My Well Pump Won't Shut Off (Keyport, WA)

What usually causes well pump running constantly in Keyport

A failed check valve: lets water drain back down the well when the pump stops. In Keyport that usually means 1920s galvanized under village foundations near the Naval Undersea Museum, and the ground, damp shoreline ground on Liberty Bay, decides how far the water travels before you see it.

The second thing we rule in or out is a waterlogged pressure tank. Rapid short-cycling, on and off every few seconds, means the tank has lost its air charge. It's common enough on larger parcels along Keyport Road that we never skip it.

And a leak inside the house: cycling stops when the house shutoff is closed. Less common on small, tightly packed village lots, but we've found it near the torpedo station.

First steps on a Keyport property

Keyport's village lots are small and the lines are old, so leaks are usually at a galvanized thread or a foundation entry within a few feet of the house, and a careful listen along the short run finds them fast.

What you can check yourself on small, tightly packed village lots: note the rhythm: slow steady cycling or rapid short-cycling. Close the valve after the pressure tank and watch the gauge. If you get that far, we'll pick it up from there with pressure gauges and isolation and pipe locator.

How we fix it

In Keyport the work that follows the diagnosis is well line leak detection, and it runs in order: repair or replace, restore, locate acoustically. Short runs failing at foundation entries in beach deposits at Virginia Point sets the pace on short runs on the peninsula grid; the sequence doesn't change.

Our Keyport coverage for well pump running constantly runs the torpedo station, Brownsville Highway, the marina, Virginia Point and everything between. We're based in Central Kitsap, ten minutes up Brownsville Highway, with pressure gauges and isolation and pumps on the truck.