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I've had to replace several sump pumps since we've been in this house. Once I had to replace one after only three years. It's been three years October, since we had the great flood. And somehow I realized I'd never bought a new pump. This means if it went out in the middle of the night, I wouldn't have a replacement. So it took me a week, but I finally went out and got one late last week.
I had the dehumidifier running in the back of the basement, for a few days. I turned it off late the other night. Tonight, for some reason, I remembered it and went to empty the tank. I had a few choices of where to go with the water, and decided to pour it into the sump. The sump was full! The pump wasn't running.
We have two sump crocks that collect water under the house. It's the pump in the main one that usually fails, which causes water to come up through the floor. This was the second one. I don't know how long it's been like that. It collects a little bit of groundwater, but it also collects the water that drains from the furnace. So, fortunately, this one probably could have gone longer before it caused a problem.
So I took the cover off and looked in. I had no idea how I was going to replace it. I thought I never had, but then I saw the rubber mat I put under it for sound insulation, so I must have. Oh yeah, I just remembered it was when I changed the discharge to lead to the other sump. But I still had no idea how I would get it out. So I took a stick and jiggled the float, and it started running again! Whew!
I'm trying to figure out how I will replace it when the time comes. Seems like when I changed the discharge pipes, I screwed the first one into the pump, and then glued the next fitting into it, and so forth from there. Not real smart. I have two choices. Lift the whole thing up and unscrew the pump from the pipe. Or cut the pipe, and reconnect it with a rubber fitting. That's the way the other one is. It's a rubber tube affixed to both pipes with pipe clamps. Loosen the clamps and slide it down to expose the joint. Then just pick up the pipe with the pump on it. After a few years, the rubber gets pretty stuck, so it can be difficult to disconnect, but otherwise, it is pretty easy. I'll have to look for one of those.
I had the dehumidifier running in the back of the basement, for a few days. I turned it off late the other night. Tonight, for some reason, I remembered it and went to empty the tank. I had a few choices of where to go with the water, and decided to pour it into the sump. The sump was full! The pump wasn't running.
We have two sump crocks that collect water under the house. It's the pump in the main one that usually fails, which causes water to come up through the floor. This was the second one. I don't know how long it's been like that. It collects a little bit of groundwater, but it also collects the water that drains from the furnace. So, fortunately, this one probably could have gone longer before it caused a problem.
So I took the cover off and looked in. I had no idea how I was going to replace it. I thought I never had, but then I saw the rubber mat I put under it for sound insulation, so I must have. Oh yeah, I just remembered it was when I changed the discharge to lead to the other sump. But I still had no idea how I would get it out. So I took a stick and jiggled the float, and it started running again! Whew!
I'm trying to figure out how I will replace it when the time comes. Seems like when I changed the discharge pipes, I screwed the first one into the pump, and then glued the next fitting into it, and so forth from there. Not real smart. I have two choices. Lift the whole thing up and unscrew the pump from the pipe. Or cut the pipe, and reconnect it with a rubber fitting. That's the way the other one is. It's a rubber tube affixed to both pipes with pipe clamps. Loosen the clamps and slide it down to expose the joint. Then just pick up the pipe with the pump on it. After a few years, the rubber gets pretty stuck, so it can be difficult to disconnect, but otherwise, it is pretty easy. I'll have to look for one of those.
