Life of water pressure tank.

[mscher]

I can get a free ( 2 actually) larger well pressure tanks from my work, that are 15 years old, but removed when they changed over to city water. Have not looked at the tag, but the tanks are about 3 1/2' tall and about 2' wide.

Our house appears to have just the small Menards special, that is looking a little crusty.

What kind of useful life can be expected from a bladder presssure tank? I don't remember the brand but these larger tanks appear to be quality looking, originally installed a respected local well driller.

An upgrade for our home would be nice, but it may not be worth messing with, if the tank is nearly worn out.

 

[gss036]

Re: Life of water pressure tank.

In my expereience, 15 years about the useful life of either type of tank. The bladder tanks last longer than a standard type tank. I replaced my 80 gallon bladder tank last year after about 12 years beause it had hole in it and would water log. You can replace the bladders but they cost about as much as new tank.
What you describe are probably 40 gallon tanks or less. There isn't that much work involved in exchanging from the regular to a bladder tank.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Life of water pressure tank.

I had a bladder type tank (well x trol?) blow on me after 14 years. The bottom feed fitting gave out. Thankful that my daughter went downstairs to feed the animals when she did or it could have been a whole lot worst.

The insurance covered the cost of replacing the wall to wall carpeting and baseboards but I still spent a good week pulling everything out of the basement and drying it off.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: Life of water pressure tank.

I've seen old tanks that have lasted way longer, but that is when things were made to last longer. The stuff made in the last 25 years and especially in the last 15, are made a lot cheaper. Manufactures can sell more with everyone producing ones with a shorter life span.

Personally, I wouldn't go to the extent to install...........SS

 

[WizeOne]

Re: Life of water pressure tank.

Any modern era bladder style pressure tank is good for 10-14 years. Although I could not name brands, I believe that some are more hardy than others. 'Old" style pressure tanks are referred to as captive air tanks. They have no bladder and just trap air in the top area of the tank. Over time these tanks would waterlog as the water would absorb the air charge and deplete it.

These tanks would last as long as the walls of the tank would hold water.

I would not call a tank that is 2' in diameter and 3.5' tall a larger tank. As was stated they are probably rated at about 40 gal. Pressure tanks, or a combination thereof, need to be sized based on the well pump out put. The ideal tank would provide about a 2 minute pump run time for each cycle.

For example an 86 gallon pressure tank, with a switch setting of 40 on-60 off would hold 22 gallons of water between those settings. A pump that pumps at 10 gpm would take 2.2 minutes to refill that 22 gallons of draw down. This is also assuming that the tank precharge is set correctly at 2 psi below the 40 psi pump turn on setting. The above scenario, is the correct relationship between pump flow, pressure tank size and pressure switch setting. You can have more draw down (larger or more tanks chained together) but not less.

 

[MrBigStuff]

Re: Life of water pressure tank.

Keep in mind, a LOT depends on the chemistry of your water.

The water in my brother's house is so acid, it eats right through the copper pipes. They had to put in a conditioner to get it back close to neutral PH. He still goes through plumbing parts at an alarming rate.

I remember the cold water tank in my Dad's house lasted so long, we never gave it a second thought. 25 years later, the guy that put it in was there for a service call and nearly fell over when he saw it. He remembered installing it and couldn't believe it was still there and not leaking. Some years later, it did start leaking and we put in a new one that lasted maybe 10 years. They don't make 'em like they used to...

My first house had a 30+ year old glass lined tank when I sold it. It had a short section of galvanized pipe on the outfeed left over from original install that sprung a leak and had to be fixed. That tank was still going strong when I sold the place.