Two water pressure tanks on different floors an issue?

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DavidGand

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I have a existing pressure tank (looks like 20 gal) on 2nd floor. At peak demands, the pressure drops to near zero before it refills. I want to add a larger pressure tank on 1st floor as I rather not have that weight added to upper level. The distance between tanks will be about 20 feet of pipe (or about 8 feet of height).

Is there a potential issue having pressure tanks on 2 floors?

Yes - the lower volume/pressure is due to the softener issue (different topic) and having that looked at separately. This question is just to know if augmenting the downstream pressure tank on different levels would be a problem.
 

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Having two tanks isn’t a problem but depending your demand you might have to buy a huge tank or tanks
 
Having two tanks isn’t a problem but depending your demand you might have to buy a huge tank or tanks
Exactly.. which is why the new one will be on 1st floor (cement foundation) and get biggest pressure tank I can (119 gal).
 
Yeah, no. There needs to be (A) pressure tank close to the pressure switch. Any additional pressure tank further down the line, past filters/etc., or higher in elevation will fill at a reduced rate due to friction loss and height. Many times the first tank fills and shuts off the pump, only to drain or partially drain to equalize pressure with the tank further down the line.

Pressure tanks are only needed to prevent pump cycling. They are not intended for supplying peak or really any demands. A 119 gallon size tank only holds 30 gallons of water anyway. Then you have to use a 20 PSI pressure switch differential to get the 30 gallons. If you have a constant pressure pump and and it maintains 50 PSI constant as suggested in the drawing, a pressure tank is completely useless. No change in pressure means no water in or out of a pressure tank. If the pump control does use a pressure differential like with a normal 40/60 pressure switch, the larger tank will be seen as additional load for the pump to supply, making pressure during peak demands even worse.

The problem is more likely the pump is not large enough to keep up with peak demands. With 50 PSI at the pump there will be 40 PSI or less on the other side of the filter/softener. At high flow rates the friction loss through the filter will be even more. With a gauge at the pump and another after the filter/softener you can see the pressure loss that needs to be made up for. If at high demand you are losing 30 PSI through the filter stuff, then the pump needs to produce 80 PSI constant instead of 50 PSI.

Constant pressure is a good thing as long as the pump is large enough and the constant pressure controller reacts fast enough not to cause lulls in pressure. But a larger tank won't help. Counterintuitively, a smaller pressure tank delivers better pressure because you don't have to wait as long for the tank to drain down to really low pressure before the pump starts.

Multistage Booster and PK1A.jpgShallow Well Pump with PK1A.pngCSV3A2T and Centrifugal.jpg
 
The pressure switch is located at Pressure Tank 1 (between well and Tank 1) and the pump ability to keep tank 1 at 50-60PSI is fine.. I know the restriction is the water softener as if I place it in By-Pass, the flow from Tank 1 to Tank 2 (and the house) is fast/adequate. The water softener tech noted they will replace the resin beads when they come to service the unit... but was looking at possibility to increase house ability to store filtered water.
 
From the drawing I was thinking booster pump not well pump. But it won't change what I said. A pressure tank can store treated water, but can only deliver it as pressure decreases. With a 25 PSI air charge in the pressure tank, it can supply a small amount of water as the pressure drops from 50 to 30 PSI. But a pressure tank cannot boost pressure.

Most treated water is stored in an atmospheric tank and supplied on demand by an additional booster pump and controls. Instead of a second pressure tank, install a small cistern and boost pump and you will have all the treated water needed for peak demands.

Cistern Storage Tank with JET Booster Pump (12).png
 
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