Well pressure tank, pump control and rural water system repair

Pump short-cycling, pressure fading, or water that tastes or smells wrong? Tell us about your well system and a local plumber who covers your area gets back to you with a quote.

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A few minutes outside the subdivisions of Vaughan, Richmond Hill and Markham, many homes are on a private well. In King Township, rural Caledon around Palgrave and Caledon East, Whitchurch-Stouffville and across the Oak Ridges Moraine, a pump, a pressure tank and a pressure switch stand between the aquifer and every tap in the house.

Most well complaints show up at the tank. A pump that clicks on and off every few seconds (short-cycling) often means a waterlogged pressure tank or one that has lost its air charge. Pressure that fades in the shower, a switch that chatters, or no water after a power cut usually start at the switch, the tank or the controls — plumbing work on the house side of the system.

The well itself is a separate matter. In Ontario, drilling a well, repairing its casing and decommissioning an unused one are regulated and done by licensed well contractors. If the trouble turns out to be down the well — a failed submersible pump or a well that is not producing — that part may need a well contractor rather than a plumber.

Well water is also the owner's to test. Ontario provides free bacteriological testing of private well water; sample bottles are available through your local public health unit, and regular testing is the usual public health advice. Hard water, iron and a sulphur smell are common in groundwater here, and softeners, iron filters and UV systems are plumbing installs.

York Simcoe Plumbing is a free referral service: your request goes to one independent local plumber who covers your town, and they quote and do the work.

What to Tell the Plumber

That you are on a private well, and whether it is drilled or dug, if you know.
What happens: short-cycling, low pressure, no water, air in the lines, or a change in taste, smell or colour.
The age of the pressure tank, if you know it, and when the system was last serviced.
Any treatment you already have: softener, iron filter, UV or reverse osmosis.
Whether the problem started after a power cut or a dry spell.

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Well pressure tanks and rural water: Questions, Answered

That is short-cycling, and the most common cause is a pressure tank that has lost its air charge or become waterlogged. It is hard on the pump, so it is worth having looked at rather than living with. The fix may be recharging the tank, replacing it, or adjusting or replacing the pressure switch.

Pressure tanks, switches, gauges, the plumbing in the house and water treatment are plumbing work. Drilling, repairing the well casing and decommissioning an old well are regulated in Ontario and done by licensed well contractors. If you are not sure where the problem is, describe what is happening on the form.

Yes. In Ontario, private well owners can have their water tested for bacteria at no charge. Pick up a sample bottle through your local public health unit — York Region, Peel or Simcoe Muskoka, depending on where you live — and follow the instructions on the kit.

A sulphur smell is common in groundwater. If the smell is only on the hot side, it is usually a reaction between the water and the water heater's anode rod, and changing the anode often fixes it. If the cold water smells too, the source is the well water itself, and filtration is the usual answer.

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York Simcoe Plumbing is a free referral service: your request goes to one independent local plumber, who quotes and does the work. We may receive compensation when you are connected with a plumber; there is no charge to you.