| Author |
 Topic Search  Topic Options
|
Dave H 
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Central IL
Points: 3559
|
 Post Options
 Thanks(0)
 Quote  Reply
 Topic: Reliable Sump pump?
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 6:32am |
We had a frog choker here in central IL last night and it is stil going on. So the basement flood alarm blew my butt outta bed at 5:30. Went down and fiddled with the switch and float and the thing is pumping now. The brand on this one is Coleman and it has a lifetime warranty. I am on my fourth one in 18 years.  Menards honors the warranty no problem. I am willing to pony up and go for a bullet proof one. Any suggestions? Maybe ole Pat will pony up here if he gets a break today on all those flooding calls.
|
 |
|
Sponsored Links
|
|
|
Pat the Plumber CIL
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Springfield,Il
Points: 4871
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 6:58am |
|
It is usually the float switch that fails. The constant on off , on off wears the switch out. The pumps with a cast iron base are designed to last a long time. The float switch is the weak link. I buy " Pro Series pumps from a local wholesale house. You buy a separate float switch and controller for the pump. It can be mounted higher than the pump. The controller can be set to keep running up to a minute after the float goes down. Now the pump does not short cycle on an off. Pumps last much longer more water each cycle
|
|
You only need to know 3 things to be a plumber;Crap rolls down hill,Hot is on the left and Don't bite your fingernails
1964 D-17 SIV 3 Pt.WF,1964 D-15 Ser II 3pt.WF ,1960 D-17 SI NF,1956 WD 45 WF.
|
|
Pat the Plumber CIL
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Springfield,Il
Points: 4871
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 7:02am |
|
Menards does warranty those Coleman pumps pretty good but doesn't do much if something gets wet and damaged. Connor Co in Springfield will set you up Dave if you make the drive.
|
|
You only need to know 3 things to be a plumber;Crap rolls down hill,Hot is on the left and Don't bite your fingernails
1964 D-17 SIV 3 Pt.WF,1964 D-15 Ser II 3pt.WF ,1960 D-17 SI NF,1956 WD 45 WF.
|
|
Dusty MI
Orange Level
Joined: 13 Sep 2009
Location: Charlotte, Mi
Points: 5058
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 7:57am |
I had two sump crocks with a sump pump in each one, and once I had both of them quit at the same time.
Dusty
|
|
917 H, '48 G, '65 D-10 series III "Allis Express"
|
|
Wayne180d
Orange Level
Joined: 08 Dec 2015
Location: Gilman, Il
Points: 5940
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 3:15pm |
|
me too dusty and my basement was mess
|
|
jaybmiller
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Greensville,Ont
Points: 24338
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 3:29pm |
Idiot City 'engineers' demand( yup, in writing ) that the weeping tile come INTO the house, into a sump pump then discharge outside.....so TWO holes in the foundation. sigh... they also demand a battery backed up backup sump pump now too...
idiots...
I've had THREE Simner(sp) condensate pumps fail in less than 1 year... so the 'contractor' installs a laundry pump from the same mfr.... same guy who did the bathroom upstairs with the 'creaky' water pipes...hmm, the ones I installed 25 years ago never,EVER made a noise....
|
|
3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)
Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water
|
|
Dave H
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Central IL
Points: 3559
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 11 Jun 2018 at 4:10pm |
|
Pat, dayum that place is huge. I been driving by it for years and did not have a clue.
So I have the pump and one of them new fangled controllers sitting on the kitchen counter, getting ready to read all about it. Thanks.
The one from Menards that had the stuck switch this am, has been running fine since I yanked it around. Gonna leave it pump for a while until the flow down there gets to something less than Niagara Falls.
And by the way folks, i installed a water powered back up long ago to take care of things when the lights go out.
|
|
JohnCO
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Niwot Colo
Points: 8992
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 1:48am |
|
A "Water powered backup"?
|
|
"If at first you don't succeed, get a bigger hammer"
Allis Express participant
|
|
Ted J
Orange Level
Joined: 05 Jul 2010
Location: La Crosse, WI
Points: 18923
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 4:47am |
 JohnCO wrote:
A "Water powered backup"? |
X2 ??
|
|
"Allis-Express"
19?? WC / 1941 C / 1952 CA / 1956 WD45 / 1957 WD45 / 1958 D-17
|
|
jaybmiller
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Greensville,Ont
Points: 24338
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 5:42am |
Gee, I'm only 65 and I KNOW what they are.... Simple 'venturi' based sucker,works like a jet pump. LOTS of good water is pumped through it to suck up a LITTLE 'bad' water. The problem is you waste a LOT of great, drinking water to do the job.
|
|
3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)
Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water
|
|
Pat the Plumber CIL
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Springfield,Il
Points: 4871
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 7:27am |
|
Better to waste some good drinking water than pay a restoration company to repair the damage from a flooded basement .1 gallon of good will push out 2 gallons of bad. Mainly for power outages. If you on a well it won't do much .
Edited by Pat the Plumber CIL - 12 Jun 2018 at 7:30am
|
|
You only need to know 3 things to be a plumber;Crap rolls down hill,Hot is on the left and Don't bite your fingernails
1964 D-17 SIV 3 Pt.WF,1964 D-15 Ser II 3pt.WF ,1960 D-17 SI NF,1956 WD 45 WF.
|
|
Ken(MI)
Orange Level
Joined: 14 Sep 2009
Location: Lansing, MI
Points: 619
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 8:09am |
|
Spend the money on a Zoeller, been down all the roads above, best solution I've come up with is high dry ground or a Zoeller pump.
|
|
Dusty MI
Orange Level
Joined: 13 Sep 2009
Location: Charlotte, Mi
Points: 5058
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 9:36am |
I fixed mine by running a tile out of the basement and hooking into a field tile.
Dusty
|
|
917 H, '48 G, '65 D-10 series III "Allis Express"
|
|
Butch(OH)
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Lucerne Ohio
Points: 3835
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 9:52am |
I am with you Dusty!
I grew up in a house with a sump pump. When I decided to strike out on my own I was 23 and single and told the real estate agent I had only two requirements for my house. Flat driveway and NO sump pump,, anything else was open to discussion. She laughed and said I must say I have never had those two things at the top of a peron's list,, but I also have never sold a house to a 23 year old single man, LOL.
Wife and I bought a place in the country 3 years ago and first thing I did was go to the basement, had sump in the floor with a tile going out to the field, I was good to go 
|
|
Coke-in-MN
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Afton MN
Points: 41819
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 10:13am |
Yep generally not the pump itself that fails but the switch system (float or lever) Have had a couple pumps where the impeller has worn out from pumping a slurry over many years .
So head pressure (back pressure or lift height) was marginal to pump to start and then age makes it not do required job .
Over the years I had good luck with Gould Pumps - price, quality, warranty all was favorable as was performance curve higher than most . Could also get a 5 year warranty if customers wanted -
I installed a lot of septic lift pumps over 30 years and had few go bad - but replaced a lot of float switches that people tethered wrong . The wires in a float only take so many bendings before they break - and hte new no mercury mechanical switches seem to also have a life cycle
Edited by Coke-in-MN - 12 Jun 2018 at 10:18am
|
|
Faith isn't a jump in the dark. It is a walk in the light. Faith is not guessing; it is knowing something.
"Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful."
|
|
Mikez
Orange Level Access
Joined: 16 Jan 2013
Location: Usa
Points: 8602
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 12 Jun 2018 at 10:00pm |
|
When I worked in DPW we had pump stations with sump pumps in them. Most of them had little giant pumps in them. The only problem I ever seen with them was the paint would bubble up and jam the impeller. But that was only older ones that pumped a lot of sewer water. Had I neat float that was separate with its own cord that you plugged the pump into. Or you could plug pump direct if you wanted to just run pump
|
|
Dave H
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Central IL
Points: 3559
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 13 Jun 2018 at 8:19am |
Didn't want to get into the TMI mode - but. I live off of a county road that has a city water main running along it out to a state park. I have a hook up to the city water line, bout 100 yards to the house. So when the power goes out or the Menards pump quit, the water rises in the sump, the alarm goes off, and as it rises a little higher the back up takes over. Then i start calling for help if I am away and it is a pump failure and not just an electrical outage. Knock on wood, i have never gone over my basic allowance on the water bill due to back up pump usage.  And if i did, like Pat said, it would not bother me at to spend a few bucks to preclude water damage.
|
|
JW in MO
Orange Level
Joined: 16 Feb 2010
Location: South KC Area
Points: 2647
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 13 Jun 2018 at 11:16am |
Ken(MI) wrote:
Spend the money on a Zoeller, been down all the roads above, best solution I've come up with is high dry ground or a Zoeller pump. |
X2 on the Zoeller I had one that quit, waded knee deep in water across the basement to the sump pump, wiggled the pipe, reached down and shook the pump but no go. Unplugged it, pulled it out of the hole, took it up to the shop and found the gasket on the top of the pump to the switch failed, let water in and one of the connections burned in two. Guess it just wasn't my day to die but sure could have been.
|
|
Maximum use of available resources!
|
|
john(MI)
Orange Level
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: SE MI
Points: 9262
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 16 Jun 2018 at 1:45pm |
I have a new one sitting in the basement with the pipe attached to it to that goes to the split where you take it apart. Should only take 5 minutes to change it. That's about as good as I need. Besides, if one fails the basement drain ain't that far away and it goes to the sump, so that'll take care of the problem! 
|
|
D14, D17, 5020, 612H, CASE 446
|
|
Dave H
Orange Level
Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Central IL
Points: 3559
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 17 Jun 2018 at 8:49am |
I hope this subject is closed for a LONG time. i got the pump (with external switch that is not in the water) installed. Also got the water powered back up float and zone for the security system installed. Hopefully with this high tech stuff in the hole, I can let her rip for a year or so or hopefully a lot longer.
|
|
GARY(OH/IN)
Orange Level
Joined: 19 May 2010
Location: Findlay,Ohio
Points: 917
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 18 Jun 2018 at 12:14am |
|
I put a $ 150 Zoeller in the basement of a commercial building and replaced it with a pedestal due to the short cycle time. Constant on and off after a rain. It's somewhere in a 5 gallon bucket.
|
|
Yammy
Bronze Level
Joined: 17 Jan 2022
Location: usa
Points: 1
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 17 Jan 2022 at 11:34am |
I had the exact same issue. I changed three sump pumps in 8 years. Eventually, I was able to find a good sump pump that I rely on. My last sump pump was barely making it through, and I had to change it asap. I went through the internet, and I understood that the best sump pumps are Zoeller. The next issue was that there were too many Zoeller sump pumps, and I had no idea which one to pick. A couple of days later, I found a website https://www.sumppumpadvisor.com/best-zoeller-sump-pump-reviews/ that had a list of the best Zoeller sump pumps. I picked one of them and ever since then I have had no problems.
Edited by Yammy - 17 Jan 2022 at 11:35am
|
|
jaybmiller
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Greensville,Ont
Points: 24338
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 17 Jan 2022 at 11:42am |
|
SPAM SPAM SPAM
|
|
3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)
Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water
|
|
DaveKamp
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Apr 2010
Location: LeClaire, Ia
Points: 5969
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 18 Jan 2022 at 9:40pm |
Yep, ignore 'spammy yammy'... clickbait.
In my company's installations, we use nothing but Zoeller pumps... approximately 4000 of them across the US and Canada.
Yeah, they're tough.
No, they're not without problems.
They use an oil-filled switch up in the top, that operates an over-center mechanism inside. Doesn't matter wether they get cycled alot, or never, after about 30 months, the switch fails. You can lift up the float, all the way, and the over-center mechanism will not flip, so the crock fills, and the pump doesn't start...
SO... as good as they may be, they stink... they ONLY FAIL WHEN YOU NEED THEM THE MOST.
Oh, yeah, they know about the problem- Zoller has a 'switch rebuild kit'... it's about half the cost of a new pump, takes about 45 minutes to disconnect your pump, dismantle it, install the new switch, put it all back together... after you've cleaned out your flooded basement. In our case, when a pump fails, it costs about $25k to recover.
They just refuse to fix the only serious problem with their otherwise good pump...
So #1: KEEP THAT ALARM #2: Have more than one pump model and brand on hand.
|
|
Ten Amendments, Ten Commandments, and one Golden Rule solve most every problem. Citrus hand-cleaner with Pumice does the rest.
|
|
Tbone95
Orange Level Access
Joined: 31 Aug 2012
Location: Michigan
Points: 11965
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 19 Jan 2022 at 7:43am |
|
Has anyone ever tried a conductivity switch? I built one in a system in a lab many moons ago, so I have no idea about longevity or usefulness in the field. There would be no moving parts in the sensing/switching. Reliability would be dependent on the robustness of the electronics that turn the pump on, which yeah, can be a problem if they aren't good stuff. Just curious.
|
|
Coke-in-MN
Orange Level Access
Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Afton MN
Points: 41819
|
Post Options
Thanks(0)
Quote Reply
Posted: 19 Jan 2022 at 10:47am |
|
In a industrial system of pump control I used only conductivity switches (low voltage) which trips a relay for pump circuit . with this system you can put in a 3rd probe to sound alarm if pump fails - only problem is making sure probes stay conductive as they need to be cleaned as well as to make sure the fixture they are attached to do not short out by condensation or contamination.
|
|
Faith isn't a jump in the dark. It is a walk in the light. Faith is not guessing; it is knowing something.
"Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful."
|
|
