Not honest - I had a pinhole leak in a copper pipe at my well expansion tank. Got Tom's card from a local plumbing supply house, and gave him a call. He replied a couple of days later and came out to do the repair. It was a bit pricey for what it was, but I agreed to it. During the inspection, he jostled my expansion tank and told me it need to be replaced as the bladder had failed and it was full of water - and he'd do the entire job for ***$1,700*** to replace the tank, and fix the leaking pipe. He explained to me that since there was no air cushion, my well pump was cycling every time I cracked open a faucet. I just nodded, played dumb, and asked questions but I'm a mechanical engineer and I know full well how the system works and I know my pump had not been cycling. That, and the line of sweat on the tank was not even halfway up the side. The entire tank would have sweated if there was no air.
BTW, a new tank retails at $199.00 at HD and Lowe's.
They completed the repair quickly, I Venmo'd him the money and let them leave. I then went and checked the expansion tank myself. I depressed the Schrader valve and water should have come out if it was waterlogged. Just air escaped. There was nothing wrong with it and the bladder just needed to be topped up to it's 38 psi spec. I turned off the pump, bled the pressure down with garden hose, and used a portable tire compressor. Done.
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