Well and pump cable · Georgia
We buy submersible pump cable for Georgia wells
Drop cable for a well pump, built flat or round to fit inside a casing and rated for continuous immersion. Surplus spools from irrigation and municipal work are reviewed on jacket and length.
- 14 AWG to 4/0
- Flat and round
- Rated for immersion
01Overview
Cable that lives underwater
A submersible pump hangs on its drop cable, and that cable spends its life immersed. The construction reflects it: a moisture-resistant insulation, often a nylon or PVC layer over polyethylene, and a jacket chosen to survive abrasion against a steel casing during every pump pull and reset.
The flat configuration is the one most Georgia well drillers use, because flat cable fits between the pump and the casing wall and can be taped to the drop pipe without building up a bundle. Round cable is used in larger bores and on three-phase pumps, and both reach a buying desk when a well is deepened, a pump is upsized or a job is cancelled after the cable was bought.
02Specification
What a drop cable spool declares
- Construction
- Flat or round, 2 and 3 conductor, with or without ground
- Sizes
- 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1/0 and 4/0 AWG
- Voltage
- 600 V
- Insulation
- Polyethylene or XLPE with a nylon or PVC layer over it
- Jacket
- Abrasion-resistant PVC or nylon, rated for continuous immersion
- Reels
- 500 and 1,000 ft spools; short 100 ft coils for shallow sets
- Marking
- Size and conductor count moulded or printed on the flat web
- Use
- Well pump drop, irrigation pumps, lift stations and sump service
On flat cable the size and conductor count are moulded into the web between the conductors, so a spool can be identified without a tag. Look for it before concluding that a spool is unmarked.
03Drop cable we review
Drop cable we review
Flat two-conductor
14/2 and 12/2 for shallow single-phase pumps. The commonest surplus spool in the family, and the one most often found with a few hundred feet left after a well was set deeper than planned.
Flat three-conductor with ground
10/3 and larger for deeper sets and three-wire pump controls. Reviewed on count and on whether a ground conductor is present, since a control cable without one will not serve in most modern installations.
Round cable for three-phase pumps
Round drop cable in 8 AWG through 4/0 for larger irrigation and municipal pumps. Heavier, usually on larger spools, and reviewed on jacket integrity because the cable is pulled against a casing every time the pump is serviced.
Cut lengths from pump changes
The tail left above the well head and the section cut out when a pump was raised. Measured, grouped and reviewed together; unlabelled short lengths of pump cable are difficult to place because the size cannot be read from a cut end.
04Evaluation
How a pump cable spool is assessed
Immersion changes what counts as damage. A jacket breach that would be cosmetic on building wire admits water into a cable that is designed to sit in it, and water reaching the conductor strands is how these cables fail. Look for abrasion along the edge of a flat cable, for flattened sections where the cable was clamped to a drop pipe, and for any point where the jacket has been cut back and re-taped.
Size and configuration come next. Flat and round are not interchangeable inside a casing, two and three conductor serve different pump controls, and a ground conductor either exists or it does not. All of that is moulded into the cable and is visible without measuring anything.
Then length, measured rather than estimated. A spool of drop cable is sold on its footage, and a well that was set at 240 ft leaves a very specific remainder. Give the spool tag if it survived and a measured figure if it did not, and say whether the spool is one piece or has been spliced.
A pump cable can be energized from a control box that is remote from the well head, and a splice in a wet well can put voltage into the water column and the casing. Cable is only handled after the pump circuit is locked out at its own disconnect and proved dead.
05Seller terms
Before you sell: how it works
Four things a seller should be able to pin down before a truck is booked.
Verification
Footage is checked against the reel tag, the sequential marks on the jacket, the wrap count against the barrel, or a published weight per 1,000 ft — whichever the reel actually supports.
Payment
Payment method and timing are agreed in writing for the specific lot before anything is loaded or moved. No verbal number is treated as an agreement.
Paperwork
A bill of sale for the lot, and for utility material the owning utility’s release reference. Neither is optional and neither is created after the fact.
Freight
Collection is arranged as part of the terms. Say what can lift the reels and whether a 53-foot trailer can reach them, and the pickup is planned around that.
Sending a reel list and photographs costs nothing. A review is not a purchase, and nothing is bought, moved or scheduled until written lot terms are agreed for that material. Request a pickup when the lot is ready.
07Questions
Pump cable questions
Can two-conductor cable be used on a pump needing a ground?
No. Two-conductor flat cable has no equipment ground, and the pump casing cannot serve as one. A grounded pump needs a cable with a ground conductor.
Do you buy cable pulled out of a well?
Yes, as recovered cable, once the pump circuit is locked out. Pulled cable is reviewed for abrasion against the casing and for jacket swelling at the ends.
Is flat cable worth less than round?
Each is reviewed on its own use. Flat cable suits domestic and small irrigation wells; round suits larger three-phase pumps. Neither is a downgrade of the other.
How is the size found on an unmarked spool?
On flat cable the size is moulded into the web between the conductors. On round cable, measure a strand and count them, or measure the insulation diameter against published data.
Spool tag, size and measured length
Tell us flat or round, the conductor count, the gauge and the length left on each spool. A photograph of the moulded marking settles any ambiguity.