Okay, folks, let’s talk about something that drove me nuts a while back – priming my shallow well water pump. I’m no plumber, but I’m pretty handy, and this is one of those things you can definitely do yourself.
So, picture this: I turned on the faucet one morning, and… nothing. Just a sad little sputter. My well pump was acting up. After a bit of head-scratching and some good old-fashioned internet research, I figured out it probably needed priming. Basically, the pump needs water in it to create suction and pull water from the well, it’s a process.
Getting Started
First things first, I killed the power to the pump. Safety first, people! You don’t want to be messing around with electricity and water at the same time. My breaker box is in the garage, so I just flipped the switch for the pump.
The Fun Part
Next, I needed to find the priming plug on the pump. It’s usually a small, square-headed plug on the top of the pump housing. Mine was pretty obvious, but you might need to do a little searching. Once I found it, I used a wrench to loosen it up. Be careful not to drop it down into the pump!
Now comes the messy part. I grabbed a bucket of clean water. You can use a hose connected to another water source, but a bucket worked fine for me. Slowly, I started pouring water into the hole where the priming plug was. I filled it up until water started to overflow.
- Poured water slowly.
- Waited for air bubbles to stop.
- Kept pouring until water overflowed.
Wrapping Up
Once the pump housing was full, I quickly screwed the priming plug back in. I tightened it up with the wrench to make sure it was good and snug.
Then, the moment of truth. I went back to the breaker box and turned the power back on. I headed inside, opened up a faucet, and waited. It took a few seconds, but then… glorious water! It was a bit cloudy at first, but that’s normal. I let it run for a few minutes until it was clear.
And that’s it! I successfully primed my shallow well pump. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. If you’re having water pressure issues, give it a try. You might just save yourself a call to the plumber and a hefty bill. Good luck with your pump!
