Home › Sand and Sediment in Well Water

Sand and Sediment in Well Water

Sand is abrasive, and it passes through the pump on its way to the tap. Filtering it treats the symptom at the far end.

The short of it

Grit at the tap is a well problem before it is a filter problem. Sand passing through the pump abrades it continuously, so the pump is being worn out while the symptom is being filtered. The source has to be found rather than screened.

PumpDepth is a referral service, not a contractor. We connect homeowners with independent contractors. Contractors are required to hold whatever credential their state or municipality demands. Every state page sets out who licenses plumbers there and where to check, so you can confirm before work begins. We carry out no work, we sell no equipment, we do not set prices, and we never charge homeowners anything — the contractors in our network pay us when we route them a call.

Where it comes from

A screen or a section of casing that has failed lets formation material into the well. A pump set too close to the bottom stirs up what has already settled there. Both put grit into the water, and both are the well rather than the plumbing.

What it does on the way

Everything the sand reaches, it wears — the pump impellers first, then valves and fixture seats. Penn State Extension lists rising sand or sediment among the signs of a well needing attention, alongside falling yield and a decreasing total well depth.

Source: Penn State Extension, Water Well Maintenance and Rehabilitation.

Why a filter alone is not the answer

A sediment filter at the house protects fixtures and does nothing for the pump, which met the sand first. It is a reasonable thing to have and a poor substitute for finding out why sand is entering the well.

What to have looked at

Pump setting depth, screen condition, and total well depth. Extension recommends a professional inspection every ten years even when nothing appears wrong, and a well producing sand is not a well where nothing appears wrong.

On a well, nobody else is going to notice it failing.If the pressure has gone or the pump is cycling, that is worth a call today rather than next week. We route to contractors who work on wells specifically and cover your area, matched on the ZIP code you give, and you are never charged. Nor does it have to be the well; any plumbing work is routed the same way.

Call (888) 493-0912