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mud4feet · Dec 21, 2004, 05:18 PM

Ok, I live in a double-wide in the mountains of North Carolina. This problem occurs when it gets cold-cold-cold, but not all the time (I'm fairly certain it's not a freezing problem). Our water comes from a well, with a separate circuit for the pump (breaker located in my main power supply box). The house is about 9 years old. I know for a fact that the "pumptrol" pressure controler has been replaced once (2 years ago) and that is what I'm suspecting my problem is. When this problem occurs (like tonight!! ), I will intermittently get pressure (it ran when we got home from work, quit, I went out and tapped the controller, cycled the breaker a few times, and about 10 minutes later it ran again for about 5 minutes. I am now waterless again (don't EVER, EVER take water for granted! ) My question... am I right suspecting the pressure regulator (something I can fix)? Surely the breakers wouldn't be intermittent. Pump? (please say no!) My wife will greatly appreciate any help - like I said,I'm starting to stink! :D

speedball1 · Dec 22, 2004, 05:57 AM

Shut off the breaker and remove the cover from the pumptrol. Clean the contacts and try again. If it goes down again take the cover off again and see if the contacts are making contact. If not take a nonmetallic object, (like a stick) and push them together. If the pump starts up then replace the pumptrol. We have to nail this down to what's causing the pump to stop. Once we find that out repairing it will be easy. Regards, Tom

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 05:08 PM

Ok, I skipped cleaning the contacts and just replaced the pressure switch. Still no water! (BTW, the old one was a 30/50 and the one I bought was a 20/40, but I'm thinking that shouldn't matter - I should still be getting water!). Last night (before the switch) I left the faucet on. It would start running water and run for 5-7 minutes and then quit - several times. And tonight, after the switch, I had trickling water for a few minutes - but nothing from the hot tap and hot water coming from the cold?! I'm getting stumped! I didn't mess with any plumbing!

Ok, now 7:22 (15 min later). Turned on the hot tap and got spitting water, then pressure the HOT! Turned on the cold, got water (hot and first, then cold!! ) for about 3 minutes. Then it petered down to nothing :mad: Any idea what's goin' on? :confused:

labman · Dec 22, 2004, 05:46 PM

Do you have a pressure tank, or does the pump come on every time you use water? Does the tank have a pressure gage? If you don't have a gage, buy a tee the same size and type as the pipe to the pumptrol. Instal a gage. If the pump doesn't come on when the gage shows less than 20 psi, you have an electrical problem. If the gage shows more than 20 psi, and no water, you have a blockage somewhere upstream of the pumptrol. Break the pipe, and open a faucet, and hope the water flushes out the blockage. If not, can you blow air in a faucet? Even duct taping the out put of a shop vac to a faucet might work.

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 06:01 PM

Yes, I have a pressure tank (5 gal, I believe) and a gauge on the pipe leading to the pumptrol (about 6" downstream of the tank). Last night the gauge was showing 30 lbs, but no water. I'm sitting here now timing the itermittent intervals of WATER!! 7:35 on - 7:39 off, 7:40 on - 7:44 off, 7:51 on - 7:56 off, 7:58 back on again (and the wife is very brave - she's going to try to take a shower! )... I can't believe that it's a blockage, 'cause it works just fine 'til we get a cold snap. And by the way, the hot/cold stuff cured itself - I'm thinking that we emptied the holding tank and hot water bled back in from the water heater, maybe?? ). 8:03 off!

labman · Dec 22, 2004, 06:23 PM

I can't quite put together why it is intermittent, but somehow ice must be forming somewhere. Maybe crystals form between the ground and the trailer, are washed inside forming a plug somewhere. The heat melts them allowing more crystals to flow and plug. Try insulating the pipe, or even a heat tape. I don't like heat tapes, too many fires start that way.

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 06:28 PM

That's what's stumping me. The pipe is insulated - it has a heat tape on it but it's not functional at the moment. AND, it's been above freezing for two days now! And most of the time even when it's below freezing, it works fine :confused: Could it have something to do with the tank? I think it's a bladder-type (there's an air valve on it). Or perhaps the filter (upstream of all of that stuff)? But the intermittentness (sp?) totally stumps me, too.

labman · Dec 22, 2004, 06:38 PM

If it is a cartridge style filter, open it up and take a look.

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 06:43 PM

Well, yes it is, but that is easier said than done (perhaps another post I need to make?). I've only lived here about a year and a half (my share acquired by marriage) and I tried one time to open it (it needs changed, I know for sure). Well, it's in a closet in our bedroom (wife's closet - full of... stuff). For the life of me, I couldn't get it to budge - to the point that I was afraid I was going to snap the PVC. Any tricks to getting that thing loose?

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 06:58 PM

Ok, it's been running for almost 20 minutes now. I'm going to take my chances and try and get a shower. Labman and Speedball1, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your efforts - it amazes me that you can keep up with all the stuff on here! :eek: If I ever get this problem solved, c'mon over to the house and we'll share some beers... from a big tub of ice... made from WATER!! :D

labman · Dec 22, 2004, 08:43 PM

I have the head of mine stabilized with a board cut to fit around one side and a heavy metal strap holding the head from pulling away from the board. I then grab the lower part with my 16'' Channellocks. You can also buy special wrenches to fit.

mud4feet · Dec 22, 2004, 09:13 PM

Yeah, I've got the special wrench. The head stabilizing thing sounds like what I need to do. Thanks much for your response. I've had a shower (finally!! ) am clean and feeling much better, but I don't think my problem's been solved. Seems to be working OK now... maybe there's a "recovery" period involved - who knows. It's supposed to be really cold this weekend, so the ugly "waterless" monster may pop up again. If so, I know where to ask questions! Thanks again for all your help.

Tim

mt views · Dec 31, 2004, 10:07 AM

I live in the wv mountains, the place I bought had no water for the first couple of years, last year I got my water in, in October and I did not heat the well house, any way one cold January day the water worked for about 10 minuits any way it stopped at about 8:00 am, perplex as it had been very cold about a week before -2 and this morning it was about 15 , I was perplexed, I went and checked every thing and it even seemed warm in the well house, I felt the pipe going to the pressure switch and as I was leaving the well house the switch clicked and I had water again, it had gotten just cold enough to pluge pressur in to the switch and it had thawed just enough to start after I had rubbed the pipe trying to feel how cold it was, it is a 1/4"X6"pipe where as the main line is 1" which has much more mass. :)

mt views · Dec 31, 2004, 10:16 AM

I for got to say that as I was installing my system it says the holding tank preset pressure needs to be 2 lbPSI less then the controler is set to i.e. a 30/50 would have a tank set @ 28PSI and a 20/40 would get a tank set @ 18PSI, this keeps water running when the pump kicks on otherwise you gat dead spots or a lag time, you run out momentailary then the water comes right back.