No Water or Low Pressure: Is It the Pump or the Well?

When the taps go dry, the first fear is that the well has run out and a new one is needed. Often it hasn't. A private water system has several parts, and each tends to fail in its own way. Knowing which part is involved is what separates a modest repair from drilling a new well.

The parts of a private water system

• Electrical supply. The pump runs on its own circuit through a breaker and, on many systems, a control box. No power means no water, even when the well and pump are fine.
• Pressure switch and pressure tank. The switch turns the pump on and off as pressure rises and falls. The tank stores a cushion of pressurized water so the pump does not start every time a tap opens.
• The pump. Most wells in the area use a submersible pump deep in the well. Pumps wear out, and they can be damaged by running when there is not enough water.
• Drop pipe and plumbing. The pipe from the pump up to the house, and the line to the house, can crack, separate or leak.
• The well itself. A well can produce less water than the house is drawing, either all the time or during dry stretches. Its casing or screen can also deteriorate over time.

What the symptoms can point to

These are patterns, not a diagnosis:

• No water at all, suddenly. Often electrical: a tripped breaker, a failed control or switch, or a pump that has stopped. It can also be a pump that has failed outright.
• The pump turns on and off rapidly ("short cycling"). Commonly points to the pressure tank or pressure switch rather than the well.
• Good pressure that fades during long use, then recovers after a rest. Can mean the house is using water faster than the well produces it, which is a question about the well's yield.
• Sputtering, air in the lines, or cloudy or muddy water. Can point to a falling water level in the well, a leak in the drop pipe, or a problem with the well's construction.
• Pressure that slowly declines over months. Wear in the pump, a clogged filter or a leak are all possible.

Several of these overlap. The same symptom can come from two different parts, which is why a pump-versus-well question is answered by testing, not guessing.

What testing on site looks at

A proper diagnosis checks the system in order: power and controls, pressure switch and tank, the pump's performance, the piping, and finally how much water the well produces and how its level recovers. Replacing a pump in a well that cannot keep up does not fix the problem, and drilling a new well when the pressure switch has failed wastes a great deal of money.

Safety first

Well pumps usually run on high-voltage circuits, often 240 volts, and pump work in Missouri is regulated: anyone hired to repair a well or install a pump must hold a state permit. ^[1] Checking whether a breaker has tripped is reasonable. Opening control boxes, working on wiring or pulling a pump is not a do-it-yourself job.

If your water looks, smells or tastes different after a problem or a repair, don't drink it until it has been tested. Missouri's health department recommends testing any time the well is serviced or the water changes. ^[2]

When a new well is the right answer

Sometimes it is: when a well truly cannot supply the household, when the casing has failed, or when an old well was never built to protect the water. If that is where testing leads, Missouri requires the old well to be plugged, not simply abandoned. ^[3] See how a new well comes together.

Call us and describe what the system is doing: when it started, what you hear and see, and whether anything changed recently. That is the fastest way to work out where to look.