Submersible pump depth

[Deep 6]

My well is 300 ft deep. Water level starts at 160 and the dead weight drops quickly until 240 ft when the drop speed slows for the last sixty feet. That tells me it is traveling through sediment / silt from 240 to 300 ft.

I pulled the pump and it was 305 feet down telling me it was sitting on the bottom. I was pulling a lot of silt and losing pressure.

My question to the forum is - would it be correct to send the pump down to between 160 and 240? My thinking is that the water is “clean” there as it is above the silt line which starts at 240? Maybe around 200 - 220? Thanks.

 

[Valveman]

You might still have enough water if you raise the pump. But maybe not. I doubt the weight was dropping through sediment. I would probably just raise it 20' or so and try to pump out the silt. The best way to deal with silt is to pump it out of the well. You may have to run the pump wide open for hours, days, or even weeks to do that. But a well that has never been properly developed will always be a problem.

 

[Deep 6]

Thanks for the reply. I should’ve mentioned that when the pump was on it would start at pressure 55. Water would have a little bit of sediment but then start to pump clear after a few minutes. A few minutes after that sediment would build up and the pump would lose pressure. After 10 minutes pressure would go to zero. Three minutes after that pressure would be up. Interesting thing is sediment then clear then sediment then clear. This is when the pump was all the way at the bottom. Should’ve tried to just lift it 20 feet, but we pulled the whole thing out the tubing was thin wall which I need to replace and wanted to check the pump itself.

 

[RS]

I wonder if it would help to rent a big air compressor, run a line all the way to the bottom, and blow all the silt out? One of my friends did this, been fine for 20 years now.

 

[Valveman]

Thanks for the reply. I should’ve mentioned that when the pump was on it would start at pressure 55. Water would have a little bit of sediment but then start to pump clear after a few minutes. A few minutes after that sediment would build up and the pump would lose pressure. After 10 minutes pressure would go to zero. Three minutes after that pressure would be up. Interesting thing is sediment then clear then sediment then clear. This is when the pump was all the way at the bottom. Should’ve tried to just lift it 20 feet, but we pulled the whole thing out the tubing was thin wall which I need to replace and wanted to check the pump itself.

Need to clip an amp meter around one of the hot wires. Need to know if for those 3 minutes there is no water flow, is the pump drawing any amperage, or maybe just half amperage. I am guessing the well is being pumped dry, the amps run at less than half for 10 minutes and the overload in the motor finally trips. In about 3 minutes the overload will automatically reset and the pump will draw full load amps as the well has recovered and is delivering full flow.