FAQ’s when looking for a water system contractor.
What qualifications does my water system contractor need to have?
When looking for a contractor to work on your well, pump or water filtration system, it is important to select a qualified company of good report. Always ask for references and a license number. Take the time to verify the license information! Check to see that the name they give you matches the name on the license. Also verify that the license and insurance/bonding are current. Ensure that the license endorsement(s) are appropriate to the work they are doing. For working on wells and pumps a well drilling or pump endorsement is a must. In addition, it is advised that an electrical endorsement and a plumbing endorsement be on the license due to the fact that your pumping system interfaces with your electrical and plumbing network. Be wary of companies that are working only under a plumbing or electrical license as they are often working outside of their field of expertise and are unaware of appropriate electrical or plumbing considerations that can impact pump, well and water system performance.
If your system requires a permit to operate or is considered a public water system, the qualifications to work on your system are even more stringent and are regulated by the state of California. The contractor should have a State of California Treatment and/or Distribution License or be working under the direct supervision of someone that does. Check out the qualifications that OPS has here!
Be cautious of small, one-man operations. There are several around offering their services and changing their business name every year or two as their reputation is tarnished and re-tarnished. These operations give the impression of cost savings, however, our experience in helping customers recover from various problems compel us to help you avoid the same fate. These operations are typically:
working out of their license classification, without a license or will be “borrowing” a license. (A plumbing license is not adequate to work on a well/pump system, they must have a C-57 (Well Driller) and or a C61/D21(Pump Installer) to ensure they have the experience and qualifications to perform the work needed in a competent and sanitary fashion.)
thrive on a customer’s desperation for water, promising low rates with ambiguity in regard to equipment prices until they are finished and wallop you with hidden costs at the end. (Sometime an extremely high cost upfront quotation is given without having gathered information about your water system.)
can turn a simple diagnosis and fix into a major project. (Often they will sell you far more that you need, putting a 30 Gallon per minute pump in a well that only produces 10 Gallons per minute.)
do not stock a complete selection of pumps and accessories or purchase them at wholesale prices. (These operations take longer and wasting fuel and your time driving all over Napa and Sonoma Counties to find the parts they need to make repairs.)
are almost impossible to contact after you’ve paid the bill, are not available for emergency calls and do not respond for any warranty work.
do not perform work that meets electrical, plumbing or mechanical code requirements. (The result is a system that fails prematurely, wastes energy and creates a poor reputation for our industry. First hand we have seen: pumps breaking /falling off of flimsy pipe, used equipment installed where new equipment was billed for, undersized wire resulting in wasted power and shortened equipment lift, excessively oversized wire resulting in wasted money, etc...)
How do i know what Pump Company to trust?
Our industry suffers from its share of individuals which have no scruples. Your pump company should communicate in a fashion that describes the precise problems, options to fix the problems and the costs associated with those options.
Well pumps are machines and do suffer from failures. That being said, fewer than 30% of the pumps we troubleshoot need to be pulled or replaced as the problem is often a minor one that can be dealt with on the surface. If a pump technician says you need to pull the pump out the the well, he should clearly explain why. If he doesn't, ask the following questions:
Is it the pump or the motor that has the problem?
What is wrong with the pump/motor?
Can you show me your diagnostic information? These might include measurements of electrical current (amperage), static pressure, flow rates, winding resistance and winding resistance to ground
How can you be sure the problem isn't with the pressure tank, pressure switch or control box?
Do you suspect there is a problem with the wire or the pipe down in the well?
The pump technician should be prepared to answer each of these questions promptly and the answers should make clear sense, even if you are not technically oriented. The way they treat you should show that they are willing to help you understand the problem fully. They should be able to show you motor diagnostic readings that verify problems with the motor or have flow/pressure data that show the pump is simply not meeting your flow and/or pressure requirements.
If you have clear answers to the above questions, ask the next series of questions:
How deep is my well?
What is the depth to water?
What pump will you replace it with?
How much water does the new pump produce?
Be wary if they indicate they have just the right pump on their truck without having answered any of these important questions! Many wells do not have information printed on them as to the depth, productivity, water level and pump model. This information may be buried in some of your files, in the well log at the county, or in the contractor's file if they have serviced your system before. The pump contractor needs to have the well depth and depth to water or the model number of the existing pump to have a good starting point to properly size a replacement pump. Keep in mind that there are many models of pumps within any given manufacturer to meet the variety of conditions, flows and depths of wells. Many pumps will work, but will not be the most efficient choice. It is highly unlikely that any contractor that “has just the right pump” on his truck, actually does.
Be wary if the pump serviceman starts throwing around horsepower as if it is a pump size. Horsepower simply describes how much work the pump can do, but does not describe important characteristics necessary in sizing a pump. For example Franklin Pump Systems has 20 different 1 horsepower submersible well pumps available! One 1 HP model may produce 3 Gallons Per Minute at 240 PSI while another 1 HP model may produce 30 GPM at 43 PSI! Putting the 3 GPM pump in a well that is only 50 feet deep would result in premature failure of the pump! Putting the 30 GPM pump in a well that is 80 feet deep will result in very low water pressure. Proper pump description involved both a horsepower and a flow the pump is rated at. For example: 5 GPM 1 HP Pump, 10 GPM 1 HP Pump, etc…
Any contractor that stops and tells you he needs to confirm correct well & system information in order to put the right pump in is a good one to have! They will be saving you money in the long run. If the information they need is not available, the contractor may actually have to remove the existing well pump equipment and take the appropriate measurements of the existing well and failed pump equipment before they can give you an accurate estimate for the new equipment.
Some contractors try to sell you much more pump than you need, after all, bigger is better, right? No, not when it comes to pumps. It is not uncommon for our technicians to find a very large pump installed to provide water for very minimal demands. This means you're using more power and paying more upfront than you really need to. Ask your pump contractor to tell you why he has chosen a particular pump for your application. Pumps that are oversized have the capacity to pull more water than the aquifer can supply. This means your pump may run out of water. The contractor can then sell you pump controls that turn the pump off should it run dry. We've seen some contractors sell huge pumps and then strap a valve on them to throttle the pump down to the desired output. Another waste of energy and an increased up front cost.
Once the contractor has obtained the data pertinent to your well and sized a pump that you, as the customer agree to, ask for a quote on the cost to replace the pump, wire, pipe and any other items that aren't ready for another 10 years of service in your well. Make sure to ask the contractor to tell you the efficiency range your new pump will be operating in, how long the warranty on the equipment is for, what that warranty covers and the time frame for the installation.