I am basically having the same problem . I have excellent pressure from the faucet at the tank . When I go inside the house and turn on the kitchen faucet , the pressure is O.K. but , if you flush the toilet or turn on any faucet in another part of the house the pressure drops tremendously . We do have a water filtration system ( salt system ) installed 3ft from the tank , the filter is clean - was wondering if this could be my problem . My pump switch is set @ 40lbs - 60lbs , I checked the tank pressure and it was @ 62lbs . I guess the supposedly professional well man wasn't as good as he said he was . He replaced the pump , switch and the tank 4 years ago , worked good for the first couple of years . I just now noticed that the tank has a tag at the air inlet valve that shows you the different pump switch settings and the amount of air pressure to use for each cut-in pressure , how did he miss that ? After turning the pump off , I drained the water out of the line then adjusted the tank pressure to 38lbs , 2lbs below the cut-in pressure which is 40lbs , still doing the same thing .

Hi f550 and welcome to The Plumbing Page on AMHD.
You piggybacked on a 4 month old dead thread so I gave you one of your own. Before you post look in the upper left hand corner for the date..

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, I checked the tank pressure and it was @ 62lbs

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Let's start there. Your bladder should be charged at 38
PSI when the pump's shut off and the pressure bled down by opening up a cold water faucet. See if that doesn't help. Also you might try bypassing the filter and see what that does. Let me know, Tom

Hey Tom , as you can tell I'm new here . I did notice it was an old site but was hoping someone out there would be able to hear me . The tank bladder is charged @ 38 psi , I checked it earlier , something told me , even though a certified well man replaced the pump , switch and tank about three years ago I should check the pressure in the tank . Thank God I did , this guy had the pressure set @ 62 psi - 2 psi higher than the cut-off instead of 2 psi under the kick-in pressure which is 40 psi . There is even a tag around the valve stem that tells you what pressure to set the tank at for whatever setting your switch is set to kick-in at . It's 5:20 p.m. here right now , I've been trying all day to figure out what the problem is and it's time to call it a day . There is one more thing though , I did notice a very,very,very slow pressure drop at the well pressure gauge . I closed the water shut-off valve going to the house and the pressure stayed steady . So , that tells me there is'nt a leak in the line coming from the pump to the shut-off valve just past the "T" connection at the tank . There has to be a tiny leak in the line going to the house . I have asked around to see if anyone could tell me how to make the air fittings to pressurize ( 20 - 40 psi ) the line to see if it is in fact there is a small leak but knowone seems to know how to make one . I bet if I stayed in Lowe's long enough tomorrow I could come up with something , we'll see . I'll post it , good or bad .

Lowering the charge in the bladder didn't help the pressure drop in the house? That alone should have prevented the house pressure from dropping so fast. Did it? A small leak wouldn't cause a pressure drop such as yours. I keep coming back to your bladder tank. You don't get any water out of the air valve do you. Bladder tanks are in the system to prevent exactly what's happening to you. Got me puzzled ! Regards, Tom

F550 DO NOT start a new thread every tine you have something to add. Hit the Edit Button instead. Here's your post.

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#1 Report Inappropriate Post Today, 04:06 PM
f550jdhauler [?]
Junior Member
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 3


Low water pressure well?



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Is there someone out there that can assist me with installing a valve with a gauge ( for PVC ) on my water line to be able to pressurize it( up to about 60psi ) to see if I have a leak on the house side or can you even do that . I asked someone in contractor sales and in the plumbing dept. at my local big chain hardware store that starts with a "L" and ends with a "OWES" and they couldn't help me . The pressure gauge on the well side of the shut-off valve holds steady @ 60 psi if the shut-off valve is closed but , when it is opened , it very , very slowly ( 15 min. or so )looses pressure . I am guessing , since there isn't a pressure drop when the shut-off valve is closed , that it isn't on the well side . Any help sure would be appreciated , thanks and have a great day .

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F550, you have misunderstood the issue of setting the pressure in the tank. It must be done with the pump off and pressure drained to zero by opening a low level faucet. However, once you set the pressure to 38# and turn the pump back on, the pressure in the tank will vary between 40 and 60 or so. So, when the pump has pumped up to pressure and turned off, you will not be at 38#, you will be at 62# as you have discovered. It will only be at 38# when the tank is completely empty with no system pressure. That is because it is the compression of the air in the tank that generates pressure to begin with. As you put more water in the tank, pressure goes up.

You don't need to pressurize your system to find a leak in the house. The well pressure will do that. I'd look at flapper valves on toilets first.

You also need to look at the water filter to help explain your pressure problems in the house, as SB suggested. Do you have a bypass valve on the filter?