Pump runs constantly or short cycles

Short cycling, where the pump starts and stops every few seconds, almost always means the pressure tank has lost its air charge. Continuous running means the pump cannot reach cutout pressure, usually from a leak, a worn pump, a stuck pressure switch, or a water level that has dropped below the pump. Short cycling is the cheaper problem and the more urgent one, because it destroys pumps.

Telling the two apart

Behavior	What it sounds like	Usual cause
Short cycling	On, off, on, off every few seconds while a tap runs	Waterlogged pressure tank
Continuous running	Never shuts off, even with everything closed	Leak, worn pump, stuck switch, low water level

They are opposite faults. Do not treat them as one problem.

Short cycling: check the tank

The pressure tank holds a cushion of compressed air so the pump does not need to start every time you open a tap. When it loses that cushion, there is nothing between pump starts.

Tap the tank from top to bottom. Hollow at the top and dull at the bottom is healthy. Solid all the way up means it is full of water.

Check the air valve on top. With the system depressurized, it should read about 2 psi below the pump’s cut-in pressure. If water comes out instead of air, the bladder has failed and the tank is finished.

Watch the gauge. Rapid swings between cut-in and cut-out while a tap runs confirm it.

If the bladder is intact, recharging the air may fix it. If it has ruptured, replace the tank. See pressure tank replacement.

A short-cycling pump is being damaged right now. That is the reason to move on it rather than wait.

Continuous running: work through the causes

A leak. Somewhere the water is going out as fast as the pump puts it in. Check irrigation lines, a running toilet, a stuck float on a stock tank, hose bibs, and any line running to an outbuilding. Underground leaks between the well and the house are harder and sometimes show as an unexplained wet or green patch.

A stuck pressure switch. Contacts welded closed keep calling for the pump regardless of pressure. Power off, then inspect.

A worn pump. Impellers wear, especially with sand in the water, and a worn pump can run continuously without ever reaching cutout. Amp readings and a flow measurement tell the story.

A dropped water level. If the pump is drawing air, it will run without building pressure. This one matters here.

A failed check valve. Water drains back down the well between cycles, so the pump keeps refilling the same column.

The local cause worth ruling in or out

Groundwater in the Chino Valley area has fallen for decades, with depth to water typically increasing 80 to 100 feet for a well drilled 50 years ago. Parts of Williamson Valley have seen reported declines as high as 8 feet a year. See falling groundwater and what it means for your well for where those figures come from.

A pump running constantly because the water level has dropped below it behaves distinctively:

• Runs and runs without building pressure
• Delivers air, or water then air
• Recovers after several hours of rest, then repeats
• Gets worse during irrigation season or heavy household use

If that matches, replacing the pump does not fix it. See falling groundwater and what it means for your well.

What to do right now

If the pump is short cycling, the tank is the first suspect and the problem is worth addressing quickly.

If the pump is running continuously and you cannot find a leak, shutting the pump off at the breaker between uses limits the damage until someone can look at it. A pump running dry burns out.

Next step

Describe the cycling pattern and we will connect you with an independent local contractor who works on wells in the Prescott area. Start here.