How do you drain a water pressure tank?

To drain a water pressure tank, you must turn off the electric to the pump and open the drain faucet on the tank.

Step-by-Step Guide to Draining a Water Pressure Tank

Here’s a detailed, step-by-step breakdown of how to effectively drain your water pressure tank, incorporating best practices and insights:

1. Turn Off the Pump's Power: Locate the circuit breaker or switch for your well pump and turn it off. This crucial step ensures the pump doesn't try to refill the tank while you're draining it.

2. Bypass Filtration Equipment: If you have any filtration systems such as water softeners, iron filters, or reverse osmosis systems, bypass or turn them off. This precaution is essential because draining the tank can disturb sediment, which could clog or damage these systems.

   • Why this is important: Sediment can be stirred up during the draining process, potentially causing issues with sensitive filtration components.

3. Locate the Drain Faucet: Identify the drain faucet at the base of your water pressure tank. It's often a spigot or valve that allows you to release water from the tank.

4. Open the Drain Faucet: Open the drain faucet and allow the water to flow out of the tank. It’s helpful to attach a hose to direct the water to a suitable drain, or simply into a bucket.

   • Be patient: Draining can take some time, depending on the size of your tank.

5. Monitor the Process: Keep an eye on the draining process, and once the water flow slows significantly, you can consider the tank mostly drained.

   • Note: It's likely there will still be some residual water at the bottom.

6. Close the Drain Faucet: Once you are satisfied the tank is sufficiently drained, close the drain faucet.

7. Restore Power and Water Flow: After draining, you can restore power to your well pump, and reactivate any bypassed filtration systems. Allow the tank to refill.

   • Check for Issues: Monitor the system for any unusual sounds or leaks after the tank has refilled.

Why You Might Need to Drain Your Water Pressure Tank

Draining your water pressure tank is important for a few reasons:

• Maintenance: Allows for the inspection or replacement of the tank or its components.
• Troubleshooting: Helps in diagnosing problems with the water system.
• Sediment Removal: Sometimes, draining the tank can help remove accumulated sediment that might affect water quality.

Step	Action	Notes
1. Turn off Power	Turn off power to the well pump at the circuit breaker.	This prevents the pump from trying to refill the tank while draining.
2. Bypass Filtration	Bypass or turn off any water filtration equipment.	Draining the tank can stir up sediment, and you want to avoid having that move through your filters, etc..
3. Locate Drain Faucet	Find the drain faucet on the tank.	Usually located at the base of the tank.
4. Open Drain Faucet	Open the drain faucet to allow water to flow out.	Attach a hose to direct water to a drain or use a bucket.
5. Monitor	Keep an eye on the draining process.	Make sure to check back after a bit to see if it's done draining.
6. Close Drain Faucet	Close the faucet once the tank is drained.	Ready to go.
7. Restore Power/Flow	Restore power to the pump and turn filters back on.	Make sure to check for unusual sounds/leaks

By following these steps, you can safely and effectively drain your water pressure tank.