System isolator
Is It the Pump, the Borehole or the Pressure System?
Pulling a pump is the most expensive way to discover a breaker had tripped. These checks work outward from the tap, so the least accessible part is the last one suspected.
System isolator
Pump, Borehole or Pressure System?
“No water” can mean a tripped breaker, a failed pump, a borehole that has drawn down, or a pressure system that is not calling for water at all. These are very different jobs. Work through the checks in order and this will isolate which one you are dealing with.
Guided checks
One question at a time. You can step back at any point.
Only do the checks that are safe for you. Electrical covers, control boxes and wiring are for a qualified person. Nothing here is stored on our side.
Why the order of checks matters
Pulling a borehole pump is the most expensive way to find out that a breaker had tripped. Because the pump is the least accessible part of the system, it should be the last thing suspected rather than the first, and there are several cheaper things that produce identical symptoms at the tap.
Working outward from the tap, the chain runs: the fixture and its plumbing, the pressure system and its switch or controller, the storage tank if there is one, the electrical supply and protection, and only then the pump and the borehole itself. Each stage can be confirmed or ruled out with an observation that costs nothing.
One distinction is worth understanding before you start. A pump that will not run at all is usually electrical or mechanical. A pump that runs but delivers nothing, or delivers briefly and then stops, is more often about water level in the borehole. Those two symptoms sound similar when described as “the pump is not working”, but they lead in completely different directions.
Questions
Common questions
The pump runs but no water comes out. What does that mean?
Most often that it is not reaching water. The level in the borehole may have dropped below the pump intake, or the pump may have lost prime, or a foot valve or riser may have failed. Running a pump dry damages it quickly because the water passing through is what cools and lubricates it, so switch it off while you work out which it is.
Water flows for a few minutes and then stops. Why?
That is the classic sign of drawdown. The borehole holds a standing volume, the pump empties it faster than the aquifer refills it, and the level falls below the intake. It usually points at pump-to-borehole matching or a change in yield rather than a broken pump, and low-level protection is what prevents damage.
Should I just replace the pump?
Not before the cause is known. If the borehole has drawn down, the water is sandy, or the pump was oversized for the hole, a new pump will fail the same way. Replacing without diagnosing is the single most common expensive mistake with borehole systems.
Is it safe to open the control box myself?
No. Borehole installations run at voltages and currents that are dangerous, often outdoors and near water. Checking whether a breaker has tripped at the distribution board is reasonable for most people. Opening control boxes, starters or wiring is work for a qualified electrician.
What should I send when asking for help?
Photographs of the pump control box and any display, the pressure tank and switch if there is one, and the borehole head. Then tell us the borehole depth if you know it, roughly how old the pump is, whether you pump to a tank or straight to pressure, and whether the supply is mains, solar or both. Those details change the answer more than anything else.
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