Pressure tank replacement & service

Signs your tank is done

• Pump kicks on every time you open a tap
• Rapid clicking from the pressure switch
• Pressure surges and drops in the shower
• Tank sounds full of water when you knock the top (it should ring hollow)

How it works

What it costs

What the tank actually does — and why it dies quietly

Your pressure tank is a shock absorber and a buffer. Inside is an air charge separated from your water by a rubber bladder; the compressed air maintains pressure between pump cycles so the pump doesn't have to fire every time someone rinses a glass. A healthy tank means your pump starts a handful of times a day. A failed one means dozens or hundreds.

Tanks die quietly because the failure is invisible: the bladder develops a leak, the air charge bleeds into the water, and the tank slowly fills solid. Nothing drips, nothing bangs — the only symptoms are the pump clicking on constantly and pressure that surges and sags in the shower. Most homeowners find out the tank failed when the pump it killed stops working. That sequence — tank fails silently, pump dies loudly — is the single most expensive avoidable repair in well ownership.

The thirty-second test you can do today

Knock on the top third of the tank, then the bottom. The top should ring hollow; the bottom should sound dull. If the whole tank sounds dull and full, the bladder has likely failed and the tank is waterlogged. Second check: watch or listen to the pressure switch while someone runs a tap. Rapid clicking — on-off-on-off within seconds — is short-cycling, and it means the tank isn't doing its job.

Either symptom is worth a call before it's worth a new pump. A tank swap is a few hundred dollars; the pump it protects is four figures. If you're not sure what you're hearing, describe it on the phone — we can usually tell you whether it sounds like a tank problem in under a minute.

Sizing: why we sometimes suggest going bigger

Tank size determines how often your pump cycles. A tank that's technically adequate keeps the water flowing but works the pump harder than a properly sized one; a size up means fewer starts per day, which is directly fewer hours of wear per year. On properties with irrigation, livestock, or big households — common from Anthony's horse farms to family acreage in Summerfield — right-sizing the tank is the cheapest pump-life extension available.

We'll quote the like-for-like swap and the size-up side by side when the difference matters. Sometimes it doesn't, and we'll say that too. The pre-charge gets set to match your pressure switch settings before we leave — the step that determines whether the new tank actually protects the pump, and the one DIY swaps most often miss.

What swap day looks like

A standard tank replacement is a half-day job at most, and usually well under. Water gets shut off at the tank, the old unit drained and disconnected, the new tank set, plumbed and wired in, and the pre-charge dialed to match your switch settings. You're without water for the working window and not much longer — worth knowing if you're timing it around a household schedule.

The old tank leaves on our truck, the fittings that always look fine until they're disturbed get replaced as a matter of course rather than billed as a surprise, and the last step is watching a full cycle: pump on, pressure climbs, pump off, tank holds. If the switch shows its age during that test, you'll hear about it while replacing it costs one visit instead of two.

Common questions