Indianola: My Well Pump Won't Shut Off

Why this happens in Indianola

Start with a leak on the buried line. Long poly well lines go brittle and split, often at a rock pressing on the pipe or a bend. Around Indianola Road and Port Madison the housing dates from a 1920s summer colony turned year-round village, which makes this the likeliest answer to well pump running constantly.

Then a waterlogged pressure tank. Rapid short-cycling, on and off every few seconds, means the tank has lost its air charge. We've seen it near Port Madison more than once, usually on 1920s summer-colony plumbing.

Don't overlook a failed check valve. Lets water drain back down the well when the pump stops. On Indianola properties from a 1920s summer colony turned year-round village it comes up more than you'd think.

Before you call

Indianola's village lines run through easements and across neighbors' lots from the 1920s summer-colony days, and the first job is tracing where the pipe actually goes.

First steps for well pump running constantly near Miller Bay Road: walk the line's route for a green stripe or soft ground. Note the rhythm: slow steady cycling or rapid short-cycling. Close the house main shutoff and see if the cycling continues. Then call; the rest is a locate through a sandy beach shelf below the village, not guesswork.

What happens next

When it's the buried line, the fix in Indianola is well line leak detection: we locate acoustically, repair or replace through ground that holds water all winter at the marked spot on bluff lots facing Port Madison, and isolate the problem. Pressure gauges and isolation and the mini excavator ride on the first trip so it's finished the same visit.

Kitsap Memorial, Miller Bay Road, the Country Store: near any of them, well pump running constantly gets the same crew and the same equipment. About half an hour off Miller Bay Road, day or night, with the mini excavator on the trailer for shared lines with no drawings.