How to Size A Pressure Tank For Your Water System

Is pressure tank size important? The answer is ABSOLUTELY YES!

Pressure tank sizing is essential to the life expectancy of your pumping system if you want maximum life of your equipment and reduced power consumption. 

Did you know that an undersized tank can cause premature pump failure? This issue can be minimized with a correctly sized tank. When a pressure tank is correctly sized it reduces the changes of short-cycling of the motor. Short-cycling means the motor turns on and off rapidly. This causes overheating and overuse of manufacturer specified start cycles. Additionally, it increases the power consumption of your motor. 

So how is your pressure tank activated? When water is used in the system the tank evacuates its stored water and when the bladder is emptied the pressure switch is triggered. The pressure switch sends a signal to the pump to turn on and run when the low pressure setting on the switch is reached. The larger your pressure tank, the longer the drawdown of stored water will last. A longer drawdown = less cycling of your motor. According to most manufacturers a minimum one minute run time is recommended. A longer run time may be needed for motors that have larger horsepower. Check out this chart for commonly used pressure tank sizes:


There are a few things to consider when sizing your pressure tank:

1. What is the GPM or flow rate of your pump?
2. What is the runtime you plan on using your pump for?
3. What is the drawdown capacity of your tank?
4. What pressure setting will you be using?

To determine drawdown capacity of your tank use the following equation:

Needed drawdown capacity of tank (based on psi) = pump flow rate * run time

Keep in mind tank drawdown is not the same as tank volume. 

Example: 85 gallon tank(40/60 psi) = 25 gpm * 1 min of run time

Special Note: If you are installing a Variable Frequency Drive and Pressure Transducer the calculations included here cannot be used. Refer to the VFD manual to determine tank sizing. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What will my new pump look like when its done?

Image
 Often we are asked what will my new pump installation look like? Most of what gets installed in your newly drilled well is below the surface and you aren't able to see it but topside there are few things you should see. Here's a recent example of one of our new pump installations in a newly drilled well: First things first, your new well should have an outer casing liner coming out of the ground. The material of this casing is typically steel but we do see some companies who install a PVC conductor casing, check with your local county office for requirements for your area. Depending on the county in which your well was drilled the county requirements might differ. Some counties require a minimum of 12" above the cement slab, other counties have no requirement at all as to how high the casing should be. It's best to check with your local county Department of Environmental Health for standards specific to your area.  The same set of rules applies to the cement slab inst
Read more

What Sets our Team Apart?

Image
 If you are reading this post then most likely you are looking at multiple bids for your well pump or well drilling installation. We believe in doing our own research as well when we hire contractors to work on our own home. Here at Heritage Well we believe the following should be considered when speaking with contractors to complete your project: Installation Quality, Contractor Communication & Service, Reviews and Pricing.  Installation Quality You may have read some of our other posts regarding our beliefs in installation quality before you stumbled across this article. If you haven't, check out this post for some examples of our well system installations.  We pride ourselves on the quality of our installations in all things WELL. This means we have high expectations and well designed processes for every step of your project. If you are drilling a well with us this starts from the very beginning in selecting the proper materials and method of drilling applicable for both yo
Read more

Low Well Water Pressure? 4 Possible Problems

Image
If you live in a home equipped with a well, then you may have taken the good water pressure in your home for granted until it diminished. Low water pressure can lead to showers that take longer and don't feel as refreshing, washing machines that take seemingly forever to fill up, and that chore of hand-washing dishes taking much longer than it used to. You may not immediately know the cause of sudden low water pressure in a home equipped with a well. Read on to learn about four common causes of this sudden decline in pressure. 1. Clogged Sediment Filter If your well is equipped with a sediment filter, as most are, then the key to why your home's water pressure suddenly dropped could be as simple as a clogged sediment filter. While how quickly your filter becomes clogged depends highly on the quality of your well water, a good rule of thumb is to change it every six months to not only maintain maximum water pressure, but also keep your water clean. However, some well owners need
Read more