Messages

1

Frequently Asked Questions / Re: Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: November 06, 2026, 07:55:27 AM »

Well was finished last night with only a 15 minute bale to get an idea of gpm. 1 hour bale will be done today.

Well is 105' deep with 6" steel pipe. Static water at beginning of day was 51' when well depth was 93". I do not know what static depth was when we hit 105' last night.

12 gal baler x2 every 67 seconds with 0" draw down.

Water was clearing up pretty fast, but still had sediment after 15 minutes. Should clear up nicely when we hook up the pump.

Based on sound of baler hitting water and soapstone mark on cable, at 15 minutes it appeared that water level was actually raising from when we started test.
When test began, soapstone mark was at top of pipe when we heard baler hit water and after 15 minutes of baling, the soapstone mark was a couple inches above pipe when we heard baler hit the water.

After decades of a low producing well, it will be quite a blessing having tens of gpm of water on hand,

2

Frequently Asked Questions / Re: Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: October 31, 2026, 11:03:16 AM »

Slow going on the new well.
7 Days of drilling and down to 58'. Just when we think we are past basalt boulders (compared to neighboring well logs) we catch another basalt boulder.

We are at the level where my old well has been getting it's water because the water in the old well has now turned milky gray/black.
Due to limitations set by the Health Department, the only place for the new well was a little more than 30' from the old well, so it didn't take long for the crushed rock sediment from the new well to make it to the old well.

Hope the new well casing will cut off the flow of sediment from the new well to the old well soon so that the old well's water will clear up. It will probably be a month or two before we will be able to shut down the old well and connect the new well to the house.

3

Frequently Asked Questions / Re: Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: October 21, 2026, 09:04:27 AM »

Thank you Cary, you are indeed helping.

Once the water gets to 2ft below ground level (because of Pitless adapter) it is about 14 ft up to the shower head. All faucets, hydrants, toilets, shower heads and sinks will be 6-14ft above the Pitless.

The more I think about it and the more I look at options, the more I am leaning away from the idea of using my weeks old, Well-X-Trol 86 gallon WX-302 and going with a 60psi PSIDE kick after the well is drilled. It looks to me that the PSIDE Kick is a well thought out, fire and forget package that will meet my needs and goals. I just need to wait about 3 weeks and then I will know the specifics of depth, static, gpm, pump size, etc. Hoping for the 20+ gpm of clean unfiltered water that the neighbors have, so I can eliminate the flow reducing filter system that I now have.

A remedy for a different subject that is often brought up on this site:
I used to have 2 large bladder tanks for "emergency water in case of power failure and as often mentioned, it was a lottery of how many gallons of water I actually had when the lights went out.
It seems to me that an un-powered water heater or just a plain old fashioned, non bladder water tank that is rated for 100psi or more, located after a CSV would be the perfect solution for emergency water source.
Power goes out, you have a guaranteed amount of fresh water and no more reduction of water flow than a water heater would have.
In the space of an 86 gallon bladder tank, that might have 1 to 20 gallons of water, a person could easily have 86 guaranteed gallons of fresh water.

Thank you for your help
Ken

4

Frequently Asked Questions / Re: Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: October 16, 2026, 10:05:15 AM »

I have questions about the CSVS125-1.
I like the idea of having it in the well casing, attached to the Pitless

In this scenario, if I am wanting 60 psi in the house, I assume that the  CSVS125-1 would need to be set at 60 psi.

1) Would the switch, 90 feet away in the tank/filter house be a 40/60 lb switch?

2) If I have 60 psi entering the tank/filter house, wouldn't the pressure tank also be getting filled with 60 psi water at the same time 60 psi water is going to my home?

Thanks again for your help
Ken

5

Frequently Asked Questions / Re: Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: October 16, 2026, 08:58:48 AM »

Thank you Cary.

No water demands before the tank/filter and hoping that the water will be clean and nothing other than a UV will be needed.

Thanks again
Ken

6

Frequently Asked Questions / Going to bite the bullet, drill a new well & use CSV.

« on: October 12, 2026, 10:48:04 AM »

After years of living with an old 1.25gpm well I will be having a new well drilled in a few weeks.
I want to have things like Poly Pipe, Fittings, CSV, Pitless on hand before the trenches are dug and a rough idea of submersible pump size, which will be fine tuned once I know actual depth, gpm, static level and such.

A) New wells in the area range in depth of 100"-130' and GPM in the 20's with an exception for my neighbor that has 110 GPM and 116' deep.
Static level varies from 45'-65'.

B) Ground is fairly level with shower head 10'-11' above area that well will be drilled.

C) Distance from well to tank/filter house is 90' and from tank/filter house to home 105' and from tank/filter house to last of 3 hydrants 300'. Only 1 hydrant will be used at a time, but house will always be used.

D) Well casing will be 6" steel.

E) Goal is at least 20 GPM (if well can produce this amount)

F) 40/60 psi switch

G) Shop that will supply electricity has unused 240v, double pole 60 amp breaker.

Added notes: old Sears and Roebuck diaphragm tank from the 70's died late August and was replaced with new Well-X-Trol, WX-302, 86 gallon tank last month.
Old shallow well has iron & PH issues and filters to reduce these problems, but neighbors with 100' and deeper wells have none of these issues and have no filters.

Questions.
1) Using a worst case scenario of 130' well and 65' static water level, will 1 1/4" Black Poly pipe be large enough to allow 20+ GPM?

2) Will 160 psi Poly Pipe be strong enough or should I jump to 200 psi? (If 160 psi is close to the limit, I would prefer to error on the greater psi than have problems in the future.

3) Do you have a rough estimate of pump size I will need?

4) Which CSV should I be using and what psi? Currently when pressure tank is full at 60 psi, showers are great and 50 psi is good, but 40 psi when pump kicks on is not so good.

5) Would a 50/70 psi switch work better for me and then have CSV keep me at 60 psi?

6) What gauge wire/cable will be needed in well case and from well case 90' to breaker panel in tank/filter house?

Thank you in advance for any help, suggestions or advice that you can offer.
Ken

7

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: What are the chances of Brush & Bailing well, increasing wells GPM?

« on: October 03, 2023, 09:59:14 AM »

Thanks Cary,
Yes, you did answer this question on another website.
I posted here the morning of Sat. Sept 30 and I posted on the other site that afternoon before you answered here.

I agree with you on 1.25 gpm being considered a dry well. Unfortunately common sense on the left coast is not as common as it is in Texas and the county I live in has an alternate sense of reality.

I will check again with the well drillers to see if there has been any changes, for the better, in my county.

What is the average percent of gpm increase that you have experienced with a brush and bail?

 Would it usually be worth spending $1,000 and removing a new roof from a 12' tall pump house?

Thanks again
Ken

8

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / What are the chances of Brush & Bailing well, increasing wells GPM?

« on: September 30, 2023, 08:55:24 AM »

I have a nearly 60 year old, 1.250 GPM well. I have no way to prove it, but I am guessing that when the well was new, it had to have been producing more than 1.250 GPM.

I was talking with a local Well drilling company and they said that for just shy of $1,000 they could Brush my 65 foot well casing and Bail out the sediment from the bottom of the well.
In order to do the Brush & Bail, I will need to remove a portion of my pump house's new roof and cut a hole in the ceiling above my well casing to allow access to the well.

What are the odds of Brush & Bailing the well making any improvement in my GPM?
Is it usually successful or more than likely a bust?

If I get the Brush & Bail done, would there be any advantage in getting a plastic casing liner installed?

I have checked into getting a new well put in, but the County I live in is not exactly easy to work with when it comes to new wells, especially if there is already a producing well on the property. One well driller instructed me to tell the County that the well runs dry in the summer and technically it does run dry, but it doesn't stay dry and the well will usually have enough water to start up the pump in a few minutes.

Thank you for any help you can provide
Ken

9

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Pump suggestions for low yield well.

« on: September 29, 2021, 07:55:52 AM »

Cary, thank you for the the clarification on the PVC pump stand. I believe that it will fit my needs very well.

Scratch the 2 GPM below. I had to pick up a 1 micron filter this morning and the person that had checked my well yesterday said that after doing the calculations this morning, my well is yielding 1.25 GPM. He did add that this is a dry season and during winter and it will yield more GPM, but, that isn't much help to me in the summer.

Well Test is finished.
I should have a paper copy in a few days, but, my well is yielding a steady 2 GPM, well depth 60', water level a little over 20' below ground.
He did point out that we are still in the "dry" season and the GPM may increase during the wet season.

He says that my 22 year old pump is still good and does not require replacement, so, at this point, my only reason to replace the pump is to go with the generator friendly 115v.
Considering that my well is yielding 2 GPM, is the 10 GPM series pump still the best for me?

Well Health
Could I get your opinion on the following?
Some time ago, a person told me it is much better for the well if, while the pump cycle is running, I can keep the the water level fluctuation to a few feet, vs having the water level go up and down 30'-40'.

I can see his point in respects to water going up and down the casing being able to remove flakes of rust from the casing and thus filling the bottom of the well with rust flakes, but can you see any other problems that this could cause for me, considering that I have less than 40' of water in my casing?

Since the well is yielding 2 GPM and the pump can be running hours at a time (when I add the water tank) should I use a 2 GPM Dole valve and keep the water fairly steady or should I use a higher GPM Dole valve?

Thanks again
Ken

10

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Pump suggestions for low yield well.

« on: September 28, 2021, 09:05:00 AM »

Thank you for the pictures Cary.
The horizontal mount with PVC pipe is much simpler than I had imagined and looks like it will work very well.

I am guessing that the PVC pipe should be filled with some type of ballast, such as wet sand or is that even necessary?

Looking at the pumps you suggested, do you recommend CSIR or RSIR motor?


For my well pump, due to power outages that can go on for days, I am considering going with a 120v pump for the well. I have a couple Honda EU2200i generators, one of which will easily power the well pump if needed and it is miserly on fuel consumption.   

For the tank pump I will be using 120v and for power outages, I will also plumb in a 5GPM/60PSI 12v RV water pump to keep water flowing in the house.

11

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Pump suggestions for low yield well.

« on: September 28, 2021, 07:28:42 AM »

Thank you for your help.
I'll look for these pumps.

I live near the Cascades and temps in the teens and single digits are very common here, so the idea of using a submersible in the 3,000 gal tank is appealing to me. I am thinking that a submersible pump in the tank will be easier to keep from freezing.

Can a submersible pump be mounted horizontally, 6" above the bottom of the tank or is it required to mount it vertically?
Horizontally would make it easy to hook up to the large bulkhead fitting, but, whether Horz or Vert, I need to figure out a way to keep the pump from moving around inside the tank.
Do you know if there is such a thing as in tank pump mounts?

Thanks again for your help
Ken

12

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Pump suggestions for low yield well.

« on: September 27, 2021, 01:45:23 PM »

I just re-read your article "Choking the flow from a pump makes it work easier".

In the article it says that reducing the flow on a centrifugal makes the pump work easier.

Does this have the same effect on a fixed displacement pump?

I am guessing that the pump in my well is fixed displacement (I really don't know for sure) , but, if I can reduce the volume of water coming from my pump with a ball valve to match the volume that my well produces and not hurt my pump, this would be good.

If this only works with centrifugal pumps, then I need to make sure what type of pump I now have.

13

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Pump sugestions for low yield well.

« on: September 27, 2021, 01:02:14 PM »

Thank you, I will look for one with a stainless impeller and order a Cycle Sensor when I order the CSV.

Off hand, do you know a model number for a well pump that is less than 5 GPM?

For my 3,000 gallon tank to my house, The shower head is 10'-12' higher than the ground that the tank will be sitting on. I am wanting 25 GPM for house and outside watering. Water from tank will be going through the CSV.

Do you have a recommended type pump (In tank or External) and model number?

Thanks again
ken

14

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Pump suggestions for low yield well.

« on: September 25, 2021, 01:22:14 PM »

I need suggestions for excellent quality pumps for a low yield well.

There are no County records that the well exists, so, going off hand written notes on the wall of a 12' tall pump house, there were some repairs done in 1966 and it mentions a 1,710 gallon tank that is no longer on the property.

My well depth (from memory, 3 decades ago) is somewhere in the 50'-60' range with 6" steel case.
Current 1HP pump (replacement for a failed Sears 1 HP) was installed over 20 years ago and as of yesterday, from a faucet at the well head, it pumped 5 gallons every 68 seconds well ran dry and pump shut off @ 13 minutes 20 seconds @ this rate.

Pressure tank holds 6.5 gal @ 60 psi and goes from 40psi to 60psi in 48 seconds, well is drained in 11 cycles.

Static water level varies drastically. In 1994, I had static water level 25' below ground and 1 month later, 6' below ground level.
 
The water will be pumped up 8' above ground to fill 3,000 gal tank.
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I will be installing a 3,000 gallon, above ground tank, running low volume submersible in well & 20-25 GPM (Submersible???) pump for tank to CSV to house & outdoor faucets.
I have a mutli-tank filter system (before the 3,000 gal tank) that that requires 1-22 GPM and 28-80 PSI to function.

This Tuesday I will have more accurate information on the well and it's flow rates when a well and pump company tests the well, but, at this point, I would be very happy if the well could support a continuous 3 GPM, but guessing it will be somewhere closer to 1-2 GPM.

At this point, I feel that this 22 year old, 1HP, 5 GPM pump is over kill for my well.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Is there a good quality pump for my well that could run non stop for many hours a day at 2-3 GPM while staying in the 28-80 psi range?

For the 3,000 gallon above ground tank, should I use a Jet pump or go with submersible for 20-25 GPM to the house & any pump in particular that you would recommend?

Thank you for your time and consideration
Ken

15

Pumps, Wells, Tanks, Controls / Re: Time to replace worn out system and want to make it right this time.

« on: July 14, 2019, 08:03:28 PM »

I did not realize that I could get by with only running a ball valve and Cycle Sensor between the pump and filter system without using a pressure tank and switch, that would save me some money.

I am thinking that the holding tank would need a high volume pump and PK1A to feed the house, gardens and yard.

Thank you again for your help.
Ken