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    mike_miller_45's Avatar
    mike_miller_45 Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
    New Member
    		  
    #1

    Dec 29, 2008, 08:56 AM
    Pump on well keeps tripping the breaker
    Every time the pump on the well gets up to 30psi it trips the breaker. Can a flooded and I mean really flooded yard cause this to happen somehow?
    speedball1's Avatar
    speedball1 Posts: 29,301, Reputation: 1939
    Eternal Plumber
    		  
    #2

    Dec 29, 2008, 12:18 PM
    Quote Originally Posted by mike_miller_45 View Post
    Everytime the pump on the well gets up to 30psi it trips the breaker. Can a flooded and I mean really flooded yard cause this to happen somehow?
    The surface water on your lawn would have nothing to do with tripping the breaker. Several things could cause this;
    1) a faulty breaker
    2) A faulty motor winding throwing too much load on the breaker as the
    Pressure builds.
    What size is your pump? Surface or submersible? Back to you, Tom
    jlisenbe's Avatar
    jlisenbe Posts: 5,020, Reputation: 157
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    #3

    Dec 29, 2008, 02:10 PM

    Not so fast, SB. Do you have a buried cable running to the pump? If so, then a flooded yard could cause a defective cable to short to ground (literally). Happened to me! However, it would not tend to happen just when the pump hit 30#. In fact, in my case, it started just occasionally and got worse as time went along. At any rate, worth a thought.
    andrewc24301's Avatar
    andrewc24301 Posts: 374, Reputation: 29
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    #4

    Dec 29, 2008, 02:20 PM
    I'm wondering what would be the best way to test for a faulty wire? Which I indeed could cause a problem.

    If the pump is submerged, I don't know which would be harder, replace the pump or the wire.

    I suppose if there is some way to disconnect the pump at the well head, you could disconnect it, cap the ends off and energize the circuit and see if it trips again. If it does then you know it's in the wire. If it doesn't then its most likey in the pump, or the wire leading from the well head down to the pump.

    But I admit, this problem would proplex me and I would probably be on this website asking the same question.

    However I should say that a faulty wire would almost trip immediately. It almost seem like the pump isn't shorting as it's drawing to many amps. My gut leans toward the pump. If you have access to a clamp on AMP meter you can pull an amp draw on the pump at the box. If the pump is on a 20 amp breaker and trippin at 10 amps, I'd try replacing the breaker first.

    If it's drawing 30 amps or something, something is most likely wrong with the pump.
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