Time to Replace the Well Tank

[PirateTurner]

I have a 20+ year old Champion tank that is in need of a replacement. Looking at Amtrol-X and prices on the web run from $600 to $1000 for a 34 gallon model, some with shipping. Any recommendations on where to purchase?

 

[rcktpwrd]

Lowes or Home Depot have pressure tanks, 44 gallon about 350 bucks...https://www.homedepot.com/s/well water pressure tank
https://www.lowes.com/search?searchTerm=well pressure tanks

 

[PirateTurner]

rcktpwrd: wanting better than big box quality.

 

[PCustoms]

rcktpwrd: wanting better than big box quality.

What's the big plumbing supply house near you?

 

[zak77]

I have a Well Rite pressure tank that replaced a 25 year old Amtrol, my well guy recommended against a new Amtrol, something about a weak fitting breaking on the newer ones. So far so good.

 

[PirateTurner]

PCustoms: probably Fergusons
Zak77: nearest dealer is 3 hours away. Not seeing online ordering.

 

[AC-WC]

Home Depot tanks are made by Amtrol. At least 3 yrs ago they were....way better pricing.

 

[PCustoms]

PCustoms: probably Fergusons

Well call there and see what they have.

 

[Sturgeon]

If tank is sitting on concrete make sure you put a hot water tank pad on floor first. It will hold off the rust for a little while plus will make installation a little easier.

 

[Whitworth]

What's better quality versus big box?
What? One lasts 17 years the other 16?

Too many variables, how hard is your water, PH, etc? You could have the most expensive setup and have it get clogged up 90 percent with calcification in 10 years. Or get pinhole leaks from acidic water.

And match the capacity, different size tanks use different pipe sizes.

 

[acer66]

I bought a 52gl ish ao smith at Lowes this year and it had a galvanized pipe fitting.
Was in the middle of the install when I saw that so I cussed “a bit“ while I still installed it.
Did not think that was still a thing.
Needless to say my review at Lowes was never posted.

 

[larry4406]

Following.

We have a Well-X-Trol WX-203. Its 32 Gallons allegedly. It was used from a tear down house that I kept and put in my house couple years ago when the original of same make failed.

Some of the units have a plastic edging at the bottom to separate the unit from resting on concrete.

 

[leadfoot415]

https://www.supplyhouse.com/ had a well-x-trol wx-202xl shipped to my door quickly and for a good price. Haven't installed it yet. It is set to replace a failed wx-202 that is 23 years old.

 

[Bulldog13]

Went with one from Lowes …pretty cheap and did the job

 

[Sumboodie]

Cycle stop valve and a 2-3 gallon tank.

 

[Sumboodie]

Constant Pressure Pump Control Valves

Constant pressure pump control kits, constant pressure pump control valves, and pump monitors

cyclestopvalves.com

 

[Blk88GT]

I bought a 52gl ish ao smith at Lowes this year and it had a galvanized pipe fitting.
Was in the middle of the install when I saw that so I cussed “a bit“ while I still installed it.
Did not think that was still a thing.
Needless to say my review at Lowes was never posted.

My galvanized fitting on my new tank decided to spring a pinhole leak - while I was on vacation on the other side of the country.

Find one with a brass fitting...

 

[zak77]

PCustoms: probably Fergusons
Zak77: nearest dealer is 3 hours away. Not seeing online ordering.

Metal Well Tanks

Fresh Water Systems is the leader in water filters, water filtration, purification and treatment with thousands of products by all the top manufacturers.

www.freshwatersystems.com

 

[PirateTurner]

I drilled a couple of holes in the old tank to drain the pressure and water. There was some nice black iron sediment in the old tank. No wonder the water tasted bad.

Yesterday, working slow, I got the tank set and plumbed. The tank sits in a hole about 2' deep, OBTW. I used two 8" concrete blocks to keep the the tank off the sand floor. The walls of the hole are concrete blocks and are about 4" shy of reaching the top soil. Since the topsoil is mostly sand, a lot of it has pored into the hole over the years.

The original install used Sch 20 1" PVC. Of course, it cracked when I made the cut at the base of the hole and I didn't realize it until the pressure test. Had to demo a section of the hole wall to get to "clean" pipe. Turned out to be blessing because the pipe runs really ended up in a more direct flow.

FWIW, I installed a 30 gal Well-X-Trol (wx-203). It's nice to not hear the pump every time a faucet is opened. Thanks to https://www.supplyhouse.com/ for the quick ship and leadfoot145 for the recommendation.

 

[leadfoot415]

I drilled a couple of holes in the old tank to drain the pressure and water. There was some nice black iron sediment in the old tank. No wonder the water tasted bad.

Yesterday, working slow, I got the tank set and plumbed. The tank sits in a hole about 2' deep, OBTW. I used to 8" concrete blocks to keep the the tank off the sand floor. The walls of the hole are concrete blocks and are about 4" shy of reaching the top soil. Since the topsoil is mostly sand, a lot of it has pored into the hole over the years.

The original install used Sch 20 1" PVC. Of course, it cracked when I made the cut at the base of the hole and I didn't realize it until the pressure test. Had to demo a section of the hole wall to get to "clean" pipe. Turned out to be blessing because the pipe runs really ended up in a more direct flow.

FWIW, I installed a 30 gal Well-X-Trol (wx-203). It's nice to not hear the pump every time a faucet is opened. Thanks to https://www.supplyhouse.com/ for the quick ship and leadfoot145 for the recommendation.

Glad you had a good time ordering from them too. I still havent gotten around to installing mine as it is at a vacation property, and spare time is hard to come by. I am dealing with old pvc pipes leading into the pressure tank too, so I'm sure it will be a similar clusterf*ck.

 

[PirateTurner]

leadfoot415: My after-action-review; cut old PVC with a saw, not a guillotine cutter, especially sch 20.

H2O Mechanic says it is a 40 min job to change out a tank. Haven't seen him do one 2' down in a hole.

 

[Buckaroo5]

https://www.supplyhouse.com/ had a well-x-trol wx-202xl shipped to my door quickly and for a good price. Haven't installed it yet. It is set to replace a failed wx-202 that is 23 years old.

Good to hear - I am monitoring my tank and getting ready to replace it in the near future - had identified www.supplyhouse.com as a good purchase option.

 

[yatg]

The walls of the hole are concrete blocks and are about 4" shy of reaching the top soil. Since the topsoil is mostly sand, a lot of it has pored into the hole over the years.

Why don't you add another row or two of block to avoid this.

 

[PirateTurner]

yatq, I did add blocks.

Buckaroo5, I waited too long. Should have changed it when we moved in 3 years ago.

 

[dcg9381]

Cycle stop valve and a 2-3 gallon tank.

This is the way to go.