I think I would have put in a larger diameter pit, just to make the plumbing a little easier to service. One of the things you don’t talk about is where is your water coming from and what you have done with pump discharge and downspouts outside of your home. My daughter & son-in-law couldn’t keep a sump pump longer than 3 years. I suggested they move the down spouts further away from the house, especially the one next to the sump pit. They didn’t think it was important, years went by......! Finally I got through to them. They had a guy trench a channel to the storm sewer at the corner of their lot (30ft.) and put in 2 @ 4” corrugated pipes in the trench. One for the sump pump and the other for the down spout. The pump ran for about 2 weeks and then magic, it stopped. The pump has been in for 5+ years and does go on once in a great while, but not in the winter. Thanks....Jim PS......I live a block away and my original sump pump is still in my pit, I have no backup. I do use a tether switch and have replaced that once in 17 years. When they built my house there was no water in the clay soil. My pump runs when it rains, but that’s it.
Biggest mistake I see people make is lacking redundancy. Having a single pump is not a very good idea. If you have a switch failure or pump failure, you probably won’t have time to figure it out. On that note, I used levelguard sensors so I don’t have to worry about moving the entire pump up to set the pump depth.
Where does the discharge pipe connect or discharge? Does it pass under the basement footings? I have this set up but what is pumped out discharged seems to come back into the sump.
Great info. I have a sump pump just installed that is pumping out water every hour - but its not from the weeping tile. There is a slight flow just below it. Would this be the ground water and my pump being too low?
I hooked up a monitor to my sump pump, winter it would run once every 10-15 days, this spring it has been going up...cycling 340 times daily the past few days. I am hoping that stops after all the snow finally melts, given where my slab is I don't dare raise it up for the summer months. Ugh, next home is going to be basement free.
We built a house and after a year, I see that sump pump is constantly running. No leak in the incoming city water, its ground water. Grading seems to be ok, all down spouts are throwing water away from the house. Water coming into the pit is clear groundwater. Even if I adjust the height of the pump, it would make a small change but it is the high inflow of water that causes pump to go off every minute. I am having sleepless nights with the fear that if pump fails, my battery back up pump would last for an hour and within 15 minutes, basement will be flooded. What all should I check for ? Just FYI, my basement is dig deeper than normal basement as we have 10 ft basement ceiling. Thanks.
Try to measure your groundwater high point with a yardstick for a few days. Is there a point where it stops? If so, set your pump/float a few inches above that. If it's constantly flooding over your pit, that is concerning.
@@TheTruckGuy Thanks. Measure groundwater by digging a hole outside in the ground and measuring water level in the hole? OR measure ground water level in the pit? How do I do that? As water comes in to the level of the incoming water level, sump pump kicks in.
In your sump pit. Unplug your pump and see what level your water stops at. Use a yardstick to measure from the bottom of your pit. That will tell you your current groundwater level. You maybe need to raise your pump. If your pit overflows, hand bail it. In that case, you may have a bigger issue.
Nice, I would move up your pump/float to account for that if you can. It should keep your pump from constantly running whole still protecting your basement.
We just bought a house and the sump pump was constantly running and it just died. I have a 22 inch deep pit. The inlets are at 15 inches. The water level in the pit is hovering around 15.5. Are the inlets supposed to be at the ground water level? Or is the water level just hovering there because as it rises it has to fill the inlets pipes as well? If my inlets are below the ground water level, wouldn't water be constantly flowing into my pit? We shopvaced it dry and the water filled at a rate of 1 inch every 2 minutes until it reached the inlet pipes. Is my pit too low? To keep a pump float above the current level of the standing water, I would have to have to raise it to almost the top of my pit. Is that correct installation technique?
It my view, it doesn't matter too much where exactly the inlet pipe is - your sump pit will fill to the groundwater level (whatever that is). However, based on what you are saying, it sounds like your inlet pipe is at your current groundwater level. You will definitely need to move your float up to avoid it constantly running just to keep ahead of the groundwater level. But if your groundwater is rising near or over your sump pit, you seem to have a fairly bad situation. Is it always like that or has there been significant rain/flooding? I raised up my pump/float with some bricks in the bottom of my sump pit which was fairly easy.
I was reading somewhere that a sump pump can help lower ground water level. It could run a ton for weeks but eventually wouldn’t it help create a new ground water equilibrium level?
is there a way to tell where pit water is coming from. pump going off every 30 seconds even when not raining. can't imagine that is normal ground water. thinking maybe broken water line somewhere? It hasn 't always been like this.
It could be normal ground water if your pump is sitting under your groundwater level. You could try unplugging your pump and see where the water table is (i.e. where the water stops). If it stops somewhere in your pit after you unplug, you probably just need to raise up your pump some, as it is sitting too low in your sump pit. Is the water trickling in through your drain tile? If so, it's hard to think of it as a broken water line. Very tough to say without assessing it. If you unplug your pump and your water is rising to the top of your sump pit, or overflows, you have a more serious issue. In that case, I would immediately plug your pump back in and likely watch it for a few hours. If it seems like it's not calming down, you may need to call for help.
I have an 18" wide by 24" deep pit that is way too small. Find little to no information on the proper sizing of a pit. I know that it needs to be deep enough so the water that is pumped is below the inlet of drain tile, we don't want water sitting in the drain tile. So I figure I will get the largest reasonable pit possible, I want it to have enough room for 2 pumps and don't want short cycling (which is what I have now). At least 24" wide by 30" deep, perhaps larger. My big question is, should it be perforated or solid? I don't think perforated would give much beneift, probably will take on more ground water than I need to.
Where ultimately does your discharge water go? You mentioned the side of your house. Mine goes to the side but then trickles down the front walk. Hardly practical. Please help.
Why is ground water level under your house so heigh? This will create very high humidity levels under house? Looks like you should put external foundation drains outside that lower water level before it gets under house, gravity drain! Why build a house over 9 inches water depth? I put in outside French drains, connected downspouts to that, is helping a lot, drain flows for days after a light rain even!
Man... We bought august 2020 and I'm just no figuring out I don't need my pump to fire 20,000 (no joke) times a day after it rains... I'm fighting the ground water. That said, I need to develop a better system for when we get torrential pours or snow melts. Thanks!
We are getting the keys to our new house at the end of September. Throughout the entire 10 month build the pump has never stopped working. Recently my new neighbors called me to tell me it was off and there appeared to be water in the basement. I confirmed this the next day and the builder had already been there although there were still puddles left all over the place and the wood from the bottom of the stairs was wet to the touch. Any advice on how to make the builder fix this or what they should do before we take possession? I have been told that these water issues subside once the rest of the homes in this new sub have been built.
Hi, does ground water enter the sump pit with pressure? I have a sump pump in a house I just moved into running every 20 seconds with water constantly flowing in with pressure. I’m wondering where this water is coming from and what the solution would be. Any advice would be appreciated!
It trickles in. How much depends on how much water is in the ground around your foundation Constantly running? Like never turns off even when the water is below the pump? Then it's the switch replace it. If the switch doesnt kick on and you flood replace it they are $40. If the float switch is too low move it higher so your pit has more time to fill before switching on. All the pit is doing is moving water beside the walls and under your cement to further away. Like the storm sewers it's just temporarily storing and moving water so it doesnt flood your basement. If it's running once an hour or so that's normal. It's really not complicated. If your discharging too close to your house then all you are doing is moving the same water over and over. Move your discharge pipe away from your house or tie into the storm sewer if that is the case. Could be many things go investigate.
My sump pump pit was running almost constantly. After watching your video, I checked when my ground water level was at ( I unplugged sump for a couple of days) and found it to be at around 18" off the bottom of the sump. I put some bricks in and redid the plumbing and now it runs maybe once a day. However the water level is around 7" below the floor level. Is that okay?? I also put in a watchdog back up pump. But is it okay to have that many bricks in there and be that high up with my pump???
Yes, that's ok but you are pretty high, so monitor your system closely and check groundwater at different times of year. You could have an issue if groundwater gets too high.
Do you have groundwater in your area? I do so I always have water in mine (but it fluctuates depending on the time of the year). I don't necessarily see it being dry as a bad thing as long as there's not water elsewhere.
A dry pit is just fine. Mine only fills up with water about once every 5 years - when we get a 4' snow storm or remnants of a hurricane slowly run through the area. My pump is in my crawlspace, but the less water the better! Lower humidity means less likelihood of mold.
@@bobbyg7552 if you're referring to the electronic (no moving parts) version of a sump pit water sensor, they are awesome. I have used Level Guard in my pit for over 10 years and no problems. The existing sump pump switch just needs to held in the up / on position or removed. The level guard controls the pump instead, no matter what brand it is. It's a yellow long stick looking device. There are UA-cam videos showing it in action.
I’m currently having this problem right now. We just bought a house, replaced the sump pump and it was running every ten seconds. I’m checking the ground water level in the pit as we speak.
Do you have holes drilled in the basin itself? I have water coming in thru all these holes on the bottom 2 or 3 "rings" on the basin. Nothing comes in thru the tile unless there's a ton of rain. Thing runs every 6 minutes until i raised the float up. Now its more like 10 minutes.
I don't have holes in the basin - that seems fairly odd. Everything in my system comes from the drain tiling. You should pull your pump up or disable it and see where your groundwater stops. Then re-configure your pump or float higher up to run only when you get more than normal water level (above your groundwater point).
@@stuff_n_thanngs7552 sounds like you have big water issues in your area (which is more than the groundwater level that I talk about in this video). I guess it may need to run that much based on the amount you're getting. Doesn't sound like a fun situation tho.
@@TheTruckGuy have had a shitload of rain this year. Kind of at the bottom of my stree too. Im sure that's not helping. I don't remember it running this much in the 4 years weve lived here. Think it's a high water table situation.
ben curtis holes in the basin are for crawl space sump pump system (ground water); i just installed this type in my basement to help relieve my regular non stop running sump pump
I think I would have put in a larger diameter pit, just to make the plumbing a little easier to service. One of the things you don’t talk about is where is your water coming from and what you have done with pump discharge and downspouts outside of your home. My daughter & son-in-law couldn’t keep a sump pump longer than 3 years. I suggested they move the down spouts further away from the house, especially the one next to the sump pit. They didn’t think it was important, years went by......! Finally I got through to them. They had a guy trench a channel to the storm sewer at the corner of their lot (30ft.) and put in 2 @ 4” corrugated pipes in the trench. One for the sump pump and the other for the down spout. The pump ran for about 2 weeks and then magic, it stopped. The pump has been in for 5+ years and does go on once in a great while, but not in the winter. Thanks....Jim
PS......I live a block away and my original sump pump is still in my pit, I have no backup. I do use a tether switch and have replaced that once in 17 years. When they built my house there was no water in the clay soil. My pump runs when it rains, but that’s it.
Biggest mistake I see people make is lacking redundancy. Having a single pump is not a very good idea. If you have a switch failure or pump failure, you probably won’t have time to figure it out. On that note, I used levelguard sensors so I don’t have to worry about moving the entire pump up to set the pump depth.
Where does the discharge pipe connect or discharge? Does it pass under the basement footings? I have this set up but what is pumped out discharged seems to come back into the sump.
Great info. I have a sump pump just installed that is pumping out water every hour - but its not from the weeping tile. There is a slight flow just below it. Would this be the ground water and my pump being too low?
I hooked up a monitor to my sump pump, winter it would run once every 10-15 days, this spring it has been going up...cycling 340 times daily the past few days. I am hoping that stops after all the snow finally melts, given where my slab is I don't dare raise it up for the summer months. Ugh, next home is going to be basement free.
We built a house and after a year, I see that sump pump is constantly running. No leak in the incoming city water, its ground water. Grading seems to be ok, all down spouts are throwing water away from the house. Water coming into the pit is clear groundwater. Even if I adjust the height of the pump, it would make a small change but it is the high inflow of water that causes pump to go off every minute. I am having sleepless nights with the fear that if pump fails, my battery back up pump would last for an hour and within 15 minutes, basement will be flooded. What all should I check for ? Just FYI, my basement is dig deeper than normal basement as we have 10 ft basement ceiling. Thanks.
Try to measure your groundwater high point with a yardstick for a few days. Is there a point where it stops? If so, set your pump/float a few inches above that. If it's constantly flooding over your pit, that is concerning.
@@TheTruckGuy Thanks. Measure groundwater by digging a hole outside in the ground and measuring water level in the hole? OR measure ground water level in the pit? How do I do that? As water comes in to the level of the incoming water level, sump pump kicks in.
In your sump pit. Unplug your pump and see what level your water stops at. Use a yardstick to measure from the bottom of your pit. That will tell you your current groundwater level. You maybe need to raise your pump. If your pit overflows, hand bail it. In that case, you may have a bigger issue.
@@TheTruckGuy Did exactly what you said, water stops rising 8 inch below the basement concrete floor, the incoming water pipe is 1/3rd at that level.
Nice, I would move up your pump/float to account for that if you can. It should keep your pump from constantly running whole still protecting your basement.
Why is discharge under basement floor? Where does it discharge? I have this set up bur it’s the exception in my neighborhood
You need to get that pit covered because of radon have it tested and lower it in the winter it gets higher!
It is. I opened it for demonstration purposes only. Good call!
We just bought a house and the sump pump was constantly running and it just died. I have a 22 inch deep pit. The inlets are at 15 inches. The water level in the pit is hovering around 15.5. Are the inlets supposed to be at the ground water level? Or is the water level just hovering there because as it rises it has to fill the inlets pipes as well? If my inlets are below the ground water level, wouldn't water be constantly flowing into my pit?
We shopvaced it dry and the water filled at a rate of 1 inch every 2 minutes until it reached the inlet pipes. Is my pit too low? To keep a pump float above the current level of the standing water, I would have to have to raise it to almost the top of my pit. Is that correct installation technique?
It my view, it doesn't matter too much where exactly the inlet pipe is - your sump pit will fill to the groundwater level (whatever that is). However, based on what you are saying, it sounds like your inlet pipe is at your current groundwater level. You will definitely need to move your float up to avoid it constantly running just to keep ahead of the groundwater level. But if your groundwater is rising near or over your sump pit, you seem to have a fairly bad situation. Is it always like that or has there been significant rain/flooding? I raised up my pump/float with some bricks in the bottom of my sump pit which was fairly easy.
I was reading somewhere that a sump pump can help lower ground water level. It could run a ton for weeks but eventually wouldn’t it help create a new ground water equilibrium level?
Not really, it will remove water but doesn't really change the soil composition, grading, runoff points, etc.
Where does ground water enter the sump pit? Around the inflow pipe ?
is there a way to tell where pit water is coming from. pump going off every 30 seconds even when not raining. can't imagine that is normal ground water. thinking maybe broken water line somewhere? It hasn 't always been like this.
It could be normal ground water if your pump is sitting under your groundwater level. You could try unplugging your pump and see where the water table is (i.e. where the water stops). If it stops somewhere in your pit after you unplug, you probably just need to raise up your pump some, as it is sitting too low in your sump pit.
Is the water trickling in through your drain tile? If so, it's hard to think of it as a broken water line. Very tough to say without assessing it. If you unplug your pump and your water is rising to the top of your sump pit, or overflows, you have a more serious issue. In that case, I would immediately plug your pump back in and likely watch it for a few hours. If it seems like it's not calming down, you may need to call for help.
Check to see if your water meter is incrementing while all fixtures are off.
Have your sump water tested for chlorine.
I have an 18" wide by 24" deep pit that is way too small. Find little to no information on the proper sizing of a pit. I know that it needs to be deep enough so the water that is pumped is below the inlet of drain tile, we don't want water sitting in the drain tile. So I figure I will get the largest reasonable pit possible, I want it to have enough room for 2 pumps and don't want short cycling (which is what I have now). At least 24" wide by 30" deep, perhaps larger. My big question is, should it be perforated or solid? I don't think perforated would give much beneift, probably will take on more ground water than I need to.
You might consider a smaller pump
Where ultimately does your discharge water go? You mentioned the side of your house. Mine goes to the side but then trickles down the front walk. Hardly practical. Please help.
Mine goes into the backyard. Use a discharge hose to direct it where you want. Cheers
If you have a freeze release system, would this also count as the air gap?
Why is ground water level under your house so heigh? This will create very high humidity levels under house? Looks like you should put external foundation drains outside that lower water level before it gets under house, gravity drain! Why build a house over 9 inches water depth?
I put in outside French drains, connected downspouts to that, is helping a lot, drain flows for days after a light rain even!
My sump pump is continuously running never happened before and the last 2 day is running none stop and isn’t raining
Man... We bought august 2020 and I'm just no figuring out I don't need my pump to fire 20,000 (no joke) times a day after it rains... I'm fighting the ground water.
That said, I need to develop a better system for when we get torrential pours or snow melts.
Thanks!
Thank you sir! Make sure your floats are above the ground water for sure during non-rain/snow melt season. Good luck and please subscribe!
We are getting the keys to our new house at the end of September. Throughout the entire 10 month build the pump has never stopped working. Recently my new neighbors called me to tell me it was off and there appeared to be water in the basement. I confirmed this the next day and the builder had already been there although there were still puddles left all over the place and the wood from the bottom of the stairs was wet to the touch. Any advice on how to make the builder fix this or what they should do before we take possession? I have been told that these water issues subside once the rest of the homes in this new sub have been built.
I would start asking questions now. Once you take possession, it's your problem.
Please also subscribe if you haven't already, thanks gaucho63!
@@TheTruckGuy DONE
Thank you gaucho63! Much appreciated.
Hi, does ground water enter the sump pit with pressure? I have a sump pump in a house I just moved into running every 20 seconds with water constantly flowing in with pressure. I’m wondering where this water is coming from and what the solution would be. Any advice would be appreciated!
No, it shouldn't be coming in with pressure. Ground water is generally a very gradual process.
It trickles in. How much depends on how much water is in the ground around your foundation Constantly running? Like never turns off even when the water is below the pump? Then it's the switch replace it. If the switch doesnt kick on and you flood replace it they are $40. If the float switch is too low move it higher so your pit has more time to fill before switching on. All the pit is doing is moving water beside the walls and under your cement to further away. Like the storm sewers it's just temporarily storing and moving water so it doesnt flood your basement. If it's running once an hour or so that's normal. It's really not complicated. If your discharging too close to your house then all you are doing is moving the same water over and over. Move your discharge pipe away from your house or tie into the storm sewer if that is the case. Could be many things go investigate.
My sum pump work every 3min...I put some bricks...shoul I make little bit higher...?
That's what I would do, raise it up a bit and see how often it runs.
My sump pump pit was running almost constantly. After watching your video, I checked when my ground water level was at ( I unplugged sump for a couple of days) and found it to be at around 18" off the bottom of the sump. I put some bricks in and redid the plumbing and now it runs maybe once a day. However the water level is around 7" below the floor level. Is that okay?? I also put in a watchdog back up pump. But is it okay to have that many bricks in there and be that high up with my pump???
Did you get a reply to this? I had a similar situation and was wondering if your adjustment was ok?
Mines been on a 6" block for 7 years. I still get moisture at a few cracks in the floor but no issues with water.
@@soniafilice8925 sorry Sonia I didn’t see your question. Yes everything is running good. No moisture issues anywhere.
Yes, that's ok but you are pretty high, so monitor your system closely and check groundwater at different times of year. You could have an issue if groundwater gets too high.
How do you measure ground water level? Have to stop any inflow and then run the pump ?
sump pump pit completely dry for a long time
You have any idea why?
Do you have groundwater in your area? I do so I always have water in mine (but it fluctuates depending on the time of the year). I don't necessarily see it being dry as a bad thing as long as there's not water elsewhere.
A dry pit is just fine. Mine only fills up with water about once every 5 years - when we get a 4' snow storm or remnants of a hurricane slowly run through the area. My pump is in my crawlspace, but the less water the better! Lower humidity means less likelihood of mold.
Thank you
Thanks Bobby, please subscribe if you can!
Are you a professional?
Nope.
What’s a level guard ?
Level guard? Not familiar with that term. Please explain more if you can.
@@bobbyg7552 if you're referring to the electronic (no moving parts) version of a sump pit water sensor, they are awesome. I have used Level Guard in my pit for over 10 years and no problems. The existing sump pump switch just needs to held in the up / on position or removed. The level guard controls the pump instead, no matter what brand it is. It's a yellow long stick looking device. There are UA-cam videos showing it in action.
I’m currently having this problem right now. We just bought a house, replaced the sump pump and it was running every ten seconds.
I’m checking the ground water level in the pit as we speak.
Awesome, let me know what you find out!
Do you have holes drilled in the basin itself? I have water coming in thru all these holes on the bottom 2 or 3 "rings" on the basin. Nothing comes in thru the tile unless there's a ton of rain.
Thing runs every 6 minutes until i raised the float up. Now its more like 10 minutes.
I don't have holes in the basin - that seems fairly odd. Everything in my system comes from the drain tiling. You should pull your pump up or disable it and see where your groundwater stops. Then re-configure your pump or float higher up to run only when you get more than normal water level (above your groundwater point).
@@TheTruckGuy if i unplug that thing it'll eventually overflow. Or just back into my tiling. Niether are very good options
@@stuff_n_thanngs7552 sounds like you have big water issues in your area (which is more than the groundwater level that I talk about in this video). I guess it may need to run that much based on the amount you're getting. Doesn't sound like a fun situation tho.
@@TheTruckGuy have had a shitload of rain this year. Kind of at the bottom of my stree too. Im sure that's not helping. I don't remember it running this much in the 4 years weve lived here. Think it's a high water table situation.
ben curtis
holes in the basin are for crawl space sump pump system (ground water); i just installed this type in my basement to help relieve my regular non stop running sump pump
AHHHHHHHHHH
thank you