How many sump pumps

Now that we have the semantics out of the way, we know that each Sump Pit needs to have two 2 Sump Pumps. The realization that just hit you is the same many of our customers have when we explain why our quotes are different from others. To understand the need to have a secondary Sump Pit and in rare cases a 3rd Sump Pit , we must first understand how a Drain Tile is installed.

Luckily, we have a blog for that! See the below link to learn about grading the Drain Tile the same way Sewer Pipes are graded:.

Once your basement perimeter gets to linear feet, a secondary Sump Pit is needed. This can cause the dirt underneath the footing to wash out into the Drain Tile, causing structural damage to your home! Here is where the tricky part comes into play.

Our desire to pay less for what we perceive as the same service. Let me paint you a picture:. You invite 3 contractors into your home. One happens to be us. Your perimeter footage of the foundation is linear feet. By our calculations above, we need to have a second Sump Pit in order to manage the water efficiently without causing structural damage.

That is a lot of stuff to add on that the others were not! Nobody, and rightfully so. So what do you do?

Choose an extremely wet, rainy day, when the ground is saturated with water, to measure the water coming into your sump pit. To best protect your basement, get to know your sump pit intimately. Measure the water inflow into the pit many times, in the wettest conditions, to make sure you truly know how much water volume you could be dealing with. This article is intended for informational purposes.

Before beginning any construction project at your home, please ensure that you take necessary safety precautions and consult construction professionals whenever necessary. Your cart is empty. Home — Water Powered Sump Pumps. Pin It. When you consider how much rain falls on and around the average North American home during the course of the year, it is no surprise that many homeowners have highly active sump pits.

First things first, make sure the pump is upright. The vibration of the motor often causes pumps to shift. If the pump is not sitting straight, the float arm can become jammed. If there is moisture present, the GFCI breaker may trip, causing the sump pump to shut down. Pour some water into the pit to test the pump. It should start automatically and drain the water away quickly. If not, have it serviced by a professional.

If you can, connect a maintenance-free battery to your backup; an AGM absorbed glass mat battery is one of the best options for a sump pump.

As well, consider installing a backwater valve to prevent your sewer line from backing up into your house. To see how much you can save with Square One, get a personalized online quote now.

As long as they have a back-up power source, sump pumps are fairly reliable. Here are some of the things to watch out for:. Sump pits can fill up with debris, especially open pits without a covering. If too much dirt or debris gets into the pump itself, the system will not operate properly, and may even shut down completely.

If a debris-covered switch gets stuck in the ON position, the motor can burn out, potentially causing a fire. Most sump pump systems have an air gap. Normally, the air gap is located where the discharge pipe exits the building. The air gap may not be literal gap; it may be a slotted pipe or have a vented cover, or one of many possible forms including atrium, candy cane, pipe-in-pipe, and others.

Depending on which type of air gap your sump pump uses, it may be susceptible to getting clogged. You should periodically inspect your air gap while the sump pump is running to ensure that water is flowing through it freely. Any problems with your check valves will increase the back pressure on the pump, putting it under additional strain.

Sewer systems are not designed to handle large volumes of runoff resulting from heavy rain or snowmelt. This connection also provides an additional point of ingress for water. Consider consider disconnecting your pump from the sewer system with input from a professional if you need to design a new outflow path. A stuck float switch may simply be stuck.

Clear the debris and see if it starts working properly. Alternatively, float switches sometimes get stuck if the pump has wandered out of its original position. As they run, sump pumps vibrate, and may move themselves far enough that the float switch starts getting stuck on something.

To fix this issue, reset and re-level your sump pump into the right position. The float switch may be stuck in the off position. Try manually raising the float switch by hand to see if your pump turns on.

Your pump may not be getting enough power. Sump pumps should have their own dedicated circuit. The pump motor could be overheated. If your sump pump often overheats, it may be too small.

The pump could be clogged. Then, unplug the pump and inspect the intake for blockage. You may need to remove the pump from the sump pit. Water damage accounts for more home insurance claims than fire and theft combined.

Insurers often impose higher flood deductibles for homes in high-flood-risk areas as well. However, in higher-risk areas, customers with battery-backed-up sump pumps are eligible for lower premiums. To get a quote on your own home insurance, click the button at the bottom of this page.

If your sump pump fails and causes your home to suffer water damage, your home insurance will only cover the resulting water damage if it normally covers that type of loss. This depends on how the water gets into your home.

In one example, if your sump pump fails during a rainstorm, allowing groundwater to back up through the sump and into your basement, your home insurance would only cover the loss if it normally covers losses caused by the backing up of sewer, septic and sump systems. Most home insurance policies exclude this kind of loss by default, and would require the purchase of an optional Sewer Backup endorsement that includes sump pump backups.

In another example, if your sump pump were to fail during an overland flooding event — like a river that overflows its banks — many home insurance policies would not respond to this kind of damage at all, whether or not the sump pump is functioning properly. Some home insurance providers offer overland flooding coverage as an optional endorsement. Square One includes overland flood coverage on most of the policies we sell. How often a sump pump runs depends on its local conditions.

Some basements are closer to the water table than others, and so their sump pumps run more often.