Water Pressure....Revisited

IF YOU ARE NEW TO THIS QUESTION PLEASE SEE MY ORIGINAL POST OF JUNE 4, 2004 FOR DETAILS.

ORIGINAL QUESTION:.....I have a well and a EXTROL tank. The output pressure at the faucets/shower is less than desireable. The tank is about 18 years old. It has a valve stem at the top and the pressure at that stem is 28psi when the tank is empty. There is a SQUARE D cut in/out switch. The in pressure is set @30 in off @50.

I was trying to keep my original question simple, however, since there are such deep thinkers out there here's the REAL reason I asked the question.

I am considering installing a water conditioner and the mfg suggested increasing the OVERALL SYSTEM pressure as that unit will DECREASE it by 10psi.

I have lived with the current pressure for 18 years (HASN'T CHANGED IN 18 YEARS), however the pressure is just nominal and has been this way since I had the well drilled and the system installed. We have just learned to live with it, however CAN'T AFFORD a 10psi DROP.

TO ADDRESS SEVERAL OF YOUR INITIAL QUESTIONS/SUGGESTIONS:

The pressure is relatively the same at ALL outlets. ALL Pipes are fine. NO galv/iron pipes, ALL are copper. NO leaky hoses. Water filter has been on the system since new, has a new cartridge and I have verified that IS NOT the problem.

I agree with RON, pump has nothing to do with the pressure at the outlets, also with DON who said if baldder holds 28psi its good....Since it holds 28psi I assume it is good.

Now with all that said, can anyone offer a suggestion to my ORIGINAL question.....

IS THERE ANY WAY TO INCREASE THE PRESSURE AT THE OUTLETS, FAUCETS/SHOWERS,ETC?????

Prior to posting my question I was told there was nothing I coud do about increasing my water pressure. My common scense told me there must be a solution, however, I was reluctant to experiment until I got some input.

But thanks to all the folks who offered input I can now see there's a fix to my problem.

I especially want to thank CHRIS. Seems from his answer he was once EXACTLY where I am now, and I concur with his input completely..... ..... ...

Again, THANKS ALL

One other note you've probably already considered. Every faucet in my house had a little plate with a small hole in it as the first part of the aerator the water goes through to restrict the flow -- save water. While this might be just dandy for a city user who has 80 psi pushing water through that little hole, it really made my water flow slow so I removed them from the aerators and that did more to improve my water experience than setting the pressure switch up to 30/50. Some aerators are not as easy to unrestrict but you can find out if the aerator is causing your problem by using the faucet w/o the aerator to see how fast the water flows. If needed buy a new aerator they're cheep and look for one that you think can be unrestricted easily. My shower also had a restrictor behind the head--made for a much better shower when removed.

Disclaimer--I remember it took some trial and error to figure out which nut to tighten and how much to increase the pressure--I don't remember how it was done now, but with some fiddling it worked. It should go without saying to be carefull with the electricity as always. Oh, and I'm not an electrician or plumber just been where you are and did something about it.

All the pressure switches I've used were labeled so I knew which adjustment I was making. Some have a fixed hi/lo ratio (20 lbs), some are adjustable. Very simple fix, assuming the rest of the system is doing what it's supposed to do.

I had people telling me that I could never run a system at 80/100, that the plumbing would never take the pressure. No problem for the last 14 yrs. The house, and all toilets, have 30/50 due to the pressure losses (50 lbs) in the system.

Not sure what you mean by "static". The guage in the house never reads over 50 psi, even when no water is flowing. The only pipe where the pressure is 80/100 is rated at 160 psi, IIRC. The yard hydrant down there will sure get your attention if you turn it on full. The only real surprise to me was that a standard submersible pump has no problem with higher pressures.

I think I mentioned that my system is a little more complicated than most. There's a 50 psi pressure drop to the house, easily measured. When I finally found somebody competent (manufacturer), unlike the well company I bought the hardware from, it was also predictable. The standard switch, even when adjusted to the max, didn't give a shower except on the high side. Doesn't take much to realize that there's significant pressure loss.

Your assumptions apparently didn't consider this possibility. Good that we viewed "static" the same. I'd understood that pumps push much better than pull.

• Adjusting well pump pressure

BTW, if someone tried to sell me a water conditioner that dropped pressure by 10 psi I'd tell him to go fly a kite. The unit is clearly not sized correctly for your application. By "sized" I mean the flow rate (volume over time) is insufficient.