donald bishop

i posted a topic awhile back and i had some health problems so it has been quite awhile since i checked that post.  to recap, i have a sand point well that i pounded.  the 2" pipe was/is 26' deep and found water at 16', so i have 10' of water in the pipe. a plumber friend of mine tried to blow it out with his compressor to make sure that the point was not plugged.  then he put his pump on the pipe and could not get more than a trickle of water to come out.  i told him that i had another 5' pipe that i could drive down to see if that would help.  after driving the pipe down about 3' i checked the pipe by dumping water down it.  the pipe filled and it never went down.  i guess that this means that my point is in clay.  i checked it the next morning and the water level never changed.  one good thing that came from this is that my pipe and connections must not have any leaks (sucking air) because the water just sat there.  my question now is do you think it is possible for me to hit a better water pocket by going down further (5 - 10 - 15 feet of pipe) or will i just keep hitting clay? i know if i go much deeper i will have to use a different pump to get the water out.  

i have had some health problems so it has been quite awhile since i checked this post.  since my last post i had a local plumber take a look at my well.  it was 26' deep and found water at 16', i had 10' of water in the pipe. the plumber tried to get it to pump water using his pump after putting 40lbs of preasure on the pipe. he could not get more than a trickle from the well.  i told him that i had another 5' pipe that i could drive down to see if that would help.  after driving the pipe down about 3' i checked the pipe by dumping water down it.  the pipe filled and it never went down.  i guess that this means that my point is in clay.  i checked it the next morning and the water level never changed.  one good thing that came from this is that my pipe and connections must not have any leaks (sucking air) because the water just sat there.  i guess next spring i will start looking at it again.  if i was to go deeper  do you think i will eventually run into enough water to get the pump to work (or a different pump, depending on the depth) or should i look at having a well drilled.

thanks for your input

David Baillie your suggestion was spot on. I removed the 1" pipe and put a check valve on the input side and it started to work.  But now i have another question.  I have a 7 Gal. pressure tank.  The pump has a 30/50 pressure gauge.  The pump runs for 12-13 minutes before it shuts off.  Then after using the water, it takes another 12-13 minutes of running to shut off again, during which time i don't have enough pressure to provide water to me trailer.  What is the possible cause of this, or is this normal?  The 2" input pipe is ice cold so I am guessing that it is full of water.  Is it the pump size,? ( I am using a 1/2 hp pump)  Is it maybe that the check value is no working properly?  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

David Baillie,

Thanks for you input.  Your response makes a lot of since. I will try removing the 1" pipe this weekend and put in a check valve and let you know if that solves my problem.

I am in sand. I never checked how much water the pump pumps before it spits air but it only runs for about 5 - 10 seconds. It is a new  pressure tank.  Is there a way to tell if the baffle is bad.  That by the way was another question I had, if I turn the faucet off, the pressure tank should fill with water right?  It does not appear to be getting water in it.

If my pump is pumping faster than the casing is filled, can I put a ball valve before or after the pump to slow down the input or output?  Or am I better off pounding the casing down deeper?

I am attempting to drive a sand point well at a property in northern Wisconsin that i recently purchased. I purchased a 2" sand pint and 2" galvanized pipe.  I have driven this down just over 20'.  When i check for the water depth with a string and weight, i hit water at 15'.  So i have 5' of water. I put a 1" PVC pipe with a foot valve at the end down the 2" casing that is 19' down.  I can draw water with a pitcher pump, but when I put a Little Giant 1/2 hp pump and pressure tank on, it will not draw water.  I prime the pump and it starts to draw water to the outlet faucet but then it spits air and no water. I am quite sure that all of my connection are air tight.  I have been told that I do not have enough water to draw from for the pump.  My questions are:

1.  Is 5' of water enough for me to pump?
2.  Since if have hit water, if I pound my 2" pipe down another 5' - 10' will I stay in the water or will I go beyond the water?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.