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Submersible or Jet: Which Pump Do You Have

One sits in the well and one sits in the house. That single difference changes what any repair costs in labor and disruption.

The short of it

A submersible pump sits in the well and pushes; a jet pump sits above ground and pulls. Depth decides which one a property has, and it also decides what a repair involves, because reaching a submersible means pulling the pipe and the pump out of the well.

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A jet pump above ground against a submersible pump at the bottom of the wellTwo wells drawn in section through the ground. In the first, the pump sits above ground with a pipe running down into the water. In the second, the pump sits at the bottom of the well below the water level, with the whole length of pipe above it marked as having to be lifted before the pump can be reached.PUMPJETin the basementreachable without lifting anythingPUMPSUBMERSIBLEat the bottom of the wellhas to be pulled before it is touchedground levelwater levelall of thiscomes up first
Both pumps can fail in the same way and cost very different amounts to put right. It is worth telling a contractor which you have, and if you do not know, saying so.

Where each one lives

A jet pump sits above ground, usually in a basement or a pump house, and pulls water up. You can see it, hear it, and reach it. A submersible pump sits at the bottom of the well casing and pushes water up. You cannot see it at all, and reaching it means pulling the pump and the drop pipe out of the well.

Why depth decides it

Suction has a hard physical limit — atmospheric pressure will only lift water so far, which is why shallow-well jet pumps are limited to modest depths and deep wells use submersibles that push rather than pull. A deep well with a jet pump on it is an unusual arrangement worth asking about.

What that means for a repair

A jet pump fault is a visit to your basement. A submersible fault means equipment to pull the assembly, so the labor is a different order of magnitude even when the part is similar. That is why a contractor will want to rule out the tank and the switch before anything is pulled.

Telling them apart in ten seconds

Look near the pressure tank. A motor and pump body mounted there, with pipe running to the well, is a jet pump. Just a tank, a switch, and a pipe coming out of the ground means the pump is down the well.

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
Call (888) 493-0912