Help depressurizing signature 2000 tank

[mikeee321]

Hi all,

I was looking for advise on how to depressurize my signature 2000 tank as seen in the pic. There's some kind of safety mechanism going to the large black storage tank on the right (bonus points if you have a clue what that's for, It's a huge storage tank with jets on the inside to fill it up. Some have said it's for radon, but it's incomplete), when the tank gets low the tank will depressurize and i have to flip a metal bar on the gray box to repressurize, but i don't like the idea of having to drain the tank to do this and was hoping for an easier way. My initial thoughts are to pull the power to it and run some water till the pressure goes down, but want to be sure.

Thanks so much.
-Mike

 

[Valveman]

The tank with the water jets is an aeration tank. Aeration works for Radon, sulfur, iron, and other things. I don't think it is for Radon as it would need to have an external vent. If you have sulfur, the water will go to stinking if you remove the aerator tank. It is best to not have a pressure tank and pressure switch to fill an aerator tank. Instead of a float valve inside the aerator tank, you need a float switch. Then it would directly turn the pump on and off according to the level in the aerator. The pressure tank IS depressurized, which is why you have to hold the little lever to get the pump to come back on. Any way you go you need to get rid of that Sig 2000 tank as they were one of the worst pressure tanks ever made.

 

[mikeee321]

The tank with the water jets is an aeration tank. Aeration works for Radon, sulfur, iron, and other things. I don't think it is for Radon as it would need to have an external vent. If you have sulfur, the water will go to stinking if you remove the aerator tank. It is best to not have a pressure tank and pressure switch to fill an aerator tank. Instead of a float valve inside the aerator tank, you need a float switch. Then it would directly turn the pump on and off according to the level in the aerator. The pressure tank IS depressurized, which is why you have to hold the little lever to get the pump to come back on. Any way you go you need to get rid of that Sig 2000 tank as they were one of the worst pressure tanks ever made.

Thanks so mcuh

 

[mikeee321]

Thanks for the detailed reply! The layout here is somewhat ridiculous, I have a well pump which then feeds to a sediment filter, then a ph neutralizer and water softener. There are floats on the inside of the aeration tank, which triggers the tank to fill, then it comes out and I believe the signature tank pushes the water through a UV light filter and to the rest of my house.

 

[Valveman]

Ok, so it has a submersible in the aerator tank. That is common. The lever on the pressure switch drops anytime the pressure is lower than the pump start pressure. You can get a regular FSG2 pressure switch without the lever. The low pressure cut off lever is designed to help shut off the pump if the aerator tank runs empty. A problem with the Sig 2000 tank could be causing the switch to trip out on low pressure. When the diaphragm in the tank fails and the air charge side has higher pressure than the pump start pressure, the pressure dips to zero before the pump starts and trips the low pressure kill switch. Too much air or a bad diaphragm in the tank can cause this.

It would be best to use a Cycle Sensor to protect the pump from running dry, as it doesn't need manual resetting and is more dependable at cutting the pump off when needed.

The diaphragm in the tank went bad because the pump cycles on and off too much, plus it is a POS tank. You would be much better off with a PK1A kit using a 4.5 gallon size tank.

 

[mikeee321]

I really appreciate all this information, it's extremely helpful. Thankfully, everything is working without issue right now but I am developing a plan in the event it things go south. I am still curious how I could depressurize the tank without draining the aeration tank, so I can switch out the UV light or work on any piping after the tank but before any shutoff value. Would pulling the power to the pressure switch and maybe opening a faucet do the trick?

 

[Valveman]

I really appreciate all this information, it's extremely helpful. Thankfully, everything is working without issue right now but I am developing a plan in the event it things go south. I am still curious how I could depressurize the tank without draining the aeration tank, so I can switch out the UV light or work on any piping after the tank but before any shutoff value. Would pulling the power to the pressure switch and maybe opening a faucet do the trick?

Yep. That tank only holds about 5 gallons of water. Just turn off the pump, open a faucet, and when the pressure is zero you can work on the system. With the pump off and the system at zero pressure is the only time you can check the air charge in the tank. Push down on the valve core in the Schrader valve on the tank. If water comes out the tank is bad. If it won't hold a 35 PSI air charge like a car tire the tank is bad. Most likely the tank is bad, as they usually are. If so, it is time to get a PK1A and make your life easier.

 

[mikeee321]

Yep. That tank only holds about 5 gallons of water. Just turn off the pump, open a faucet, and when the pressure is zero you can work on the system. With the pump off and the system at zero pressure is the only time you can check the air charge in the tank. Push down on the valve core in the Schrader valve on the tank. If water comes out the tank is bad. If it won't hold a 35 PSI air charge like a car tire the tank is bad. Most likely the tank is bad, as they usually are. If so, it is time to get a PK1A and make your life easier.View attachment 43426

Good tip. As far as I know things are functioning correctly with the tank. The time's I've had to flip the level to repressurize, is when the aeration tank has gotten low caused by a different issue.
Just to be 100% sure, after I depressurize the tank and do the work needed. I just plug back in and flip the lever again to repressurize as I have done in the past? I assume it's the case, but don't want any surprises

 

[Valveman]

Yes, just plug it back in and lift the lever. If the low pressure switch is only shutting off the pump when the aerator tank is low, then it is doing its job to protect the pump from running dry. A Cycle Sensor is even more reliable to protect the pump from running dry, and can be set to automatically reset itself after a certain amount of time, which keeps you from having to go there and manually lift that lever.

 

[mikeee321]

Good stuff! Thankfully, no issues with the setup right now, but I'll keep all this great information in mind. I really appreciate your help