No Water From Your Well: What to Check First

First, rule out the obvious

• Is the power out? No grid power means no pump. Our page on backup power for a well pump covers getting water during an outage.
• Is it freezing out? A frozen pressure switch tube or a frozen line to the house stops water cold. See frozen well lines.
• Did anything get shut off? A closed valve at the tank, a bypassed water softener stuck mid-cycle, or a filter housing someone left closed will all look like no water.
• What does the tank gauge say? Zero means the pump isn't refilling the tank. Normal pressure with no water at the taps means the blockage is between the tank and the house.

Likely causes, easiest checks first

1. 1

   Cause 1: Tripped breaker or blown fuse

   Both WAYNE and Goulds list a tripped breaker or blown fuse near the top of their troubleshooting tables. Find the pump breaker, usually a double breaker, and see whether it's off or sitting in the middle. Reset it once. If it trips again, stop there. A breaker that won't hold points to a short in the wire, splice, capacitor or motor. See well pump keeps tripping the breaker.

2. 2

   Cause 2: Low-pressure cutoff tripped

   If your pressure switch has a small lever on the side, it has a low-pressure cutoff. Boshart explains that some switches shut the pump off when pressure falls about 10 psi below cut-in, to keep it from running dry. After a power outage, a big leak or a pump that couldn't keep up, the switch can latch off and stay off.

   To reset it, hold the lever up until the pressure climbs past the cut-in, then let go. Don't hold it more than a short while if pressure isn't building; that means the pump isn't moving water and you're making it worse. Our low-pressure cutoff switch page has the details. If it trips again, Boshart notes the usual reason is a pump with worn or clogged impellers that can't keep up, not a bad switch.

3. 3

   Cause 3: A failed pressure switch

   The contacts inside the switch close to start the pump. After years of arcing they burn and stop making contact. WAYNE lists a faulty pressure switch among the causes of a pump that won't start. With the power off, take the cover off and look: pitted, black contacts or a nest of ants on them tell the story. A replacement costs $120 to $175 installed, per HomeAdvisor. See pressure switch problems.

4. 4

   Cause 4: A bad control box or capacitor

   Three-wire submersibles have a control box on the wall near the tank, with a start capacitor and relay inside. When one fails, the motor hums or does nothing. HomeAdvisor puts a start capacitor at $100 to $150 installed and a control box at $200 to $500. A tech can test both at the surface without pulling the pump. See control box and capacitor problems.

5. 5

   Cause 5: Motor overload tripped

   Submersible and jet pump motors shut themselves off when they overheat. Goulds lists low voltage, bad connections, the wrong control box, a hot control box and debris binding the pump among the causes. WAYNE notes the overload resets automatically once the motor cools. A pump that comes back an hour later and quits again is overheating for a reason, and that reason needs finding.

6. 6

   Cause 6: A jet pump lost prime

   On a jet pump, no water usually means it lost prime. WAYNE's manual says to check priming first by removing the prime plug and seeing whether there's water in the priming hole. A leaking foot valve or a suction leak is a common reason it lost prime. Our how to prime a well pump page walks through refilling it.

7. 7

   Cause 7: The pump failed

   If power reaches the pump and it still won't run, or runs and moves no water, the pump or its wiring has failed. Goulds lists damaged cable insulation, a faulty splice, a faulty check valve and excessive pump wear among the causes. That's a pull, and a job for a well contractor.

8. 8

   Cause 8: The well ran dry

   Wells can and do go dry, especially in droughts. USGS says pumping faster than the aquifer recharges can lead to dry wells, especially during droughts. If the water level drops too far, USGS says an owner may have to lower the pump, deepen the well or drill a new one.

Dry well or bad pump? How to tell

• Water comes back after a rest. If you get a little water after the system sits for a few hours, then it quits again, the well is struggling to recover. A dead pump doesn't come back on its own.
• Neighbors on the same aquifer are having trouble. That points to the water table, not your equipment.
• It happened in a dry spell or after heavy use. Long irrigation or filling a pool can pull a low-yield well down.
• The breaker trips or the pump hums. That's electrical, not water level.
• A tech's amp reading. A contractor can measure the motor's current at the surface. A pump running with low amps is often pumping air because the water's gone. This is the test that settles it.

When to call a pro

Call a licensed well contractor if the breaker trips again after one reset, the low-pressure cutoff won't hold, the pump hums without starting, or you suspect the well is dry. HomeAdvisor puts the average well pump repair at $974 and a house call at about $100 to $150. Expect weekend and emergency labor to cost more; HomeAdvisor lists it at about $100 an hour versus $50 normally.

If the pump is done, a submersible replacement runs $1,000 to $2,500 installed, according to HomeGuide. Our well pump replacement cost page breaks that down.

While you wait, keep the breaker off if the pump was running without moving water. Running dry overheats and damages a pump.