Pressure Tanks
We install and replace bladder and galvanized well pressure tanks, plus the switches, gauges and check valves. When the pump clicks on and off, we find out why.
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Well pump installation and replacement covers the pump side of a water well. We choose the submersible well pump that fits your well and your household, then set it at the right depth. Big River Drilling sets pumps in the wells it drills and replaces worn ones across Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties.
When the pump quits for good or keeps failing, it is time for a new one. If the old pump might still be saved, start with well pump repair. We are based in Riverdale, and we take well and pump calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call or text (559) 867-3806 for a free estimate.
Tell us about the well or the water problem. We come out, look at the site and give you a free estimate.
Sizing starts with two numbers: what the well can give and what your house uses at its busiest. A Water Systems Council table puts the minimum pump at 7 gallons per minute for one bathroom, 14 for two. The council's general rule is to never install a pump with more capacity than the well. When the well gives less than the house needs at peak, a larger pressure tank can usually cover the gap.
For a given flow, horsepower follows the lift. The pump lifts water from the pumping level to the tank, then builds pressure on top of that. Each pound of pressure counts as about 2.31 feet of extra lift. A deeper water level or a long uphill run takes a stronger pump.
A regular submersible runs at one speed. A three-wire pump starts from a control box, while a two-wire pump keeps its starting parts in the motor. A constant-pressure drive instead speeds the motor up or down to match your use. Pressure holds steady, and the motor ramps up slowly instead of starting at full power.
The pump hangs on drop pipe, with its wire strapped to the pipe on the way down. The wire is sized to the motor and the length of the run, from pump makers' cable tables. Too small a wire over a long run drops the voltage the motor needs.
When the pump shuts off, check valves keep the water in the pipe from running back down the well. That guards the pump against backspin and water hammer. Industry guidance puts one within 25 feet of a pump that has none built in. Deeper settings get another about every 200 feet.
At the top, a watertight well cap closes the gap around the pipe and wire, as California's well standards require. The same standards call for a way to measure the water level, such as a plug in the cap. Installing the electrical to the pump is part of our job. The power line runs in conduit through the trench to the well head.
State well records show wells around Riverdale getting deeper. New domestic wells with a Riverdale address had a median depth of 245 feet from 1990 to 2009. Since 2020, the median is 500 feet. That can mean a deeper pump setting and more lift.
The annual report for the Kings Subbasin, which includes Riverdale, finds water levels dropping in normal and dry years. Pump sizing guidance calls for enough pressure for a lower water level later. So the setting and the horsepower should leave room for a dry year.
If the water has dropped toward the old setting, the new pump can go deeper. That works when the well has room below the pump. If the well itself is failing, the fix is a replacement well, not a new pump.
Free estimates and site visits across Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties and out to Kern, Madera and Merced, about 60 to 70 miles around Riverdale.
(559) 867-3806From the first call to water at the tap, here is how it goes.
Call or text (559) 867-3806, or send the form. Tell us about the property and what you need, and we set up a free estimate.
We look for a well spot with room for the rig. State standards keep it at least 100 feet from the septic tank and leach field. We also pull the records of nearby wells.
As the licensed driller, we apply for the county well permit. Drilling starts only after the county issues it.
Our mud rotary rig drills the hole. We set the casing and gravel pack, then place the sanitary seal that keeps surface water out.
We develop the well to clear out drilling mud and fine sand. Then a pump test measures the flow and tells us where to set the pump.
We set the pump and the pressure tank and run the lines to the house. State standards call for disinfecting the well before the water goes on.
Common questions about pump installation across Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties and out to Kern, Madera and Merced, about 60 to 70 miles around Riverdale. If yours is not here, call and ask.
We install and replace bladder and galvanized well pressure tanks, plus the switches, gauges and check valves. When the pump clicks on and off, we find out why.
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No water, low pressure or a pump that never shuts off? We trace the fault from the breaker down to the pump and repair what failed.
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Trenching from the well to the house, with the water line and the pump's power conduit in one trench. New lines for new wells, and repairs when an old line breaks or leaks.
Learn MoreCalifornia law says only a C-57 licensee may drill a water well. Big River Drilling is a licensed C-57 well drilling contractor.
Our mud rotary rig drills the well, and our pump crew sets the pump, the pressure tank and the lines. You deal with one company from the permit to water at the tap.
No water at night or on a weekend? We take well and pump calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We work Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties from our Riverdale yard, and out to Kern, Madera and Merced counties.
Real reviews from real well and pump jobs, 9 reviews on Google.
Helped out my parents asap when the others wanted us to wait 2 weeks. He came out same day!!!! and changed the valve in only 10 minutes “thank you sir!! “ (water well drilling)
Open 24 hours. The owner is always available and always answers the phone or calls back. He’s very attentive, and when we have problems with the well, he will come out and check it immediately. He takes full responsibility for his work, which is excellent. we just call and he’ll walk us through the situation and it’s usually something simple. He also was able to get us a well at reduced rate through a program that he works with
Great fokes to do business with
Well pump replacement cost in California: national ranges for submersible and jet pumps by depth and horsepower, plus labor, tanks and switches.
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What a new well costs in California's Central Valley: per-foot drilling rates, totals for 300 to 500 ft wells, pumps, tanks, trenching and county permits.
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Short cycling, low pressure or a waterlogged well pressure tank? The pre-charge check, the 40/60 switch, when to replace the tank and what it costs.
Read more →Tell us about the property or what your well is doing, and we will set up a free estimate. For a well or pump problem, call or text (559) 867-3806, day or night.
Tell us about the well or the water problem. We come out, look at the site and give you a free estimate.