![]() ![]() I also learned that all sump pumps are not created equal! Sump pumps are sold and rated by the horsepower that the electric motor generates. In the worst case scenario, the sump pump may not even be able to “lift” the water out of the sump basin! Many of the more economical (cheap) sump pumps sold by the Big Box stores fit into the latter category, resulting in an ongoing and aggravating issue even after you think the problem is resolved. This may be the difference between your basement flooding because the sump pump can’t keep up with the incoming water and not flooding. So, what happens when an 8’ head or lift pump is installed in your 9.5’ basement? Well, if you refer to the manufacturers pump curve charts you will find that the gallons per minute that the pump will take out of your home will be reduced by as much as 40%! So if your sump pump is designed to pump 60 gallons per hour at an 8’ head, raising the lift to 9.5 feet will cause the pump to only be able to remove 36 gallons per hour. NOT SO! The sump pump basin sits at least another 18” below the floor, so the pumping capacity for head or lift has to be over 9.5 feet. If you have an 8’ basement height one would think that a pump with an 8’ head would be sufficient. I learned about “head” or the amount of height that the pump must lift the water to get it out of your house. I began to research sump pumps and how they work. What kind of plumber am I, if I couldn’t even keep my own basement from flooding? Kind of a pride thing I guess in retrospect… As a plumber I found this to be completely unacceptable. My basement flooded the day after I purchased my home some 30 plus years ago. That’s right, EVERY 90 SECONDS! Drought, freezing temperatures and time of year had no impact on this cycle UNLESS it rained! Then it was “Game On” with the amount of water entering the sump pump basin exponentially increasing directly corresponding to the amount of rainfall. My home’s sump pump used to run every 90 seconds regardless of the season or temperature outside. I have lived in this area for more than 30 years and learned very quickly in my own home the woes of our rural drainage issues. How many times have you wished for the snow to melt? If you live in the New Lenox, Frankfort or Mokena area you may have, dependent upon which section of town you live in, experienced flooding due to sump pump failure or an extremely high influx of water into your sump basin during heavy rains. New Lenox/Frankfort/Mokena Backup Sump Pump Needs And that is where the thought process ends. The typical big corporate mentality goes something like this: Cost + mark up x number of units = profit. Little or no thought is put into the technical aspects of the product they are going to sell. They then work backward so to speak and look for a system that they can mark up the standard retail 40 to 50%. The store determines that they want to “sell” a battery back up system for $ 500.00. They only know what has been taught to them by the store that is marketing and selling a system determined by a certain price point. I have seen and replaced many “Big Box” store systems that were sold by an enthusiastic, albeit, uninformed employee of these types of stores. Selling one type of battery back up system as a “One Size Fits All” type of solution is a guaranteed set up for a future nightmare. That in itself creates a problem! One Size Battery Backup Fits All? The problem I see with this type of article is that it is primarily designed to “sell” a certain type of battery back up system. Many of the articles focus on a certain type or manufacturer that is being promoted in the market place. Much has been written about battery backup sump pumps in the Frankfort, New Lenox and Mokena areas in the last several years. ![]()
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