a while. Waited 2 hours to see and no the pump didn't kick on. (Did not use water)

 

[Matty1053]

Ok... few questions
1. How long does a pressure tank last?
2. Can it be my well PUMP/head burning out?
3. Is it possible there is high amount of sediment in the well head pipes?

We had our well looked at a few years ago. (2... I think maybe 3.) We were having pressure issues. We couldn't go past 40psi. It was in the winter time, plus it was record cold temperatures. The guy fixed what the issue was. Not sure if I remember. He had to pull the well head up or something. I'm thinking it could be the same issue.

However... when the well is on putting pressure in the tank, the pipea vibrate. Which gives off a noticeable noise. Kind of like a motor against a table... hard to explain. It's not very loud. But it's noticeable. You would have to focus on hearing it. I have a bleach injector which works flawlessly. I think that could cause the noise.

But I flushed the toilet (had not used water in a hour, softener had 0 gallons used.). And the toilet flushed used 2 gallons. (1.9gpf rated as) and the pressure gage was at 65 psi (max, the well guy capped it at that.). When I went back down to check the gauge... it said 61psi. Is that normal to go down that much????

Sorry for the wall of text. I could call the guy out again to see if he sees anything odd.

I'm just worried about the sound of the pump. It's VERY hard to explain. I'll try to record the sound though. It's vibrating through the pipes.

 

[speedbump]

From what you say, it sounds like your tank is waterlogging (filling with water). This happens a lot with galvanized tanks and bladder tanks. You asked how long a tank will last. That depends on the brand. Tanks from big box stores, about a year and a half. Good brands (there are a few) 5 years +.

Vibration is normal to the touch when the pump is running.

 

[Matt30]

It's common practice to see a spring check valve on the well side of the pressure tank. When they start to wear out they can vibrate/chatter. Do you have one of those?

 

[Matty1053]

@Speedbump
When I tap on the blue tank in the basement (well pressure tank), It sounds like a full propane tank. (Pressure is no doubt in there!). I do doubt it is filling with water, as I am sure it would be very noticable if it was or not. Water pressure is constant and fine. Don't really wanna flush the system unless I have to.

@Matt30
I'm not sure. I'm guessing I do? It's not chattering though.

When I hear the sound (It sounds like a electrical transformer), it's ONLY when water is being used in my house WHILE the pump is pumping water. I did 5 tries today.

Test 1: Had shower on when pump kicked on and ran. Result - Heard the noise.
Test 2: Had shower on, when pump kicked on, I turned water off... no usage in house. Result= Did NOT hear the noise.
Test 3: Ran faucet right a floor above, pump kicked on, ran water for about 45 seconds when the pump is still running. Result = Noise was very dull, you REALLY had to listen to actually somewhat make out the noise.
Test 4: Ran faucet across the house. Pump on, turned Faucet off immediately. Result = Nothing noticable.
Test 5: Hose on, pump kicked on and kept hose on. (I only had the valve 1/3 way open.) Result = Heard some noise. Not nearly as noticable as test 1 though.

From what my logic is, it sounds like when the demand for water is coming from a source like a shower head, and NOTHING else is using water... the water in the pipes will sort of "die down" in farther away areas/areas NOT "requesting" water. As us well water users do not have a constant 60psi water pressure as most city water homes have. (The townships in my area, all have the water pressure capped at 60psi).

Water does absorb sound, and reduces vibration noise. (Basic science experiment.)
Less pressure will mean less water going through the pipes (Especially gravity will prove it.). I'm not saying the pipes drain them selves, as that is NOT the case, not at all. But water will flow into the areas with higher demand. As, I notice the "transformer buzz sound" when the iron filter is flushing itself. (Which uses a boat load of water lol). I will run 4 tests tomorrow, the shower I listed in the tests above was in the basement. Which of course the basement has the best water pressure no matter what lol.). Will run shower UPSTAIRS to see if I notice it.

As long as my pressure tank doesn't blow up, or cause a massive fire. I think I'm fine. There's a few things I can always do to reduce the sound. *NOTE we do have all copper pipes in the house for water.... which copper does transmit more noise as it's a metal.

Thanks!

 

[speedbump]

So is the noise the only thing your wondering about? Is everything else normal and satisfactory?
If it is, understand that water going through pipes does make some noise. And lots of things surrounding and touching those copper pipes can add to that noise as well as the amount of water flowing through those pipes do.
I have been doing this for an awful long time and I have never been able to tell how much water is in a tank by tapping on it. Maybe you know something I don't.

 

[Matt30]

It's one of those things, too hard to truly diagnose without being on site. The buzz you are hearing could be a control box, but you haven't indicated you have one.

The best thing would be to bring in someone with pump experience. If it hasent always been like this, and you are planning on leaving it this way because you can't fix it youself, it can lead to much bigger problems.

 

[Valveman]

I believe the sound is only there when you are using larger amounts of water. This along with the facts that you have a chlorine injector and the well pump had to be fixed in the past to get more than 40 PSI, makes me think the pump screen is clogged. A clogged pump screen will decrease the total volume of water and cause a noise as the pump is cavitating.

Oh and you could have 60 PSI constant just like the city if you have a Cycle Stop Valve. I hate it when people say they want "city like" pressure. I mean it is your well, you just have to make it happen. City people should be coming to your house to enjoy the strong constant pressure, not the other way around.

 

[Matty1053]

I would say I'm more concerned about the noise. However noises can be good and bad.

But I will call someone to check on it. I do have a control box FYI. However I'm glad I found this site. I have learned a lot just by browsing these forums. I can do DYI on basic plumbing. But advanced stuff is a... 50 50 chance on my end.

Thanks so much!

Ps, I love my well water. I know what's actually in my water. Just blows when the electricity goes dark. But that's what generators are for lol.