When the well pump is not working, the taps go dry all at once. Before you send for help, a few safe checks can tell you, and the pro, a great deal. None of them needs tools or opening an electrical cover.
Water Well Repair Near Me is an independent referral service, not a well contractor, pump installer or plumber. When you send the form, your request goes to this site’s operator, who passes it to an independent local well pro who can contact you and prepare a quote for the work.
Flooded well? Stop here
If water is standing around the wellhead or the pump, EPA’s advice is to stay away from the pump while it is flooded, to avoid electric shock, and not to drink or wash with the water. A well or pump contractor should clean and disinfect the well before the pump goes back on.
Check one: power
Go to the breaker panel and find the breaker for the well pump. If it has tripped, note that. You may reset it once. If it trips again, leave it off: a breaker that keeps tripping is protecting a fault in the pump, its wiring or its controls, and that needs a pro.
Also check whether the rest of the house has power, and whether the trouble started after a storm or a power cut. Mention either to the pro.
Check two: the gauge
Find the pressure gauge on or near the pressure tank. Note what it reads.
| The gauge reads | What it suggests |
|---|---|
| Zero, and the pump has power | The pump is not delivering water: the switch, the controls, the pump or the well |
| Normal pressure, but no water at the taps | A closed valve, a frozen or blocked pipe, or a clogged filter between the tank and the taps |
| Climbing, and the pump never stops | The switch is not cutting the pump off, or water is leaking somewhere |
| Falling fast, the pump clicking on and off | The pressure tank, covered on the pressure tank page |
Check three: listen
Stand near the pressure tank and the pressure switch, and near any control box on the wall. Open a tap and listen.
- A click, then nothing. The switch is closing but the pump may not be running.
- A hum with no water. The pump or its motor may be stuck or failing.
- Rapid clicking. The pressure tank may have lost its air charge.
- Silence. No power is reaching the switch, or the switch is not responding.
Check four: look
Walk out to the wellhead and look without opening anything. EPA asks owners to watch for cracked or damaged casing, a broken or missing cap and cracked surface seals. Look for wet ground along the line between the well and the house, which can mean a leak. Inside, look for water on the floor around the tank and any filters.
What to leave alone
- The pressure switch cover, the control box and any wiring: they carry household current
- The well cap: opening it lets dirt and insects in, and the pump wire runs beneath it
- The tank’s air valve, unless a pro tells you otherwise
- Any attempt to pull the pump
Still no water? Say what you found and give your ZIP code.
What happens next
Send the form with what you found: the breaker, the gauge reading, what you heard and when it started. An independent local well pro can contact you and work through the system from the top down, as the well pump repair page describes. If the pump has failed, well pump replacement explains the job. If the pump is fine but the well has run low, see a dry well.
After the water is back
Any repair to the well is a reason to test: EPA says to test immediately if you replace or repair any part of the well system, and also after flooding near the well. After a flood, EPA adds that once the pump is back on, the well should be pumped until the water runs clear, and if it does not, to get advice from the county or state health department or the extension service. The well water testing page explains what to test for.
Send what the well is doing and your ZIP code. An independent local well pro can contact you.
Questions people ask
Why is my well pump not turning on?
No power, a tripped breaker, a failed pressure switch or control box part, or a failed pump. Check the breaker and the gauge, then send the form.
Should I reset the breaker for my well pump?
Once. If it trips again, leave it off and let a pro find the fault.
Why does my well pump hum but not pump water?
A hum with no water can mean the motor is stuck or failing, or a fault in the controls. It is a job for the pro.
What is your well doing?