Is your sump pump working?

The one sure way to find out if your sump pump is working is to go in the basement when it's pouring outside. If there's water all over the place then it ain't. If the weather is sunny and warm then get a bucket and fill it with water and pour it in the sump pit. If and when the pump comes on, you know its working. Now go take a nap, you deserve it!

If it doesn't work then you may have to replace the sump pump. Luckily for you it's really easy to replace and the only cost for you will be the new pump. No labor or service call charge which means you save a ton of money. And let me add this, anyone can replace a pump.

WARNING!

This advice is for when you have a dry basement. If you have water in your basement you should wait for the water to subside or call a professional. You can be seriously injured or killed if you attempt to change the pump standing in water.

Many of you may be thinking to yourself, "The pump is only four years old, why would I replace it?" Or "We've had that pump for years and years and it's always worked just fine"

I thought that too my friend. For some unknown, mysterious reason, sump pumps will just stop working and not give you ANY warning whatsoever.

We'd only been in our home for 6 years and it was a brand new home with a brand new sump pump. Then last fall we had a really good frog choker and I decided on a whim to go in the basement and check the floor. Uh oh, spaghettio! There was water almost everywhere. Not too much but I think ANY water in the basement is too much. I tried feebly to use my wet dry vacuum to clean it up but I gave up real soon, checked the balance in my checking account and then called the plumber.

The one thing I should say is this. I called the plumber and told him my story and he assured me a person would be over soon. When the plumber arrived, I took him to the basement and the first thing he did was unplug the pump from the outlet and plug in the "second plug" that was plugged into a splitter on the first cord. Voila! The pump sprang to life!

I asked him how he did that and he told me that a lot of pumps have two plugs, one for the switch and one for the pump itself. The one for the pump will turn on the sump pump but it won't stop when the water is gone so the motor would eventually burn out. I sure wish the man I talked to on the phone would have told me that!

Some free advice, oh wait it's all free. If you have a two plug sump pump and it stops working, unplug the first plug and plug in the second plug. When all of the water is gone and it stops raining, go buy a new pump, change it yourself and save yourself a bundle of dough.

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1. Turn off the power to the pump or unplug it.

2. Unscrew the discharge pipe and disconnect it from the pump.

3. Remove the pump from the sump pit and set it aside.

4. Install the new pump and reconnect the discharge pipe.

5. Plug the pump in and turn the power back on.

6. To check that it's working, pour in a couple of buckets of water into the sump pit.

If it works and pumps out the water then you are done my friend. Woohoo! Very good work and just think of the money you saved.

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