Submersible Pump Repair in Gainesville and Across North Florida
FL Water Well Contractor License #5016 · FGWA · NGWA · NCFWA Member · Google 5.0 Rated · Wisetack Financing
If your submersible pump will not start, the breaker keeps tripping, or pressure has been declining for months, this is the page for you. Perry-Pump is a family-owned, state-licensed well pump shop in Gainesville serving 17 North Florida communities across 9 counties. Eric Perry is a 3rd-generation specialist; the Perry family has worked North Florida wells for 50+ years.
Almost every residential well in North Florida draws from the Floridan Aquifer at 100-400 ft, so almost every residential pump out here is a submersible: it is the work we do most. We test the control box and cable before pulling the pump (a pull costs money; a test does not on routine residential), and when a pump does need to come out, we install Grundfos, Franklin Electric, or Flint & Walling, the three brands that hold up best in North Florida water.
Call (352) 320-2412 Mon–Fri 8 AM – 5 PM. After hours, leave a message, and we'll return the call at our earliest availability.
FREE SERVICE CALL
$0 service-call fee + $0 diagnostic on routine residential work.
Manufacturer-Authorized
Grundfos, Franklin Electric, Flint & Walling, Clack, Stenner.
5-Year Warranty
Parts AND labor on most residential submersibles (wire + control box + pump).
17 North Florida Cities
Gainesville HQ to Lake Butler, Starke, Newberry, Lake City, and beyond.
All Pump Types
Submersible plus jet, booster, irrigation, and pond.
FDEP-Licensed #5016
Fully state-licensed Water Well Contractor, public registry.
Three Things That Cause Most Submersible Pump Failures, and Why Two of Them Are Not the Pump Itself
Across 15+ years of personal experience and three Perry-family generations of wells, almost every submersible that lands on our schedule traces back to one of three things. Two of them are at the surface, not down the well.
Motor shorted, often post-lightning.
A shorted motor is the real 'I need a new pump' case. It can follow a nearby lightning surge, but also age or contaminated water. We confirm by cable test and control box check before pulling. We confirm by cable test and control box check before pulling, because pulling a pump that does not need to come out is a waste of money.
Control box capacitor failure on 3-wire systems.
3-wire submersibles use an above-ground control box with a start capacitor and relay. A capacitor is susceptible to lightning and age (typical life 10-15 years in North Florida heat). Symptoms: pump hums but will not start, motor trips on starting current, box is warm or smells burnt. First thing we test on a no-start 3-wire, under $500 typically, the customer keeps the pump.
Worn impeller from sediment — gradual decline.
Multi-stage submersibles stack impellers to build pressure. Fine sediment (limestone, iron, sulfide) wears the impeller faces and diffusers between stages. Pump still runs but cannot generate the head it used to; pressure that was 50 PSI is now 35, and recovery is slower. This one almost always means full system replacement.
Symptoms and Component Failures We See On North Florida Aquifer Submersibles
If any of these sound like what you are dealing with, call us. Most diagnoses are made over the phone before we ever drive out.
-
• Sudden complete water loss with no warning
• Tripped breaker that won't reset (motor short or capacitor fault)
• Pump hums but won't start (control box capacitor failure on 3-wire systems)
• Pump runs audibly, but no water reaches the house (drop pipe leak)
• Power present at the box, the pump won't start at all
• Control box failure (sometimes after a nearby storm).
• Cable insulation breakdown down the well (megger test fails)
-
• Pressure that used to be 50 PSI is now 30 (worn impellers)
• Pump short-cycles (kicks on every 30–60 seconds)
• Pump runs constantly, never shuts off (drop pipe leak or worn pump)
• Pressure drops sharply when two or more fixtures run
• Recovery between cycles is slower than it used to be
• Pressure tank feels heavy/waterlogged when tapped
• Pressure switch points pitted or fouled by fire ants
-
• Sand or grit in the first pour of the day
• Faucet aerators clogging more often than they used to
• Reddish-brown staining in tubs and laundry (iron, accelerates impeller wear)
• Rotten-egg smell on the hot tap (sulfide / H₂S)
• White scaling on shower heads and fixtures (hardness)
• Pump cycling rate has changed without any new fixtures added
-
• Submersible motor windings shorted (post-lightning or age)
• Control box capacitor failed (3-wire systems)
• Control box start relay failed
• Cable splice down the well is failing (insulation breakdown)
• Drop pipe leak, pump sits lower than designed, pulls air
• Pitless adapter at the wellhead is failing
• Check valve at the pump outlet stuck open or closed
• Submersible impeller stages worn from sediment
What Actually Happens When You Call Perry-Pump About a Submersible
From the phone call to the final invoice, here is how a submersible repair walks through the shop. Pulling a submersible is real work; the drop pipe, cable, and pump can easily weigh several hundred pounds at 250 feet of setting. So we test everything we can at the surface first.
Phone diagnostic on the call.
Call (352) 320-2412 Mon–Fri 8 AM – 5 PM. Four or five questions (any water? breaker tripped? recent storms? 2-wire or 3-wire?) narrow the cause to motor, control box, cable, or downstream. After hours, leave a message; we return at our earliest availability.
Schedule + en-route notification.
Most routine residential calls land within the same week, same day if we are already in your area. No-water emergencies move to the top. We will text or call en route.
Surface diagnostic: no service call fee, no diagnostic charge.
Marked Perry-Pump truck; we start at the surface, panel voltage, breaker, control box, pressure switch, pressure tank. Routine residential surface diagnostics are no charge.
Written warranty + final paperwork.
Everything goes on the invoice before you sign. Most residential submersibles: 5 yrs parts + labor on wire + control box + pump. Commercial: 1 yr. Always in writing, explained up front. Wisetack terms are shown before signing.
Follow-up, call us first if anything is off.
Pressure not right, unusual noise, warranty question after the visit, call us first. We answer warranty calls the same day on average; the worst thing for everyone is letting a small issue grow.
Cable + motor test from the surface.
Before pulling anything, we run a megger test on the cable and motor at the control box, a high-voltage insulation test that confirms whether the windings are shorted, the cable is breaking down, or both. Test passes, pump is probably fine. Fails, the pump is coming out.
Pull, replace, and reset, same crew, no subcontracting
When the pump comes out, we set the pull rig at the wellhead, lift the drop pipe in sections, replace the pump and any worn components (splice, check valve, pitless), and reset. PE-100 drop pipe on most replacements. System replacement starts at $5,000: prices subject to change, suppliers are volatile.
Submersible Pump Repair Pricing: What Things Cost
Every Floridan well is different, depth, brand, age, 2-wire vs 3-wire, and what is wrong all move the number. Ranges are accurate as of writing; we will quote the current number on the call. Routine residential diagnostic is free.
Diagnostic
$0 service call fee + $0 diagnostic on routine residential surface work. Exception: paid pump-pull diagnostic when surface tests are inconclusive and confirming the failure requires a pull ($600-$1,000 residential). We tell you before we start.
Common submersible repairs (the most frequent calls)
Control box capacitor replacement (3-wire systems): under $500 typical
Control box start relay replacement: under $500 typical
Pressure switch replacement (FSG, Square D, Franklin): a few-hundred-dollar range parts + labor
Pressure tank, standard residential (Amtrol, Wellmate, Flexcon): about $1,000 installed — sized to the pump for ~1 minute of run time per cycle, not to a fixed gallon count.
Cable splice repair down the well: scoped on the call (pump-pull required)
Pump pull only (diagnostic): $600–$1,000 residential
Full system replacement
Submersible system (pump + drop pipe + install + reset pressure): starts at $5,000
Drop pipe replacement (PE-100 polyethylene preferred): pulled with the pump
Constant-pressure VFD retrofit (Franklin SubDrive or Grundfos drive): add $4,000–$5,000 to a base submersible install
Wellhead extension + cap-and-seal sanitary repair: $1,600–$2,400
Prices subject to change: suppliers have been volatile lately. Wisetack financing on larger jobs (minutes to apply, terms before you sign). Military and first-responder discounts case-by-case by scope; ask when you call.
Our Reviews
Seven North Florida Conditions That Shape How We Diagnose Submersibles
Working submersibles in North Central Florida means working around seven specific local conditions that do not apply the same way in other regions. These shape how we diagnose, what we install, and what we recommend customers do between visits.
1
Floridan Aquifer wells dominate at 100-400 ft, submersible territory
Almost every residential well in our footprint draws from the Floridan at 100-400 ft, deeper east of Gainesville, and shallower across the Suwannee basin. Submersibles are the right answer; jets cannot lift water that far. A typical pump-pull is a 200-ft Floridan well.
2
Summer lightning is ONE OF the submersible motor and control box killers
Direct lightning strikes are rare; nearby strikes that surge the power line can take out motors and control box components, and we see that damage spike after big summer thunderstorms. Surge protection at the wellhead disconnect is the single best thing to add against it, and we recommend it on every replacement regardless of the season.
3
Karst geology produces fine sediment that wears impellers
North Florida sits on karst limestone. The Floridan carries fine limestone and clay through the well screen, over the years, which wears down multi-stage impellers. A 10-15-year-old submersible in heavy-sediment water often shows measurable pressure decline, especially east of the Suwannee.
4
Iron, sulfide, and hardness corrode internal pump components
Most Florida water carries iron (reddish staining), sulfide (rotten-egg smell), and hardness (white scaling). The chemistry accelerates wear on impellers and check valves, and corrodes galvanized drop pipe from the inside. We install PE-100 polyethylene on most submersible jobs to avoid the corrosion problem.
5
Hurricane and tropical storm season damage wellheads and panels
A spring annual inspection is a smart, low-cost way to catch a compromised cap or a debris-fouled vent before it becomes a bigger problem, whatever the eventual cause. We also do sanitary inspections after a storm or flood event when a customer asks for one.
6
Fire ants in the pressure switch on the surface end of the system.
Submersibles are down the well; the pressure switch on the tank is at the surface, and ants find it. A lineman told Eric years ago that insects are attracted to the frequency in pump wiring, borne out by what we pull every rainy season. We install pest-blocking foam in the conduit and silicone every opening.
7
Flood-zone properties need the wellhead to be 12+ inches above grade.
Suwannee, Santa Fe, and St. Marys basins, plus low-elevation rural lots, sit in FEMA flood zones. Surface flooding overtops low wellheads and contaminates source water. Wellhead extension + cap-and-seal is the durable answer: most scheduled in spring before storm season.
Why homeowners choose Perry-Pump
Fully licensed and insured. Florida Water Well Contractor License #5016.
Experienced well repair specialists. Third generation, 50+ years working North Florida wells.
Quality workmanship and straightforward customer service.
Free service call and $0 diagnostic on routine residential work.
5-year parts and labor warranty on the Pressure Package and most residential submersibles, in writing on the invoice.
Seven Technical Topics Most Shops Skip on Submersibles
Seven places where the easy answer is not the right one. One-line take? Call us. The actual reasoning is here.
-
Too-small gauge over a long setting creates a voltage drop, the motor runs at low voltage, amp draw up, life down. We size cable to depth (12 AWG short settings, 10 AWG or larger for deep or large pumps) and pressure-test watertight heat-shrink splices for any joint down the well. Megger on cable and motor is the standard diagnostic, quick, definitive, no pull required.
-
Standard: 10-20 ft above the well bottom, at least 10 ft below the drawdown level. Too low pulls sediment into the intake; too high breaks suction in a drawdown event. We confirm the static level and record the setting on the invoice so the next service knows where the pump is.
-
Three brands we trust for North Florida water: Grundfos (best motor + stainless for hard, iron-heavy water), Franklin Electric (best parts availability across North Florida), Flint & Walling (best value at lower-HP residential). All three carry strong residential warranties. We pick the brand that fits the well, budget, and expected service life.
-
2-wire keeps the start components inside the motor, simpler install, but when the start fails, you pull the pump. 3-wire uses a Franklin or Pentek control box at the wellhead with the capacitor and relay above ground, making it easier to service. On 1 HP and up, the cost of a future pull justifies the 3-wire box every time.
-
Galvanized was the historical standard, but it corrodes from the inside in iron-heavy Floridan water. Schedule 80 PVC works to about 150 ft but has thread-stress limits. PE-100 polyethylene is what we install on most new submersibles, flexible, corrosion-immune, with no threaded joints, and a single continuous run from pitless to pump. Covered under the 5-year warranty on most residential installs.
-
Submersible motors are cooled by water moving past them, with a minimum flow of 0.5 ft/sec for most Franklin and Grundfos residential motors. An improperly set pump in an oversized casing can result in insufficient flow and motor overheating. We measure amp draw at the box on a running pump and compare it to the nameplate. Over-amp means a worn pump, restriction, or low voltage, and tells us what is wrong before we pull.
-
The right pump is not "the same HP as the old one." It is the GPM-at-head curve that matches static level, dynamic drawdown, and peak demand. Oversized draws the water below the intake and breaks suction; undersized short-cycles. We size by drawdown test and fixture count, not the nameplate of the pump coming out.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Surface repairs (capacitor, relay, switch, tank): a few-hundred-dollar range or under $1,000. Pump-pull diagnostic only: $600-$1,000. Full system replacement: starts at $5,000. Prices subject to change: suppliers have been volatile lately.
-
Surface tests usually tell us. Megger test on cable and motor at the control box: passes means the pump is probably fine, and we look at the control box, switch, or tank. Fails means the pump is coming out. We do the surface tests first, specifically so customers do not pay for a pull they do not need.
-
8-15 years is typical in North Florida. Heavy-sediment wells wear impellers faster; lightning shortens the average; properly sized and surge-protected installs in moderate water often see 15 or more years. Setting depth, voltage, and water chemistry matter more than brand.
-
Grundfos (best motor + stainless for hard water), Franklin Electric (best North Florida parts availability), Flint & Walling (best value at lower-HP residential). We pick the brand that fits the well, budget, and expected service life.
-
Substantially, yes. A surge protector at the wellhead disconnect catches most of the surge energy from nearby strikes before it reaches the motor or control box. Direct strikes on the pump itself cannot be fully prevented, but they are rare. A surge protector adds a few hundred dollars to a replacement and is one of the best things a North Florida customer can do.
-
Typical Floridan residential: 150-250 ft, pump 10-20 ft above the well bottom and 10 ft below the drawdown. If we installed it, setting depth is on the invoice. If not, we measure on the next pull.
-
Most residential submersibles: 5 years parts and labor on wire + control box + pump. Pressure Package (tank + switch): 5 years parts + labor. Commercial pumps: 1 year. Some residential systems carry a shorter term due to system style, always in writing, explained up front.
-
No on routine residential surface work: $0 service call, $0 surface diagnostic. The exception is a paid pump-pull diagnostic when surface tests are inconclusive and confirming the failure requires a pull (typically $600-$1,000); we tell you that before we start.
-
Likely yes. Service area: Gainesville (HQ), Lake Butler, Lake City, Alachua, Newberry, High Springs, Starke, Keystone Heights, Branford, Trenton, Waldo, Hawthorne, Glen Saint Mary, Bell, Brooker, Raiford, and Melrose. Not sure if we cover your community? Call (352) 320-2412: we will tell you straight.
-
Yes, through Wisetack. Application takes minutes, terms shown before you sign. Most submersible system replacements qualify; we do not push financing on small surface repairs.
Ready to Get Your Submersible Working Again? Call Perry-Pump Today.
Whether your pump will not start after a storm, your pressure has been creeping down, or your breaker keeps tripping, call (352) 320-2412, and we will get you on the schedule. Routine residential surface work has no service call fee, no diagnostic charge, and the warranty goes on the invoice before you sign.