Well Pump Keeps Running? Causes and How to Check for a Leak

Homes on private wells don’t have a water meter or a monthly bill to warn them about a leak. Instead, the warning is the pump: it starts running more often, runs longer, or won’t shut off at all. Around Trafalgar and the rural parts of Johnson County, where many homes are on wells with long lines to the house and outbuildings, that’s often the first sign of a buried leak. Here’s how to sort out whether it’s the equipment or a leak.

How a well system is supposed to work

A pressure switch turns the pump on when pressure falls to the cut-in setting and off when it reaches the cut-out setting. Common settings are 30/50 and 40/60 psi. A pressure tank holds a cushion of air so the pump doesn’t start every time you run a tap, and a check valve keeps water from draining back down the well when the pump stops.

With no water in use, pressure should hold steady and the pump should stay off. If it doesn’t, something is letting pressure drop, or the switch isn’t reading it correctly.

Common causes

Symptom	Likely cause
Pump never shuts off, pressure stays below cut-out	Worn pump, low water in the well, a big leak, or a switch set too high
Pump won’t shut off even at high pressure	Stuck or burned pressure switch contacts, clogged switch tube
Pump turns on and off every few seconds when water is used	Waterlogged tank or wrong tank air charge
Pump kicks on by itself with no water in use	Leak in the plumbing or line, a leaking check valve, or a running toilet
Pump runs and pressure is low, water sputters	Low well water, a failing pump, or a break in the drop pipe

If the pump won’t stop and you can’t see why, switch it off at its breaker to protect it, then work through the checks below.

Step 1: Watch the pressure gauge

1. Turn off every faucet, toilet fill, softener, irrigation and outdoor hydrant.
2. Let the pump reach cut-out and shut off.
3. Watch the gauge for 20–30 minutes.

If the needle holds steady, there’s no leak in the pressurized system; look at the switch and tank. If it slowly falls and the pump kicks on by itself, water is escaping somewhere.

Step 2: Check the pressure tank

With the pump off at the breaker and the water drained from the tank through a faucet:

• Press the air valve on top of the tank (it looks like a tire valve). If water comes out, the bladder has failed and the tank is waterlogged.
• Check the air charge with a tire gauge. For most bladder tanks it should be about 2 psi below the cut-in pressure: 28 psi for a 30/50 switch, 38 psi for a 40/60 switch.

A waterlogged or undercharged tank causes rapid on-off cycling, which is hard on the pump but isn’t a leak.

Step 3: Split the system in half

If pressure drops with everything off, find out which side is losing it:

1. Close the valve on the house side of the pressure tank.
2. Watch the gauge again.
   • Still drops: the problem is between the tank and the well: a leaking check valve, a leak in the buried line from the well, or a leak in the drop pipe inside the well.
   • Holds: the leak is in the house: a toilet, a faucet, a water heater relief valve, a softener, or a hidden pipe.
3. Put dye in toilet tanks to rule them out, and check the softener isn’t stuck in a regeneration cycle.

Step 4: Look for signs of a buried leak

• A wet, soft or greener strip of ground along the route from the well to the house, or to a barn, shop or hydrant
• Muddy or sandy water, or air sputtering from taps
• Water around the well casing or where the line enters the house
• A leak that got worse after a hard freeze. Lines to detached buildings and yard hydrants are the most exposed. See frozen pipe leaks.

Finding a leak in a long well line

Digging along a few hundred feet of line to look for a leak is slow and expensive. With underground water leak detection, we:

• Trace the line from the well to the house and any outbuildings
• Listen along it with a ground microphone to find where the leak noise is loudest
• Use tracer gas on plastic well lines, which carry sound poorly
• Mark the spot so only one small hole is dug

If the leak is inside the house instead, see hear water running when nothing is on and water in the basement or crawl space.

Who to call

• Pump, switch, tank or check valve problems: a licensed well and pump contractor.
• Pressure drops and you can’t see water: leak detection to find the leak, then a plumber or well contractor to repair it.

Indiana’s Department of Natural Resources keeps a public database of water well records, which can show your well’s depth and construction (IDNR water well record database). That helps whoever works on your system.

We find leaks on well systems around Trafalgar, Bargersville and southern Johnson County. Call once your gauge test shows pressure dropping with everything off.