Living in the country has its advantages, but it has its drawbacks, too. Water isn't usually supplied to rural homes via public water systems. Instead, the country dweller needs to drill a well and install ancillary equipment to ensure adequate pressure and water delivery for the home. One such element is a well pressure tank that also serves as a water storage tank. Most country homeowners deal build a well house to protect all the equipment from the weather, but even that is not enough to protect the equipment from freezing.
Step 1
Insulate all the walls inside the well house. Add batt insulation between the exposed studs inside the well house and add insulation underneath the floor if the well house is raised above the ground. Add insulation to the rafters to keep heat trapped in the well house. For well houses that sit on a concrete foundation, add an indoor-outdoor carpet to this area. This serves to create needed warmth inside the well house and protect equipment, such as the pressure switch and pressure tank, from exposure to extreme cold conditions.
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Step 2
Wrap the piping leading up to the pressure tank with pipe insulation, a form of foam insulation that slips over the pipe and keeps cold water into or out of the pressure tank from freezing.
Step 3
Use a tape measure to obtain the diameter of the pressure tank. Wrap the measuring tape around the circumference of the pressure tank and note the measurement. Take a second measurement for the height of the tank and write both these measurements on a piece of paper.
Step 4
Purchase a water-heater insulation blanket from the local hardware, home improvement or general department store according to the measurements you obtained. Wrap the insulation blanket around the well pressure tank and secure it with the attached straps that came with the insulation blanket.
Step 5
Add heated tape to pipes in the well house as well as around the bottom of the pressure tank. These low voltage heat tapes keep enough heat in the right areas to prevent water freezing even in the cold of winter.
Step 6
Purchase a specifically-designed well water pressure tank cover that completely covers the pressure tank and the pressure switch from winter's harsh elements. Most of these bag-type insulations are used on well pumps and equipment not insulated from the weather inside a well house. They merely slip over the pressure tank and slip off for easy tank inspection.
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