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-   -   Well Water - Fluctuating Pressure & Cloudy Water (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=126519)

  • Sep 6, 2007, 07:32 AM
    TripleJackInGA
    Well Water - Fluctuating Pressure & Cloudy Water
    Hi All -

    I live about 30 miles SW of Atlanta, GA, as the crow flies. I have lived in my home since new, which is 5 years now. I have a drilled well that is 125 feet deep, and the well was originally certified at 32 gallons per minute. To date, I have had absolutely no problems with pressure, and the water quality has been perfect. Very clear, very good taste, even though my two neighbors both had bad problems with iron and staining clothes etc. so they installed some super-filter. I have never had any staining or taste issues at all.
    We have been in an extended drought situation here in GA this Summer, but in the past month we have had quite a bit of rain at my house, and on one occasion, even some minor flooding of the yard/street.
    My problem: I took a shower last night and noticed the pressure was lower than normal. Normally this tells me it's time to flush out the silt screen that is right at the well, so I went and did that, and went to sleep.
    This morning we woke up, Girlfriend took a shower with no problems, then maybe 5 minutes after she was done, I went to get in the shower. The pressure was literally down to a trickle. Not knowing what to do, I went out and reset the breaker for the well pump. I came back in, turned on the shower faucet, and it seemed OK, so I climbed in. Halfway through my shower I noticed the pressure was dropping off pretty quickly, so I cut it short.
    I went to the kitchen and again noticed that the pressure was fluctuating from normal, to barely there. I went out to the well and everything looked normal from a glance. There is a pressure gauge in line after it comes out of the bladder tank. I believe this read just under 80PSI (pretty sure, but not able to read it right now). I opened the valve to flush the silt screen again for 2 seconds, and the pressure dropped quickly and the pump came on at about 60psi and brought it back up to 75 or so where it was at.
    I came back inside, drew some water for the dog's bowl and noticed it was very cloudy. I went to the bathroom sink at the other end of the house and got the same thing. It's either yellowish or brownish. I didn't notice any kind of odor from the water. I was able to get water from my fridge, which goes through a filter in the fridge, and it was nice and clear.

    At any rate, I called a local guy who knows wells. He says if the pump is coming on, then it's OK. He says when they go bad, they stop all together. I told him what the symptoms were, and he says he would have to see it, but it *may* be a crack in a line between the well and the house.

    The only part of the plumbing that is not above ground is between the well and the house, as I am on a crawlspace.

    I have heard it's extremely rare for a drilled well to go dry, and none of my neighbors have reported any problems.

    Advice, ideas or suggestions?

    Thanks!

    - TripleJackInGA
  • Sep 7, 2007, 08:32 AM
    TripleJackInGA
    Thanks for all the great responses, but I have a follow-up to this.

    The local well guru came out this morning, and had a look. He checked the pressure, blah blah blah.
    Also, this morning the water started getting much more clear, almost back to perfectly clear as before.
    We talked, and he says that since we were out of town for a couple of days, that most likely silt in the bottom of the well built up, shifted around, and a good gob of it got sucked into the pump, causing the pressure issues yesterday morning, as well as the dirty water.
    He said continue to run the water, and it should clear up on it's own.

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