There are a few home fixture areas to think about when you’re planning a significant trip where no one will be in the house for several days at a time, and this is particularly true for homeowners with water wells on their property. The primary question at play here involving the well: Should you turn off your well pump before leaving on a given trip or vacation?
At Mike Zimmerman Well Service LLC, we’re here to provide not only water well drilling, installation and rehabilitation, but also a variety of expertise areas when it comes to maintaining and caring for your well system. In this two-part blog, we’ll go over every factor to consider when deciding what to do with the water well pump when you leave town, including a few risk factors to keep in mind plus the benefits of turning the system off – and how to do it if you decide this is the proper choice.
Length of Trip
One of the simplest factors at play here will be how long the home will be left empty for during your trip. Will it be totally unoccupied for a period of a few days, or will the absence be closer to several weeks or even a month or longer? This area will also play a major role in deciding on what to do with other basic home service areas that relate to your water supply.
Time of Season
Another key variable that homeowners will have to think about here is what time of year the trip is taking place during. Summer vacations, for instance, present no risks when it comes to freezing water or related impact on your piping system – many choose to turn off not only their water system for a longer trip, but also their HVAC system to save both money and strain on the components involved.
During the fall or winter, on the other hand, there may be risks associated with turning off the HVAC system. This will allow pipes to freeze in cold temperatures, which can lead to pipe bursting issues if water isn’t properly flushed from the pipes ahead of time. For this reason, many choose to leave the heating system on during such winter trips, and leaving water on makes sense as well.
Heating System and Plan
Down related lines, your plan with the HVAC system and the overall power system in your home will play a role here. If you plan to shut these off during a fall or winter trip, you should definitely be planning to do the same with your water pump – the lack of heat will make freezing risks very high, and you should not take this chance.
For more on the factors involved in whether to turn off your well water pump while leaving town, or to learn about any of our water well installation or repair services, speak to the staff at Mike Zimmerman Well Service LLC today.
