At this time of year we always get a handful of calls from Perth bore owners along the lines of ” my bore is running out of water” or “my bore works for a minute or so then the bore water runs out”. Sometimes it is not the bore water running out that is the problem but actually a problem with the reticulation system or pump but I address that in other blogs or call us on 1300 734 300 for help with other bore problems.
slotted PVC bore casing
Sometimes it is in fact the yield of the bore itself and the pump is pumping water out faster than it is flowing in to the bore casing. Then it is truly running out of water. Knee-jerk reaction is to think the bore is not deep enough. Sometimes the water table has dropped and it is a depth related issue. Often though, it is that the stainless steel bore screen or slotted PVC bore casing of the bore (or spear) has become blocked. Sometimes the ground surrounding the bore has reduced the water it will “allow” to flow through it. These problems can sometimes be solved by air-developing a process where we pump large volumes of compressed air down the bore hole. Other times we chemically clean and restore the bore with a combination of special cleaning compounds, surfactants and clay dispersants depending on the conditions diagnosed.
Sometimes the flow from the Perth mains scheme water supply has diminished in a suburb or the power / flow /pressure from a bore has deteriorated over time, to such an extent that a reticulation system no longer works adequately. Result is maybe sprinklers only half pop up or fixed sprinklers don’t spray as far as they used to. One remedy is to reconfigure the reticulation system in to smaller stations (zones) with less sprinklers so each station uses less water. Another solution can be to change the sprinkler heads to models that use less water. As an example the old style “mountain mist ” chrome or brass flat disc sprinklers with a 3/8 inch aperture use 17 litres per minute each whilst a typical 360″ pop up sprinkler with a 10 ft nozzle uses half of that. Some new low precipitation sprinklers such MP rotators use as little as 2 litres per minute. Call us anytime in Perth on 1300 734 300 for free advice or to book a reticulation or bore serviceman to remedy your sprinkler or bore problems. You can also visit our main website here.
Today we got a call from Hamilton Hill and another from Dianella. Both wanted to know whether could we replace their old centrifugal pump in their well style bore with a modern submersible pump. It is a common question from all over Perth in older suburbs where centrifugal pumps or jet pumps were common in the old well style bores and now need replacing. Answer….sometimes we can substitute with a submersible pump installation but ONLY if the casing at the bottom of the well liner(s) that goes into the ground ( some people may refer to this as a spear ) is of 100mm ( 4 inch ) or more. Typically that would be when it has freestanding suction ( where the pipe from the existing centrifugal pump suction side goes in to the ground inside a larger outside pipe) or where the bore has been redrilled within the last 15 or so years. We can also substitute a centrifugal or jet pump with a submersible in the (rarer) older wells with open water in the bottom. Call our Perth bore service hotline on 1300 734 300 for free advice or a quotation. You can also visit our main VIRGIN BORES website here.
Lowara submersible pumps and motors are a good reliable Italian brand but, like anything, they can have their own idiosyncracies. We specialise in servicing Lowara submersible pumps and their stablemates, Centripro and Marlow. We have over a decade of practical in-the-field service and pump repair experience. A problem that does from time to time present itself with some of the earlier Lowara single phase motors is blown start capacitors in the bore start box. It is an easy fix for someone experienced in Lowara pumps and motors. Give our Perth bore service and repair hotline a call on 1300 734 300 and our mobile bore service team can help you. Or visit or main Virgin Bores website for more bore info and help.
Familiar call today from a lady who happened to live in Sorrento, but we get similar calls from bore owners all over Perth. “the light on my bore box on the wall has stayed on even after I have turned the reticulation controller off “. This can turn in to a bigger problem so first things first, if you are reading this blog and your bore box light is on but there is no water pumping out anywhere please straight away turn the bore mains power off. Turn it off by either turning off the circuit breaker ( or pulling the fuse) labelled “bore” or “pump” that you will hopefully see in your meter box. Or turn off the bore box isolation switch that is located on the bore box on the wall. ( this is called a bore start box, not to be confused with the reticulation controller). Worst case if you can’t turn it by either of these two methods then turn off your mains power master switch and call us pronto on 1300 734 300.
Lowara bore start box
What has most likely happened is that your automatic reticulation controller has correctly sent the 24 volt start signal to the relay in the bore start box and this has started the 240v bore at the same time as the reticulation controller has correctly sent a signal to open a solenoid valve allowing water to flow to the sprinklers. All good so far but then when the automatic reticulation controller has run through its cycle and shut the last solenoid valve the pump has continued to run. Most likely the start relay has stuck on and needs replacing. Prolonged operation of any bore pump with no water being able to flow (dead heading ) can cause a multitude of problems. Most commonly with submersible pumps the rising poly mainline will overheat and “blow”. With centrifugal well pumps overheating leads to several serious problems. Give our Perth bore service hotline a call on 1300 734 300 or visit our main website for more help on bores and reticulation.
Seems today was “D” Day with many Perth bore owners turning their water bores on for the first time this season….or should I say trying to turn them on. Calls today from Joondalup, Floreat, Landsdale, Safety Bay and Armadale all with a similar story. Either the pump cicuitbreaker was tripping ( or fuse blowing ) when the bore was turned on or nothing was happening at all. Some simple tests and solutions can be found in our Perth bore troubleshooting guide in this blog or call our Perth Bore Service Hotline 1300 734 300 Perth metro-wide All Suburbs We are specialists in both water bores and reticulation ( irrigation ) systems so whatever your problem we can fix it!
When drilling a new bore or having repairs or service to your existing bore it is important to deal with a member of the Australian Drilling Industry Association. Water Bore Troubleshooters are part of Virgin Bores Perth www.virginbores.com.au , proud members of the ADIA for over 10 years. For any water bore advice or service and repair call 1300 734 300 or for North of River, Troy on 0408454130 or South of River, Brett on 0411511611
A very common call to our water bore Perth service hotline (1300 734 300) is along the lines of “mybore runs but no water” or “my pump runs but no water”. Firstly, before anything, our advice is always to turn it off so the pump is not running. Turn the reticulation controller OFF and if there is a bore over-ride switch turn that OFF as well. In newer Perth bore pump installations there should be a circuitbreaker in the meter box labelled “bore” or “pump”. Turn that OFF as well. In older Perth bores it may be a fuse instead. In some installations it may even be labelled reticulation. No bore pump should run without water or consequential damage may result.
Their are several causes. Click here for more details or Call us on Perth 1300 734 300 and we’ll fix the problem pronto
Our mobile service teams do prompt repairs to ALL TYPES of Water Bores & Reticulation Sprinkler Systems Perth metro-wide. Free phone advice. Our experience saves you time and money. Bore repair HOTLINE 1300 734 300 North of River: Troy 0408454130 South of River: Brett 0411511611
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