Sump Model Suggestion

[Peter Stahl]

Was looking at the sump water thread and thought I'd post this. Didn't want to horn in on his post. I have a sump well in my basement and even though I get no water in it I still would like to hook up a pump. Ceilings are about 9 foot high. Any recommendations on a type/model that last and works best? Also anything I should know about the piping type, check valves, etc. At least if the water heater/pipe burst and leaks it'll have somewhere to go.

thanks, Pete

[Jeffrey Makiel]

The cheap sump pumps offered at Lowes or Home Depot (<$100) can be problematic. If a sump occasionally has water in it but is dry most of the time, the shaft seals may stick on the pump and the pump won't start. Instead, it will just hum until you come along and wiggle it. The starting torque is very weak even though the pump may say "1/2 hp".

A decent sump pump starts at $150. They have a cast iron or stainless steel body. But more importantly, they generally have better shaft seals. Some of the top quality pumps have two switches: a commonly found tethered float switch and a secondary built-in pressure diaphram switch. A possible source is Grainger.com.

The only other thing you need is a check valve at the pump's discharge and some 1 1/2" pvc pipe. It's important to make sure there is no small pieces of debris in the sump pit that may jamb the pump's impellor.

A water sensor device, like a "WatchDog" available at Lowes or HD for about $12, is a nice gadget if something should fail and/or flood (sump pump, washing machine, water heater, basement toilet, etc.). The battery operated device will give off a loud audible warning upon contact with water.

If you really rely on your sump pump to keep you dry, backup systems are available that are either battery powered (12V) or water powered (eductor) that work in the event of a power failure or your primary pump doesn't run for some reason. The water powered pump requires that you have city water and not well water and generally discharge 2 gallons for every gallong of city water.

-Jeff :)

[Joe Chritz]

Two things will kill a pump.

Running dry and short cycling.

If you don't have water except rarely you probably don't have a problem with short cycling. I get a lot of water in the spring and I went with a pedestal (above water motor) unit so I could adjust the on level as high as possible.

The advice about a pump sitting dry for 10 months of the year is good. You can combat that somewhat by running it every month or so. Just use an inside bib to fill the pump a little and trigger it to run.

With low water tables a watchdog is a good idea. You will have plenty of time to repair the pump before it overflows. Here it would be full in a few minutes if the pump goes out for about 3 months of the year.

Joe

[Russ Filtz]

I would avoid the newer polymer models. I had one and it burned up on me in 1-wk! Pay the extra for a good cast iron version.

[Peter Stahl]

The cheap sump pumps offered at Lowes or Home Depot (<$100) can be problematic. If a sump occasionally has water in it but is dry most of the time, the shaft seals may stick on the pump and the pump won't start. Instead, it will just hum until you come along and wiggle it. The starting torque is very weak even though the pump may say "1/2 hp".

A decent sump pump starts at $150. They have a cast iron or stainless steel body. But more importantly, they generally have better shaft seals. Some of the top quality pumps have two switches: a commonly found tethered float switch and a secondary built-in pressure diaphram switch. A possible source is Grainger.com.

The only other thing you need is a check valve at the pump's discharge and some 1 1/2" pvc pipe. It's important to make sure there is no small pieces of debris in the sump pit that may jamb the pump's impellor.

A water sensor device, like a "WatchDog" available at Lowes or HD for about $12, is a nice gadget if something should fail and/or flood (sump pump, washing machine, water heater, basement toilet, etc.). The battery operated device will give off a loud audible warning upon contact with water.

If you really rely on your sump pump to keep you dry, backup systems are available that are either battery powered (12V) or water powered (eductor) that work in the event of a power failure or your primary pump doesn't run for some reason. The water powered pump requires that you have city water and not well water and generally discharge 2 gallons for every gallong of city water.

-Jeff :)
Jeff,

Thanks for the reply. I'll check out those WatchDog alarms when I get a chance. Been work a lot lately.

[Peter Stahl]

Two things will kill a pump.

Running dry and short cycling.

If you don't have water except rarely you probably don't have a problem with short cycling. I get a lot of water in the spring and I went with a pedestal (above water motor) unit so I could adjust the on level as high as possible.

The advice about a pump sitting dry for 10 months of the year is good. You can combat that somewhat by running it every month or so. Just use an inside bib to fill the pump a little and trigger it to run.

With low water tables a watchdog is a good idea. You will have plenty of time to repair the pump before it overflows. Here it would be full in a few minutes if the pump goes out for about 3 months of the year.

Joe

Joe,

Thanks for the reply. It won't cycle because I don't get water in the basement. I wanted for if a pipe or water heater goes. Like you said I'll dump some water into it once in a while.

[Peter Stahl]

I would avoid the newer polymer models. I had one and it burned up on me in 1-wk! Pay the extra for a good cast iron version.

Russ,

Thanks for the reply. I think you're right to pay the extra up front as it'll cost you later down the road.