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Small Cabin Forum / General Forum / Shallow well pump problem? Dry well?
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Jerry
Member
# Posted: 22 Oct 2012 09:29am
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I have a 28' sand point well at the cabin. Last spring I rebuilt the well house and redid all the plumbing above ground including both a new electric pump with pressure tank and a new pitcher pump. I put new leathers in the old pitcher pump, and it worked great all summer.

Two weeks ago we had a hard frost and ever since I can't get water with the pitcher pump. After hand priming it, it feels like water is rising as you pump it, but then it just gets harder to pump and no water comes out. I removed the pitcher pump and poured hot water down the pipe. I could feel the hot pipe all the way to the ground where I have a check valve. I segregated the plumbing to the electric pump which I had already drained for the year, still the same result.

All summer I had 14' of water in the well pipe, but we've had an extended dry spell. Do you think my well could be that low that it's actually not going to produce water? Now that I'm writing this it dawns on me that I should have run a test string down the main well pipe to check the water level, but I've owned this cabin for years and have always had plenty of water. Has anyone had an experience like this?

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 22 Oct 2012 10:55am
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How about the "foot valve" at the bottom. Maybe it is pulling, but just runs back into the well.

Jerry
Member
# Posted: 22 Oct 2012 02:08pm
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No foot valve involved, just a sand point. Worked well all summer, just a little bother to have to bring the water back up the pipe every time you go to use it. But when you only use it about once a day it was no problem.

hedspase
# Posted: 22 Oct 2012 03:03pm
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Could have a hairline crack in the pump or the pipe that is passing air.

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