Replacing well pump .....not too bad

[Matthew Paul]

Two days ago , the well pump went up in my own home , no water , its amazing how much you take it for granted. As a temp solution , I ran a garden hose from my neighbors hose bib to mine and we had water . First order was to locate the well head , not as easy as it sounds since it is old and was buried 2 ft in the ground . I tracked the wire with a wire tracer ( use it in my irrigation business) Fired up my Kubota backhoe and found the well head in about 20 minutes . Since the pump was over 20 years old , I decided that new pump ,new wire , fittings , new pipe to the house , new pressure tank and switch . total materials was just shy of $ 1000. . Pulling the pipe wasnt that bad it was only 100 ft . I even made a block box around the buried well head 8 inches down so it would be easier access in the future . Total 6 hours

Why did I do it myself ? The best price I got from a well company for just the pump replacement was $ 2900 . All the other stuff would have been another 2 grand . I figure I "made " three thousand today by doing it myself .