Water pressue and other plumbing issues (MULTIPLE ISSUES - LONG)

9 years ago

I have a couple plumbing issues in my house. Some background...

Approximately two years ago I bought my first house as a Single Dad. I've owned and maintained before, this house is new to me. I've done plenty of plumbing, soldering, PEX. Fully B/R renos.

This house is an older house, maybe 40 or so years old, a small 935 sq/ft bungalow that has had a basement added and fully renovated under it. From what I can tell at some point it may have had an addition on to it also, just from the inside roof lines.

Many upgrades have been done, including plumbing. All lines are new PEX lines with solderless Sharkbite style connectors for everthing, except they are the plastic variety, not the brass.

My water supply as I have since discovered is a Sand Point. I spend the better part of a year looking over lot descriptions and diagrams trying to find the well, only to be told by the neighbour that everyone around here ueses Sand Points.

My water and solid waste go to a septic tank, approximately 25 feet away from back side of house.

On the main floor I have a full B/R (bathtub and shower) and kitchen (with dishwasher). In the basement I have a full B/R, shower only. Laundry room is in basement.

The upstairs B/R is the only waste water that does not go through the waste pump-up system in the basement. The B/R in the basement empties vanity, shower, and toilet into the waste pump up, the laundry room empties into the pump up, the sink upstairs and dishwater don't feed into the pump up, but into its waste line leaving the house.

PROBELM 1. We cannot use the upstairs B/R for solid waste. If we do, the waste line out of the house gets plugged. This has happened twice, and the clog has happened right at the very furthest point in the line away from the house. Once was in the winter and once was in the summer. Since limiting our activities to the basement B/R we've had no problems with clogs. I guess the septic pump-up liqufies anything that goes in to the holding tank making it easier to travel the rather large waste pipe to the septic. I don't think there is anything we can do about this issue. I'm not digging a new deeper septic to increase the drop from the house (Because I feel there is enough drop on the pipe).

PROBLEM 2. When I have a shower, There is a taste to the water. When In first moved in I thought the water tasted "sweet", as in sugary. Since draining the pressure tank I've been tasting - well I dont know how to describe it. I'm not quite sure, but I know that only started when the tank was drained last year and I ran the house out of water... to purge air in the faucet in the kitchen.

PROBLEM 3. I'm pretty sure that my water pump (which is in the house on top of pressure tank) is not set up correctly. Last fall one night while watching TV with the kids I heard the pump cycling constantly (I stopped counting at 50 times). On/OFF/ON/OF/ON/OFF. constantly and in rapid sucession. I determined at this time that the water tank was not charged with air properly, and corrected that. Later that year - at Christmas actually - my pump had an impossible time re-pressurinzing tank. I dont know how I figured this out, but as a stop-gap, to get the pump to repressurize, I had to crack the scerw on the top of the pump body to bleed off air. I would have to do this 3 or 4 times (It would "stall re-charging at a value below 40PSI). Once done it would be fine. At the time I was away al lot 2 or 3 days at a time, and every time I came home I would have to do this. I had to continue doing this until spring. Havent done it since last spring, and haven't done it this winter at all even though it's been colder. I dont know what to make of that one.

Most of the repairs/upgraded were done by previous homeowner/cowboy. Working my way through the elctrical ones (Baseboard heaters not hooked up/wired incorrectly). I'd like to (cheaply) get a grip on the plumbing issues here. My sysytem may be contaminated with seidiment, I dont know. The way the pump is functioning right now though, I'm not sure I have enough water pressure to do any prolonged purging of the system (I tried purging some air out of it last year by opening all the faucets etc, not 100% effective since water pressure dropped to nothing).

Thanks for the read of the novel. I probably should have posted in different threads, but some of these problems appear like they might be inter-related so I just jammed them all into one bit list.

Steve

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Comments (2)

Vith
9 years ago
Problem 1: I feel there is an area in the plumbing that has too much of a slope. The water moves faster than the solids and leaves the solid in the pipe. If you can get a toilet that uses a lot of water on each flush then that might fix the problem.

I dont have an idea for the other two problems.
klem1
9 years ago
There are no pat answers to your questions simply because there are multiple possibilities. I would install a clean-out near house and one near tank if not one already. Looking into clean-outs with flashlight can tell if there is too liitle/too much slop[e in line. A secound basin and macranator pump for upstairs toilet is much cheaper than relaying line. My first suspecion is a damaged pipe snagging paper and waste. A camera through line will answer that. Make certain someone on secound floor isn't putting other than body waste and TOILET PAPER in toilet. Many people toss facial tissue,baby wipes,diapers,paper towel,femenine hygiene products and anything else that will disapear when flushed.

Shallow well pumps and sand points are specialties not to be handled by plumbers unless specializing in well pumps. Look around the neighborhood for an old timer you can hire even if only drawing his pay while telling you what to do next. Pumping the stream dry is common with sand points so that's worth investigating. If your tank has a bladder make sure it's not ruptured and you are recharging it correctly. The county health service will test your water,i would have it done.
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Water pressue and other plumbing issues (MULTIPLE ISSUES - LONG)

Comments (2)

Vith

klem1

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