Which CSV125 would work with my system?

[zannej]

Hi, I live on a small farm and have a weird setup for my well & pump.

I have a two wheel belted piston pump to draw water up from a well into a cistern. It is controlled by a pressure switch & float lever. At the lower part of the cistern there is a port where the water comes out into 1-1/4" PVC (couplings galore from previous breaks). It elbows up and then sideways and has a brass check valve, then another elbow sideways, then down (which I know is not good because it puts the inlet pipe above the pump-- something I intend to correct) changes to 1-1/4" stainless steel (PVC kept breaking) and in to the inlet side of the pump. Out the top of the pump it has 1" a galvanized steel tee with an ancient pressure gauge & the pump has a 30/50 pressure switch on it but I'm unclear as to how it connects to the rest of the system. The galvanized has a few elbows before it goes to PVC. It has more elbows, a tee where one line splits off to the main water supply & the other goes to more elbows and then the ugly fiberglass pressure tank. I will have to get photos or try to find markings to find out size & capacity. It is larger in girth than the old goulds metal tank. The pump seems to turn on the instant water is turned on and it has been chattering, so I suspect the tank may need replacing but I will probably get a smaller tank available locally if possible.

The repair guy (who is the only one in the area) removed my shutoff from the cistern after several breaks in the pipe & I haven't been able to get him back out to fix leaks or do anything since. I had a new shutoff for him to put in but there was a miscommunication on that.

I have a very convoluted messy setup and I would like to streamline it. I want to get a brass tank tee with pressure gauge, pressure relief, hose bib (pressure tank does not have any of those currently) and possibly a 30/50 switch if it is necessary. I found the whole kit on Amazon for a decent price. I could slap on a ball valve after it.

My pump is a Goulds 1HP model c48A95A06 No. J06853L. Whenever I try to search for it, it comes up with the J10 model so either they don't have specs on that one anymore or it's the equivalent. Not sure.
I'm trying to attach an image of the specs on the side of it. I will also try to attach images of the plumbing layout (it's ugly).

So, my questions:
Which version of the CSV125 should I get?
Where/how would be the best way to install it?
Would it be better off closer to the pump or closer to the tank?
Could I attach it directly to the tank tee on it's inlet side?
Is a pressure on the tank tee after the CSV necessary?
Can I bridge the gap between the steel (I plan to replace galvanized with stainless steel) and the tank tee with 1" PEX?
Or could I have PEX between the CSV and tank tee?
Any advice/suggestions (other than taking a match to this ugly setup)?

[Cary Austin]

You should be able to use a compressor and put some air in that tank.  That should get you by for a few days until you can get replacement parts.  I would replace the tank and all the fittings using a PK1A kit.  The CSV1A in the PK1A kit is better for what you are doing than the CSV125.

It will look something like this.

[zannej]

I appreciate it, but my space is so cramped that having the tank stacked on top of the pump like that wouldn't work. We pretty much have to access the tank from the top for maintenance. Plus, I'm not looking to spend that much. I'd prefer the smaller unit that will let me keep my existing tank and change it out at a later date if it turns out to be toast. I just need to figure out which of the CSV125s would work.

I still need to get more info on the tank. Right now my water is off because the hot water line blew. It was over 20 years old CPVC (I think installed in the 80s at the very latest) and it got brittle and split all along the length down the middle. Tried to patch it and it all blew apart.

After pricing out a tank tee and so forth, I may be re-evaluating.

• Would the CSV1A replace the tank tee?
• Does it come with plugs for any un-used ports?
• Is it made of stainless steel or some other metal?
• What are the sizes of each port?
• Is the electric pressure switch necessary to make it function properly?
• If I still wanted to keep my old tank but don't want it mounted in the way shown, could I connect to the tank from the PK1A kit with PEX & PEX barb fittings?
• Would I use the a side port or bottom port to connect a different tank?
• How much does it cost for shipping?

[Cary Austin]

Would the CSV1A replace the tank tee?
Yes

Does it come with plugs for any un-used ports?
Yes

Is it made of stainless steel or some other metal?
Stainless Steel

What are the sizes of each port?
Dual threaded with 1" female and 1 1/4" male on both ends

Is the electric pressure switch necessary to make it function properly?
Same pressure switch you are using now, yes.

If I still wanted to keep my old tank but don't want it mounted in the way shown, could I connect to the tank from the PK1A kit with PEX & PEX barb fittings?
Yes you can connect the tank after the CSV as shown here, or you can use a 3/4 line from the bottom port on the CSV1A to the tank.

Would I use the a side port or bottom port to connect a different tank?
Bottom port

How much does it cost for shipping?
Shipping is included to anywhere in the US.

[zannej]

To clarify, my pressure tank does not already have a tank tee, nor does it have it's own pressure switch. The only pressure switch (excluding the one for the piston pump that fills the cistern) is on the back side of the jet pump. You can barely see it in the upper right in my last picture in my first post.

Are you saying I would still use that switch? If so, how would I tie it in? Would I just leave it where it is?

My jet pump's outlet is 1", do you have any recommended adapters to go from 1" to 1-1/4"? I would prefer to NOT use PVC because for whatever reason, the PVC always comes loose or breaks.

I also noticed that the description said something about 100° F being max for the operation of the CSV1A, that is the water temperature & not room temperature, right? Because I live in a climate that gets very hot and sometimes the air in the shed gets over 100° F, and I'm concerned it would mess up the CSV.

I'm including crappy rough sketches of my layout. I could be wrong about pipe size for the outlet side PVC. It could reduce to 3/4, but I know the pump's outlet is 1". I will have to measure. I intend to replace the galvanized steel with stainless steel.

[Cary Austin]

All jet pumps have a pressure switch on the side.  However, unless you mount the tank directly to the top of the pump the pressure switch is going to be too far away from the pressure tank.  This usually causes the switch to bounce the pump on and off quickly at start or stop pressure.  Technically you want the pressure switch as close to the tank as possible, like when using a tank cross.  You can extend the little plastic tube from the existing pressure switch to one of the ports on the CSV1A, or to a tank cross.  Sometimes it is easier to just add a new pressure switch to the CSV1A or tank cross than to find the parts needed to extend the tubing of the old switch.  Then you just wire around the existing switch as shown in our wiring diagrams under "jet pumps".

The CSV1A already has 1" female ports on both ends so you don't need an adapter.  The CSV doesn't care how hot the room is and will work with water up to about 140F, but we say 100F because the pump is what will not handle hot water.

[zannej]

Thank you very much for that information.
Just to be clear: I could remove my existing pressure switch and replace it with one on the tee & just extend the wires from my pump to the new switch instead?

That would make things quite a bit easier. I'm thinking of getting a smaller pressure tank. I went back out and took video and got screenshots. My tank is 22 gallons. Also looked at the label above specs on my pump and confirmed it's a J10S.

Moving the switch would actually make things a lot easier in terms of access. If I could use some stainless steel pipes from the top of my pump and have a smaller pressure tank in another spot- maybe up higher in an easier to reach spot-- we can access the pressure switch more easily. I'll have to see where the best place for it would be or if I have something I can use as a platform or just stack up some cinderblocks. I'll have to take measurements.

I'm including more pictures of my setup.

As an aside, is the company based in Ohio and do you have customer service reps from India (or with Indian accents)? I got some calls today that I thought were spam calls so I refused to confirm my name, but in retrospect, I wondered it if it was a call from CSV. I know there are scams where someone will ask a question that gets a "yes" answer and they record the "Yes" and splice it with a different question as some sort of fraud, so I never say "Yes" if I don't know for certain who is calling. I prefer e-mail contact anyway bc I have difficulty hearing.

[Cary Austin]

You don't have to remove the existing switch.  Just wire it the way it shows for "jet pumps".  It wasn't any of our people calling you.  We don't do that unless you call us first and ask for someone to call you back.

[zannej]

Thank you.
I don't know if my current switch has the correct mounting hardware, but if I can move that switch over, that would work.

To clarify on the comment about the adapter-- the adapter I would need would be for size because my pump's outlet port is 1".

I'm thinking if I get some 1" pipe coming out the top of my pump to raise it up more to where it's easy to access, have an elbow, reducer/adapter to go to 1- 1/4" for the CSV, 3/4 pipe coming out from the CSV going upward, 3/4" cross so I can reduce to 1/4" for mounting the pressure switch, pressure gauge on opposite side, pipe & union on top to hold the pressure tank...

Need to figure out the orientation to have a pressure relief valve & spigot (can pressure relief valve be put on the CSV1A?) I'd have to make sure it was aimed so it wouldn't shoot down on the pump... then a 1-3/4" stainless steel ball valve, reduce to 3/4" again to hook to the rest of the plumbing (bc it's all 3/4" pvc from there).

Alternatively, I suppose I could have the pressure relief valve on a 3/4" pipe coming out of the cross to make sure it doesn't drip down on the pump.

I'd have to find some way to stabilize it all so it doesn't fall over...

I will have to draw this up and see how it looks. LOL.

I'm glad to hear it wasn't anyone from your company calling and that it was most likely a scam or spam call.

[zannej]

I somehow totally forgot/missed that there are threads on both inside and out. For some reason I was thinking the inside threads were 1-1/4" & was overthinking things.

If I get the CSV1A and turn it so the 3/4" port is to the side and 1" ports are up & down, could I connect the pressure tank to the 1" outlet port (using appropriate fittings) and use the 3/4" port as the outlet going to the main water? Or is it not designed to flow that way?

Also, are there any particular pressure gauges you recommend?

[Cary Austin]

Sure.  You can use the 3/4 port to supply the house. It just won't give you more than like 10-12 GPM or so.  Get cheap gauge, they don't last long anyway.

[zannej]

Thanks. I didn't know if the gauges mattered or not. I have an existing gauge, I don't even know if it works. But, I could use it for now. I just have to find all the right fittings and adapters. I have found most of the things I need I think. Just trying to tweak the configuration.

I was thinking of doing the layout in the attached sketch.

But the more I think about it, I might want to have an elbow and with the CSV running horizontal and then have the red part down so the tank can be straight above it. That way, the larger outlet of the CSV will be closer to where I need to tie in. I can have the pressure switch off of the tee going in to the tank instead of lower down. Pressure gauge can be on the tee with the pressure switch.

[Cary Austin]

All those fittings that are hard to find are in the PK1A kit.  I think the kit is a good price compared to sourcing all those fittings locally.  If a pressure gauge goes to zero with no water pressure it is probably still good.

[zannej]

Thanks, Carey. I think I will go with the CSV1A. I found a place that sells the stainless steel fittings for a decent price and it's within my state.

I also checked out various PVC transition pieces.

Right now I'm debating between re-using my existing stainless steel hose or switching to PEX.

I drew a diagram with images of all of the fittings and the whole layout. Other than adding a shutoff on the inlet side of the jet pump (in case of emergencies/leaks), the only changes will be from the outlet side of the jet pump all the way to the elbow going to the main line.

[Cary Austin]

There are lot of ways to skin that cat, and looks like what you have should work fine.