Water won't stop flowing from well

[hockeynut]

Hoping someone can help me. I'm doing a little plumbing work and plan to replace the main shut off valve in the process. I have the well power turned of, the pressure tank is empty and the house is completely drained. The problem I'm having is that water will not stop flowing from the pressure tank drain valve. The pressure tank is empty because I can easily move it, definitely no water in it. You can see my drain pan in the pic, I've made countless trips to the laundery tub to drain it, water keeps coming out. I've been at this for an hour. Is it possible for water to keep coming out of the well without the pump running? Thank you.

 

[Jeff Handy]

Water can keep gurgling out of the house plumbing for a long time.

Also, maybe your water heater tank is somehow siphoning out into there.
Close the cold supply valve at the water heater.

Sometimes the well pump 240 volt breaker is actually two 120 volt breakers, which should have a bar on the handle so they will both trip if needed.
Sometimes this tie bar is missing, and people don’t realize that they have to operate both breakers.

 

[hockeynut]

Thanks Jeff for the response. I have my house plumbing disconnected from the pressure tank, see the pics. I have the switch to the well pump turned off, the well pump is not running. I put a garden hose on the drain valve and had it draining to my sump pump just to see if it would stop flowing. It doesn't stop. There isn't much pressure, I can easily stop the flow with my thumb over the end of the hose. After talking with someone over the phone, it sounds like the only logical answer is that I have an artesian well.

 

[Jeff Handy]

Which basically is a spring.

Ground water or surface water level is forcing water up out of the well.

 

[hockeynut]

Bummer, that wasn't part of my plan.

 

[Diehard]

So what's stopping you from replacing the valve? Are you talking about the valve in you picture?

 

[Mitchell-DIY-Guy]

It's a gift. Artesian aquifer - Wikipedia

 

[hockeynut]

So what's stopping you from replacing the valve? Are you talking about the valve in you picture?

Yes, I'm talking about the shut off valve in the picture. What was stopping me was the constant flow of water coming in to the house. I wasn't just unscrewing the old valve and threading the new one on, that would have been doable. I was coming off the drain valve with an elbow and then going to copper and sweating the new shut off valve. That couldn't be done with the constant flow of water. I got it taken care of, I ended up cutting the 1" poly and putting a shut off valve before the pressure tank.

 

[hockeynut]

It's a gift. Artesian aquifer - Wikipedia

Lucky me

 

[RS]

We have the same situation, and there is a ball valve in the line from the well to the pressure tank that I can shut when servicing the system. But, you must be very careful never to start the pump with that valve shut, the pump could develop enough pressure to break something. the handle is removed from the valve so an unqualified person won't shut it. Our well has a seal above the pitless adapter that I am unfamiliar with. Does yours have anything like that to prevent the well from overflowing?

 

[hockeynut]

We have the same situation, and there is a ball valve in the line from the well to the pressure tank that I can shut when servicing the system. But, you must be very careful never to start the pump with that valve shut, the pump could develop enough pressure to break something. the handle is removed from the valve so an unqualified person won't shut it. Our well has a seal above the pitless adapter that I am unfamiliar with. Does yours have anything like that to prevent the well from overflowing?

Mine didn't have a shut off before the pressure tank, but it does now. That was my fix. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Valveman]

Yeah you got to have a valve to close when servicing. But pumps normally can't build enough pressure to break a line or fitting even against a closed valve. The problem happens in about 5-10 minutes when the water in the pump get hot and melts the impellers, but the pressure is not an issue.

 

[RS]

Submersible pumps can build up a lot of pressure, even the smallest and cheapest will develop over a hundred psi, especially in a situation like this where there isn't any head.

 

[Valveman]

Yes the average submersible can build about 100 PSI. But that is nothing in pipe and fittings which are rated at 160/200 PSI or better, which is the also the norm. Again, it is not the 100 PSI of pressure that will hurt anything, it is the complete stoppage of flow. The pump and motor are cooled by the water they are pumping and when that water gets hot the pump is toast. But the 100 PSI isn't hurting anything. Pumps controlled with a Cycle Stop Valve work at those pressures much of the time. The CSV cannot close to less than 1 GPM, which is all it takes to keep the pump/motor cool, and this is happening when the pump is seeing 100 PSI or so. Actually the high pressure on the pump is a good thing as it makes the motor draw fewer amps and run cooler. Weird thing about pumps but true.

 

[Diehard]

We have the same situation, and there is a ball valve in the line from the well to the pressure tank that I can shut when servicing the system. But, you must be very careful never to start the pump with that valve shut, the pump could develop enough pressure to break something. the handle is removed from the valve so an unqualified person won't shut it. Our well has a seal above the pitless adapter that I am unfamiliar with. Does yours have anything like that to prevent the well from overflowing?

I would put a warning sign at the 2 locations, At the pump start switch and at the valve.

 

[Valveman]

Yeah or put a 75 PSI pressure relief valve on a tee before the ball valve.