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Sump pump crock & water level?
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Joe J
May 26, 2012, 5:37:29 PM5/26/12
to
I'm lost. We purchased a ranch with a basement and apparently we are in a
low area so our sump pump runs a lot.
We have your basic sunken sump crock and we have 2 submersible pumps in it.
The primary pump runs underground to a sewer at the street. The backup just
drains out to the yard and only is supposed to run if the primary would
fail.
They both use float switches and the primary sump pump float switch died, so
I installed a new one.
My problem is I don't know where to set the kick in level, to turn on the
pump. Meaning, how high should the water level get in the sump crock?
There is a 4" drain pipe from the drain tiles that empties into the sump
crock and it is about 10 inches below the top of the sump crock. When
should the primary kick in?
If I set it low, water constantly runs in from the inlet. If I set it high,
so it doesn't kick in until the water is above the inlet pipe, than for the
most part the water seems to equalize itself in the crock and it maybe runs
every 5-10 minutes in spring.
Should the pump kick in below the inlet pipe level, or just let it equalize
itself until there is enough water pressure coming in to raise the float?
low area so our sump pump runs a lot.
We have your basic sunken sump crock and we have 2 submersible pumps in it.
The primary pump runs underground to a sewer at the street. The backup just
drains out to the yard and only is supposed to run if the primary would
fail.
They both use float switches and the primary sump pump float switch died, so
I installed a new one.
My problem is I don't know where to set the kick in level, to turn on the
pump. Meaning, how high should the water level get in the sump crock?
There is a 4" drain pipe from the drain tiles that empties into the sump
crock and it is about 10 inches below the top of the sump crock. When
should the primary kick in?
If I set it low, water constantly runs in from the inlet. If I set it high,
so it doesn't kick in until the water is above the inlet pipe, than for the
most part the water seems to equalize itself in the crock and it maybe runs
every 5-10 minutes in spring.
Should the pump kick in below the inlet pipe level, or just let it equalize
itself until there is enough water pressure coming in to raise the float?
tra...@optonline.net
May 26, 2012, 6:36:13 PM5/26/12
to
lower level is safer as it will keep the water around
the house at a lower level. The downside as you note
is that with the same size sump basin it will eject
less water each time and run more. You could try
a compromise and have it kick on when the water
reaches the mid-point of the pipe. You could try a
bit higher too, doing it only gradually and checking
the basement for any water after heavy rains.
If the basement stays dry you will be pumping less
water and that's good.
How much you want to push it also depends on
what's in the basement. Empty unfinished basement
and finished basement are different risks.
Joe J
May 26, 2012, 7:09:53 PM5/26/12
to
<tra...@optonline.net> wrote in message
news:cb12a123-8675-4d37...@x10g2000yqg.googlegroups.com...
bath, family room and exercise room.
No water problems at all, just need to run a dehumidifier in the warm humid
months.
Supposed to hit 95 tomorrow, way tooooo early for that kind of weather in
Wisconsin.
hr(bob) hofmann@att.net
May 27, 2012, 10:43:12 PM5/27/12
to
On May 26, 6:09 pm, "Joe J" <joe...@prodigy.net> wrote:
> <trad...@optonline.net> wrote in message
> Wisconsin.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
I have a similar situation here in the Chicago suburbs. I finally set
the main pump to come on when the water level in the inlet pipe is
almost to the top of the pipe. That way, the pump runs MUCH less
often, and does run for a longer time as it not only pumps the sump
down, but also the accumulated water in the pipes feeding the sump.
But, the total run time is probably the same overall, and greatly
reduced nujmber of starting of the pump should make the pump last a
lot longer. Be sure to disable the main pump a couple of times each
year so the water level comes up high enough to trigger the backup
pump, and then be sure to turn the main pump back on (don't ask me how
I know to do that<g>).
> <trad...@optonline.net> wrote in message
>
> - Show quoted text -
I have a similar situation here in the Chicago suburbs. I finally set
the main pump to come on when the water level in the inlet pipe is
almost to the top of the pipe. That way, the pump runs MUCH less
often, and does run for a longer time as it not only pumps the sump
down, but also the accumulated water in the pipes feeding the sump.
But, the total run time is probably the same overall, and greatly
reduced nujmber of starting of the pump should make the pump last a
lot longer. Be sure to disable the main pump a couple of times each
year so the water level comes up high enough to trigger the backup
pump, and then be sure to turn the main pump back on (don't ask me how
I know to do that<g>).
Joe J
May 28, 2012, 9:19:34 AM5/28/12
to
"hr(bob) hof...@att.net" <hrho...@att.net> wrote in message
news:8172e92a-bf93-4a33...@s5g2000vbc.googlegroups.com...
position and the pump ran continuous for at least an hour, maybe more. My
wife wakes me at midnight, so down I go give the float a nudge.
Half asleep when I put the cover back on the crock, I jammed it against the
backup. Primary again got stuck and backup was jammed. So neither pump ran
for hours, otherwise it's about every 10 mins, this time of year. Pulled
the cover off this morning and the backup started and the water came rushing
in. Basic question...where was that water accumulating when the pumps
weren't running? Rising somewhere, but where? First house with a sump in
30 years and this is new to me.
By float switch I mean the kind that floats in water and you plug the pump
AC cord into it, not the kind on a rod that moves up and down.
tra...@optonline.net
May 28, 2012, 10:23:45 AM5/28/12
to
On May 28, 9:19 am, "Joe J" <joe...@prodigy.net> wrote:
> "hr(bob) hofm...@att.net" <hrhofm...@att.net> wrote in message
The water will not rise continously, unless your house
is on top of a spring. The water will only rise to the natural
ground water level.
That level will also vary somewhat depending on the overall level of
water in
the ground, ie it will be higher if it's Spring and raining for a week
than during
a drought is summer.
So, if you shut off the pumps for 24 hours, you might find that the
water only
rises to say 6" below the floor. Or it could be 6" above. But
whatever level it
is, once it reaches that steady-state condition, that's all the new
water that's
going to come in.
Per the previous advice, when you fiddle with the level of the sump
pump
float, you're engaged in the above scenario. If you set the float
higher, you
could set it at or above the natural water level. In which case the
pump
won't run at all. As long as that level is still a reasonable
distance below
the floor, you probably won't get any water showing up somewhere in
the
basement. On the other hand, if you set the float level low, the
pump
will be running a lot as it now has to keep pumping water that comes
in.
The lower the level you try to maintain, the more water that will have
to
be pumped. The question is, "How lucky to you feel today?", ie the
higher you set it, the less the pump runs, but the risk increases that
with
a big rain, worse case conditions, some water is going to show up
somewhere in the basement. Which is why I suggest if you seek to
raise it you only do it slowly, maybe 1" at a time and go through a
worse case period to see what happens. If you raise it close to the
floor, change it 8" in one shot, etc, you could wind up with water all
over the basement.
First house with a sump in
> 30 years and this is new to me.
> By float switch I mean the kind that floats in water and you plug the pump
> AC cord into it, not the kind on a rod that moves up and down.- Hide quoted text -
> "hr(bob) hofm...@att.net" <hrhofm...@att.net> wrote in message
is on top of a spring. The water will only rise to the natural
ground water level.
That level will also vary somewhat depending on the overall level of
water in
the ground, ie it will be higher if it's Spring and raining for a week
than during
a drought is summer.
So, if you shut off the pumps for 24 hours, you might find that the
water only
rises to say 6" below the floor. Or it could be 6" above. But
whatever level it
is, once it reaches that steady-state condition, that's all the new
water that's
going to come in.
Per the previous advice, when you fiddle with the level of the sump
pump
float, you're engaged in the above scenario. If you set the float
higher, you
could set it at or above the natural water level. In which case the
pump
won't run at all. As long as that level is still a reasonable
distance below
the floor, you probably won't get any water showing up somewhere in
the
basement. On the other hand, if you set the float level low, the
pump
will be running a lot as it now has to keep pumping water that comes
in.
The lower the level you try to maintain, the more water that will have
to
be pumped. The question is, "How lucky to you feel today?", ie the
higher you set it, the less the pump runs, but the risk increases that
with
a big rain, worse case conditions, some water is going to show up
somewhere in the basement. Which is why I suggest if you seek to
raise it you only do it slowly, maybe 1" at a time and go through a
worse case period to see what happens. If you raise it close to the
floor, change it 8" in one shot, etc, you could wind up with water all
over the basement.
First house with a sump in
> 30 years and this is new to me.
> By float switch I mean the kind that floats in water and you plug the pump
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