worthingtonwarren
New Member
The pressure guage of my well water tank, which has a bladder, recently started shooting rapidly back and forther between 60 psi and 85 psi. It didn't do this all the time but it did so repeatedly and often. The well folks came and determined that the tank had virtually no water in it. Eventually they checked the air pressure valve that measures the pressure of the air above the bladder and found it was about 80 psi, and they hypothesized the the pressurestat kept turning the pump off as soon as it turned on because it was sensing the high pressure exerted by the bladder. So they released the bladder air from the valve on the top of the tank so that the pressure was close to 60 psi. After doing that the pump would start pumping when water was drawn from a faucet and water was now directed toward filling the tank. The pump then turned off when the tank had water in it and the pressure rose to 85 psi or so, the way it was suposed to. With the water in the tank, the pump wouldn't turn on until a substantial amount of water had been drawn. In other words, it seems to be working the way it was designed to work..
Here is my question: If the high air pressure above the bladder was the problem, had that air pressure increased over the years? If it always was set at 80 psi, why did it work until recently? If the air pressure recently increased, how did that happen since I know that no one used a compressor to increase the air pressure? I can understand how pressure might decrease over time through a nano leak of some kind, but how can the pressure increase without using a compressor to force more air into the space above the bladder? So although I am glad that the system seems to be working now, neither I nor the repairmen can figure out why it is working now.
Thanks for your time.
Warren
Here is my question: If the high air pressure above the bladder was the problem, had that air pressure increased over the years? If it always was set at 80 psi, why did it work until recently? If the air pressure recently increased, how did that happen since I know that no one used a compressor to increase the air pressure? I can understand how pressure might decrease over time through a nano leak of some kind, but how can the pressure increase without using a compressor to force more air into the space above the bladder? So although I am glad that the system seems to be working now, neither I nor the repairmen can figure out why it is working now.
Thanks for your time.
Warren