Pulling the Well Pump, things full timers do not do

[djkeev]

Well, 
Winter is moving in to the NorthEast.
Leaves are turning and dropping off at an amazing speed! 

We've had our first frost and know full well that Snow can't be far behind. 

I purchased a small home in Pennsylvania, not far from my youngest Daughter as our retirement base, honestly........ A place to die. 

It is only a smidgen over 600 sf but it is nicely located out of the bustle of the suburbs. Surrounded by woods and fields. The open space is also protected by Zoning, "Rural Residential".  Five acre minimum, X feet of street frontage, you only can cover Y % of the property with buildings. 
I'm grandfathered in with a 1/2 acre lot but that reflects in my taxes and that all of my neighbors are paying for MY view and isolation! ... YES!!!!! 



Anyway, the house was built in 1967, it was last painted in 1967, it was last updated in 1967, the Well was installed in 1967..... 

The feed pipe from the buried well head (common practice in cold areas in 1967) has a pin hole leak in the old steel pipe. 
I need to replace it so that involved finding the buried well head (that was fun!) digging it up and uncovering the buried pipe to the house which is 16' away.  

Digging is always SO MUCH FUN!!! 

 My water is also rusty after sitting between visits so I surmised that the well pump is hung on steel pipe as well and it should be upgraded to modern plastic. 

While doing this it would be fool hardy to not drag the well into the 21st century by adding length to the casing bringing it above the ground and install a "Pit Less Adapter" too. 

I've fretted over doing this task all Summer long! 
A. How deep is the pump hung?
B. How heavy will that water filled steel pipe be to pull it by hand (I generally don't hire out tasks if the possibility exists that I can do it myself) 
C. What if the pipe breaks while pulling the pump and it plummets to the bottom of the well? 

Worry worry worry........

During the summer I gathered together the Well Casing adapter to extent it above ground,

I got the well casing and threaded adapter,

Bought the Pit Less Adapter and drill bits needed to get through the steel well casing,

Fittings and pipe to the house,

I made some pipe lifting jigs using chain, 2x's and two bumper mounted pipe vises

Wire conduit to run new wire to the pump,

And I found the well and uncovered the buried head. 

Yesterday I determined that it is time to do this! 

I gathered up my tools, put my hydraulic engine hoist in the truck, mynlifting jigs and grabbed two of my guys from work and off we went! 

A two hour drive, early dinner at Chick-fil-a (we don't have them here) and we went to work. 

We enlarged the well head hole so one of us could fit down in there to work pulling the well cap and hooking up the lifting jigs (the small guy would do this........... ME!). 

None of the fasteners were rusted badly, a minor miracle! 
We cut the water feed pipe and the electric conduit and using a chain attached to the engine hoist we tugged and we pulled! 

It took a few tries but the rubber seal finally popped loose and up it came! 

It was a series of raising, stopping, clamping, reposistioning the lift jigs and lift some more, 3-4 feet a lift. 

It all worked WONDERFULLY!!!!! I was thrilled! 
My daughter and the kids stopped by to view her crazy father and offered encouragement and the kids were fascinated by the giant hole we had dug! 

After about 60' it became obvious that this pump was getting lighter and that the engine hoist might not be needed? 

So myself and the guy above me began to simply lift, it wasn't easy, the pipe was wet and rusty but it came up
We would pause every 20' or so and collapse but after only 120' Total length, I had a pump in my hands! 

I expected far worse, I'm literally on top of a mountain (as Eastern "mountains" go....) I was expecting hundreds of feet of pipe! 
I have a well here in NJ that is hung at 440 feet! 

We then set out uncovering the pipe to the house. Fun...... I LOVE digging 3' deep trenches! 

All told we were only there for three and a half hours. 
Everything is exposed, the well casing extension is on. I need to go back to run the pipes and conduit to the house and install the pitless adapter. 


I'll get the pump checked by a local pump jobber today here in NJ and see what the flow rate is. I'll probably reuse it for now, it's only used on weekends right now. With the well head upgrades It will be easy enough to pull for a replacement should it fail. 

I'll hang it on Poly, run new wires down and call it good! 

As is often the case, the thought of doing is far worse than the actuality of doing! 

Dave

 

[LeeRevell]

Many years ago I helped my Dad do the same. Rusty pipe in the well casing.
I would lift the steel pipe, he drilled a hole through it and inserted a Philips Screwdriver to prevent it dropping. Then he'd cut the upper section off. We were limited in height by the boathouse roof where the pump was located.
The pipe was removed section by section.
We installed a new pipe of PVC, which is still working fine twenty-plus years later.
We take our running water for granted til we lose it!

Right now, I am clearing off my own back forty, and found a huge pinetree from across a rough unuseable dirt road had fallen from the last hurricane (Hermine). It smashed the back corner of my privacy fence, and had knocked the powerline and telephone line down. Electric company did more damage putting in a new power pole and line.
Ah, the pleasures of being a land owner.....

 

[bigsallysmom]

Sounds like quite the job.
I was thinking the same thing as I prep and paint exterior house surfaces which have to be redone at least every other year. Cold weather after today will force me to stop for the winter, and I can rest my painting muscles for the next four months.

 

[jimindenver]

Well done!

sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[Canine]

Nice looking spot you have.I've pulled a couple of these in my time.The Pitless guy who invented that adapter was a genius.I'm sure you put a new poly rope on the pump to pull it with next time.Glad it asn't a 400 ft pull.

 

[LeeRevell]

One thing that helped Dad and me was our well is only 90 feet. Never lost water, even during the severe Southeast Drought some years back.
My sister's old property in the lower south part of the county was in an old dry river bed. Legally, they should never have allowed housing there, as it has flooded several times during the last twenty years. Looking down her well casing from ground level we could see the water!
She finally moved.
All the problems I am having now with my S&B property, I am envying those full timers who can just crank up and motor on, if necessary.

 

[djkeev]

So, I need to figure out total well depth......or not, just curious.
Pump is hung at 120' submerged in a 6" bore with 90' of water over it. Consider at 1 1/2 gallons per foot of casing... 135 gallons waiting to pump. Haven't a clue about the recharge rate........ Plus we're in a drought this year in the East, rain simply hasn't fallen all Summer. I'm curious about the wet season well depth.

Had the pump tested today. Was built in 1995, a Franklin Electric 1\2 hp pump.

Free pumping its putting out 10 gpm.
With the vertical pump distance and submerged depth head it's putting out 7 gpm.
Electrically its fine.
I'll save $800 and put it back in.

Did spend $330 for new poly pipe, new pump wire, wire guides and new foot valve on the pump.
I'm forgoing the torque arrestor on trusted advice.

I am considering getting a "Cycle Stop Valve" to plumb in. This valve limits the rate the tank can fill during continuous use such as a shower or running sprinkler. It greatly reduces the on/off cycles giving long pump life....... Or so "they" say.....

http://www.wellwaterproducts.com/products/Cycle-Stop-Valve-CSV1A.html

It's a part time home right now so it runs only 2-3 days a month. I power it off while we aren't there, prevents "oopsies" flooding.

I am replumbing the home. It sat vacant and not winterized during the 2015/16 winter and froze.
Many split pipes!
Even if it hadn't frozen we are remodeling and upgrading the home so new plumbing was already in the plans, the cracked pipes were a non issue when we bought the place. It was priced very very good! No one wanted it because of it having froze.

We are Moving the kitchen, moving the bathroom, moving the laundry area...... Maybe an outside spigot will stay where it already is?

It was a quick closing! I wanted it, seller didn't want it, no one else seemed to want it, no financing cash deal.

I'll return in a day or two to install the pump and pipes.
No real hurry, but I've got a dry trench and they are calling for rain soon.
Work in dry dirt or work in mud? Hmmmm...... Tough choice to make!

Dave

 

[eDJ_]

My home was originally built as a summer Beach Home.  The owner had the well tank buried beside the well head.  When I bought it I got him to drop by and show me where it was exactly.    The top of the tank was about 1 ft under the ground and the head of the well was  about 4 ft under the ground.  The tank had been tarred and wrapped in 4 mil plastic to water proof it beyond the galvanized surface.

One of the first things I learned after buying the place was that the bladder in the tank had ruptured and the amount of air needed had been absorbed by osmosis.  So.....I dug to the top of the tank with the builder's
directions and pulled the cast iron plug.  I rigged a 10" nipple with a bell adapter that had a brass schrader valve that I would use to blow air into the tank and displace half of the water.   (doing this twice a year) 

Then around that I used some 6" abs pipe with an end adapter for a clean out plug.  This sit around the nipple pipe and was back filled with soil.   Thus I had a 6" plug  just below where the lawnmower would cut the grass.


It all worked well until one day I noticed the water flow was down considerably.  I checked the water filter by the pump control switch (all indoors)  and found it full of mud ????   The plastic pipe between the well head and the bottom of the tank input had cracked and when I walked out there the ground was quite wet and spongy.

After digging it up (still fairly warm weather)  and making a good size pit.....I replaced that 6" of plastic pipe and restored the system.   Covered the hole with ply wood for that winter.  Fortunately it wasn't too cold.

By the beginning of summer a friend of mine's son had graduated from high school and his dad gave him a used Pickup truck.   I hire him to help me dig the hole out square  and then we went and purchased concrete blocks,  a roll of 4 mil plastic,  bags of mortar, and Sackrete to make a footer.   We also got pressure treated 2X8 to make a cover for the pit I would build.   (this was cheaper than what any of the Well people would charge to bring the 6" casing 3 ft above the ground etc etc) 

So with the block in place and the lid fabricated and all wrapped in 4 mil plastic I back filled the whole thing.

I'm only 20 ft from where a city water tap would be  if and when they come through here with city water.  (I'll keep my well until I'm made to get on city water)    I'm on the same aquifer that the water company is on
so why pay $50 a month for water when I calculate it is costing me no more than $20 a month how. ($340 a year)

Should the day come when I'm made to get on city water...if I'm still here then....I'll only have to lift the cover on the well and bring the pipe to the pit and connect it to the house plumbing.   I could pull the pump and sell it with the Xtrol Tank and control at that point.  

I figured I wasn't getting any younger when I did this and by Murphy's Law...I just did what I thought to be the right thing.   I also placed a lightning arrester in the circuit. (100,000 amps 3,000 joules per pole)  BECAUSE there is a power pole 20 ft from the well also.  In the time I've been here lightning has blown that
transformer 3 times.   (I know my home owners will replace the pump...but just the same)

Since you are on a hill top............you may want to buy one of these for about $50 bucks as well.

If it saves having to pull a lightning fried pump only once.....It's worth it.

 

[LeeRevell]

Keep your well/pump functional when you go to city water. My parents' property is on city water, but I use the well water for irrigation, car washing, house pressure washing, etc. Saves money. Also if the grid goes down, I have a genset that can run the well pump. I#ve been a fringe Prepper for years, as was Dad. Having options is always a good thing.
I will really miss this property when the probate process is finished and we sell it.

 

[djkeev]

Well........ Midnight, just got home from Pa. ...... about a 2 hr drive one way.

Took out the tested pump, new Poly Pipe and new wire.

It sounds simple but I put in my Pitless Adapter, removed the old feed pipe and conduit, replaced the feed pipe to the house, ran a new conduit to the house, hooked up the new pipe to the well control sysrem, put the new check valve on the pump, attached the new wires and poly pipe.
Assembled the well casing extension permanently, glued the conduit together, taped the wire to the poly, put on five wire guides, dropped the pump in the well, feed the wire through the conduit, made the connections, tested for leaks.
Patched the holes in the foundation and tarred it.
And......
Filled in the trench.
Much of this was done via truck headlights for night fell on us.

Measured the Well depth, 162'
Water level, 38'
Pump hung at 120'

All that work and NO ONE WILL NOTICE!!!!

Maybe, "Oh look, you've got a pipe in your front yard now!"

I'm tired!
Good night....... ZZZzzzzzzzzz

Dave

 

[eDJ_]

No one notices until there is no water.   Then they notice what all they can't do without water,  real quick.

You'll be glad you've made these upgrades.

 

[djkeev]

No one notices until there is no water.   Then they notice what all they can't do without water,  real quick.

You'll be glad you've made these upgrades.

Very true! 

It is a huge peace of mind for me. I cannot imagine digging up a buried well head in January! 
You'd need a jackhammer to open the earth. 

Now if the pump dies it is 20 minutes out, a new one back in within an hour. 365 days no matter the weather....... Though warm and Sunny would be preferred. 

Dave