Well Pump Replacement

[mathjak107]

if you have the pump info i can look up the trade cost on your pump tomorrow when i am at work

 

[aja8888]

It's just a really hard thing for me to accept emotionally. With very few exceptions we have always built and fixed EVERYTHING ourselves. We built our home, built our cabinets and furniture, repair our cars, plumbing, electrical, etc. The only things we hired out were things we didn't have the equipment or skills to do, such as tires and alignment on the cars, or the slab in our garage (took 6 guys to do that one).

A couple years ago we paid to have some trees taken down. It was something we technically could have done, but there were some challenges that we chose just to hire out (another $4000 bill). I didn't regret that choice.

However, the pump replacement was something I COULD have done. I installed the first one, I certainly could have replaced it. If I could have just run down to the store and picked up the parts I needed I probably would have. But the urgent nature, cold weather (34 and snowing), and lack of available parts is why we hired it out.

Honestly, it's a life transition I'm finding hard to deal with. I knew a day would come when I would have to hire out things out I could do myself, but I didn't think it would come so soon (I'm only 60!).

It also sucks that we have had a few major expenses like this in our first year of retirement. I had planned for these types of expenses, but thought they would be a few years out. I swear since we retired something has broken every week or two. On well, I guess we won't have to worry about them for a few years.

I'm a lot like you with respect to doing 99% of the stuff by yourself. I'm still changing oil in my cars and doing the landscaping. But at 80 years old, no more roof work, changing transmissions, pouring concrete.

Five years ago, I built a 12 x 12 foot screened in porch (slab and overhang there). I cut all the aluminum framing, bolted everything together, hung a screen door, installed ALL the screen, and put up a ceiling fan. Fun job, but I had no help and was on a ladder 1/2 the time in 100 F heat.

At this age, no more ladders and hopefully, no more big jobs. I'm getting too fragile.

 

[ERD50]

It's just a really hard thing for me to accept emotionally. With very few exceptions we have always built and fixed EVERYTHING ourselves. ....

Honestly, it's a life transition I'm finding hard to deal with. I knew a day would come when I would have to hire out things out I could do myself, but I didn't think it would come so soon (I'm only 60!)....

Heck, I look at it just the opposite! I can now use my advancing age as an excuse (reason?) for not doing some of these jobs! Sometimes it's nice to just pay someone to do something (if it all goes well, that is), and avoid the dirt, grime, discomfort, sore muscles, and use that time for something more enjoyable.

I now look at it as a "luxury we can afford".

-ERD50

 

[mountainsoft]

Sometimes it's nice to just pay someone to do something (if it all goes well, that is), and avoid the dirt, grime, discomfort, sore muscles, and use that time for something more enjoyable.

The problem is I really ENJOY doing things myself. I like figuring things out, I like things done a certain way, and I like not having to schedule my life around other's schedules. When I do something myself I know what went into it, I know it was done properly, and no shortcuts were taken in the interest of time or money savings.

Losing the ability to do things myself is like losing a little bit of myself...

 

[old medic]

we have always built and fixed EVERYTHING ourselves. We built our home,......... I knew a day would come when I would have to hire out things out I could do myself, but I didn't think it would come so soon (I'm only 60!).

I know exactly how you feel. I even had a manual tire changer I used for years.
At 60 myself, I now can't do much at all, Hoping to improve over time, But now I have to rely on others to do what I had no problem doing a year ago.
Some days the frustration gets to the best of me....

 

[CRLLS]

Your post number 22 is actually part of the problem. When you fix everything yourself is very hard to grasp the concept of what hiring someone to fix it actually costs.


It costs money and it will take you awhile to get comfortable with that. After 50 years of marriage we are at the point right now. No one can ever do it as cheaply as you can!!!!

That last sentence is a major contributor to us being able to FIRE. DIY teaches us new skills and the next time it is easier. Over 50 years of bliss, there will be a next time. Countless major remodeling jobs later, I'm done.

I think that possibly one other definitions of SOR risk (Sequence of Returns) could be Sequence of repairs. If major repairs are needed in the first year or two......... You get the point.


We had our well pump replaced about 10 years ago. The pump was 125 ft down a 180 ft well. The cost at the time was just under $3k including airlift cleaning of the well itself. I am a lifelong DIY'er. No way I would have replaced that pump when I was 61 yrs old. I helped to replace a pump before when I was 19 years old, Driven point wells when I was 17. Not today. Uh-uh. No way.

As time goes on, I am outsourcing more and more labor. Most recently, I outsourced a plumbing leak and the drywall ceiling damage from it. My problem is I don't have years of outsourcing experience, so I don't have a short list of reliable, skilled tradespeople to go to when needed. It is a chore today just finding someone to show and quote a job.

 

[ERD50]

Originally Posted by ERD50 View Post
Sometimes it's nice to just pay someone to do something (if it all goes well, that is), and avoid the dirt, grime, discomfort, sore muscles, and use that time for something more enjoyable.

The problem is I really ENJOY doing things myself. I like figuring things out, I like things done a certain way, and I like not having to schedule my life around other's schedules. When I do something myself I know what went into it, I know it was done properly, and no shortcuts were taken in the interest of time or money savings.

Losing the ability to do things myself is like losing a little bit of myself...

Ahhh, OK - I agree in many ways, and feel the same about a number of projects that I would just rather do myself.

It just struck me that this particular job was a lot of grunt work, and nothing to show for it other than a pump working as it did before. I get more satisfaction over making something better than before, or doing a fix that saves something from the landfill/recycler, but it's not a fix you could hire someone to do (or would cost more than a replacement), or maybe I took a creative approach to save it.

People view the specifics differently, but I get what you mean.

-ERD50

 

[ransil]

Yep, there is definitely sticker shock paying others to do work, both due to paying labor costs and basic inflation. Even if I replaced the pump myself it would have cost $1200 for the pump. That's a big jump from the $300 I paid for a better pump 30+ years ago.

The problem I have with paying for professional help is most of the time they do crappy work, I can do crappy work a lot cheaper.

my rental is a good example...
back in August property manager called saying well was having issues, need bladder tank and switch...sure no problem $1300. I get to the area of my rental for the winter season in December and inform the renter I'm in town and if they need anything, they inform me the water is still AFU and water tech has been there 3 times and is due this week to try again, they then infom me they are coming that day at 11 which is an hour out,I pack some tools and will meet with them, I'm 40 minutes away, I get there as tech is leaving, talk to him as what going on and what checks he did,
40 minutes later I have the issue figured out, needs a pump.

I did not get the company name when talking to him, contacted the project manager told him I was going to bill them for my services but he would not give me the company name, they may have cut me some slack on the pump cause it was only $850 , but the total was over $2k with service calls and parts I believe I did not need ( bladder tank and switch)

issue 2..septic seems to back up every year or 2 , I always pay an emergency pump out ..keep telling property manager to get a diagnosis something is wrong...comes back system checks good...while i was at the property I pulled the lids and its obvious the outlet pipe is jacked up due to the pipe has an indention in the lid, call for a pump out and have them them look at it , they agree and replace the outlet pipe / filter assembly... time will tell if this is a good fix, better than doing nothing.

 

[njhowie]

Every time I see a well pump story I knock on wood. We've lived in our home for 23 years now, and don't even have a clue where the well pump is, aside from the direction the pipe goes out from the basement. Who knows how many years the original/prior owners had been using it? It very well could be 40 or 50 years old. Every now and then I wonder if we should just call a local well company now and proactively have it replaced. Then I do nothing and forget about it for a year or two.

 

[Time2]

Your post number 22 is actually part of the problem. When you fix everything yourself is very hard to grasp the concept of what hiring someone to fix it actually costs.


It costs money and it will take you awhile to get comfortable with that. After 50 years of marriage we are at the point right now. No one can ever do it as cheaply as you can!!!!

Add to that all the memories of prices 30 years ago compared to today.
It seems to be a constant at our weekly breakfast with the guys, "how everything costs so much!"

 

[mountainsoft]

It just struck me that this particular job was a lot of grunt work, and nothing to show for it other than a pump working as it did before.

An ongoing joke between my wife and I, is if I did a project correctly it should look like I didn't do anything at all.

For example, I recently added an exterior light that required me to cut into some drywall, drilled holes through the studs, pulled some electrical wire, patched the drywall, and repainted. Other than the new exterior light, it doesn't look like I did anything. That seems to be the case with most projects I work on.

 

[mountainsoft]

The problem I have with paying for professional help is most of the time they do crappy work

In the case of our pump replacement, the two guys actually did pretty good work. I may have take a different approach to a couple things, but overall I was happy with the work they did.

However, my mother-in-law has hired out a few jobs and in most cases I've had to come back later and fix the mediocre work they did. They just do the bare minimum to get in and get out. They rarely take any pride in the final result.

I tend to be a perfectionist anyway, so paying someone else to do subpar work is even more difficult.

 

[newmillionaire]

I'm late to this thread but for new readers with the same problem I personally would try to replace myself. I spent hours watching youtube videos when I heard a few of my neighbors who had this problem. The process looks relatively easy if you watch multiple videos. Just hope it's not in the middle of Winter. Do this at your own risk but for me I would rather do this myself. To save money I fix my own hvac, brakes, etc. I'm confident only because of youtube.

* Note: I took time after the fact to read some of the comments. I agree at 61 years old I'm not sure I would attempt or not. As I get older I am feeling a littler weaker so it depends on your age.

 

[Northforker]

Our well pump quit working last year. It was only 3 years old. The previous pump was 25 years old and was destroyed by a lightning strike. The well contractor was booked for 2 months so I called a local electrical contractor that told me they could do the work. Fortunately they did a continuity test on the direct bury conductor wire from the pump to the house. It was 45 feet from the house. It was shorted out and also fried the pressure switch. The well pump was ok. They ran a new conductor from the well to the house on top of the ground to get us back up running and told me they would be back in a month to trench the conductor in from the well to the house. Since the original conductor was damaged likely due to the rocky soil in our yard or possibly the lightning strike that toasted the first well pump. I insisted upon the new conductor be installed in conduit. initial bill for 2 electricians for 8 hrs was $1000 with no materials on the first invoice. The second invoice included the conductor, the conduit, the trencher rent, the new pressure switch, and the labor to install 1 electrician for 4 hours and two laborers for 4 hrs, total 2nd invoice was $1400. So $2400 total. I could have done it for about $1000 all in, but I was happy to pay a reasonable price for the work.