Your basement or crawlspace’s sump pit is a water-gathering hole in the basement or crawlspace floor. It happens a lot in places where it rains often or where the water table is high. The fun fact is Before the 15th century, the word “sump” meant “wetland.” The term didn’t mean a “pit to collect water” until the 1650s.
How Does It Work?
The sump is an important part of the drainage system in your home. It keeps water out of your basement and protects the foundation. As water builds up along the foundation, it flows into drain tiles, which are flexible drain pipes with holes in them.
The water then flows into your sump pit. Water from the basement floor drains into the sump in some homes via inside drain tiles. A sump pump is then needed to move this water outside.
What is a sump pit?
A sump pit also called a sump crock, is a basin in the basement that is at the lowest point. It gathers floodwater before a motor pumps it to a place where it can be released. This tank is under the floor and has a cover on top. Most of the time, pre-mixed mortar is used to seal and smooth the edges of the pit.
Sump pits need to be excavated in order for water to drain away from your home. The sump pump and its intake are then lowered into the basin that has been made.
How the sump pit works
The sump pit has a built-in float that turns on the motor of the pump when the water level reaches a certain point. This keeps the basement from flooding. The motor of the pump then starts to pump water out.
As the water level goes down, so does the switch. When it gets to a certain point, the pump turns off. The float also makes sure that the sump pit won’t overflow unless something really bad happens.
Misconceptions People Have About Sump Pits
Some homeowners have the wrong ideas about sump pits and what they are for, which keeps them from getting the most out of their sump pumps. Let’s put some of these ideas to rest.
Sump pits occupy valuable space. False. Most submersible pumps, like SafedriTM, are small and put on top of the sump pits Since the pump is under the floor of your basement, it won’t take up any room.
People are also put off by the notion that sump pit systems are difficult to understand. It is a two-and-a-half-foot-deep hole in the floor whose edges have been smoothed with mortar that has already been mixed.
Even if you don’t have a sump pit, the weather might be unpredictable, so why risk it? Moderate rain or small floods could turn into bad hail storms or big floods. If you don’t have a sump pit, you could be in the middle of a disaster.
Some homeowners are afraid to put in sump pits because they think they will fail in the long run because of power outages, bad installation, faulty products, or clogged drain lines. If these fixtures are supported well, that’s not likely to happen.
Is a sump pit necessary?
For the safety and stability of your home’s foundation, it’s important to keep your basement dry. If you don’t, water can ruin your basement and your money. Also, a flood doesn’t have to be big to hurt your house. Even a small leak or crack in the structure of your house can cause a lot of water damage.
Wet and flooded basements are sometimes caused by bad weather and a foundation that wasn’t built well.
The sump pit and sump pump, which control the flow of water, are the other parts of the equation. If your basement floods often, you can fix the problem by putting in a sump pump and a sump pit. Note that a sump pump won’t fix your water problem if it’s coming from somewhere else.
Why does your house need a sump pit?
Every time it rains, your basement is at risk of water damage. Even though a sump basin doesn’t fix the problem that’s causing the water in your basement, it does help prevent water damage by getting rid of the water that’s already there. A sump pit does more than just drain water out of your basement. It also protects the structural integrity of your foundation.
Mold and mildew can grow in a basement where water has been standing for a long time. It also makes the environment smelly. Over time, the water could damage your foundation if it stays there. By putting in a sump pump and a pit, you can get rid of this water and make your basement healthier and drier. An additional advantage of installing a sump pump system is that it helps to keep basement humidity levels low, which helps to improve interior air quality and prevent paint from peeling.
Complete Basement Systems will provide you with a free written quote for the installation of a sump pump in your Denver, Colorado home if you decide this is a job you need doing.
How Come My Basement Has Two Pumps pits?
A sump pump is a common plumbing tool that can be found in many homes. Using a sump pump is the best way to get rid of excess groundwater from around your home. It pumps water from the ground, not from your plumbing system.
There may also be a second pump on the floor of your basement that looks like a sump pump but is used for something very different. A waste ejector pump is what you call it. The waste ejector’s job is to pump wastewater out of your home and into a wastewater sewer line.
It is used when a bathroom, laundry room, or other plumbing fixture on a lower level is below the level of the main sewer line that carries waste water out of the house. It can handle both solid and liquid waste and is usually found in finished basements. It has a pit like a sump pump, but the pump that gets rid of the waste is much bigger. The pit is where used water from sinks, washers, and toilets in the basement is put.
On average, a waste ejector can hold about 30 gallons of waste and wastewater. The waste ejector has two big pipes coming out of the top. The first is the waste pipe outlet, which is where the ejector pumps up and out of the house any extra wastewater.
The second part is a pipe that lets sewage smells escape through the roof. It also has a cover, but the cover of a waste ejector needs to be screwed down and sealed to keep bad odors from coming into your home. It is possible that flooded sewer water will contain human waste, putting your health at risk. It has two pipes coming out of it: one to expel the sewage into the wastewater sewer and the other to vent any odors.
Why does my basement have two sump pits ?
In many cases, sewage lines exiting the home are higher than the ground level. Waste ejectors are installed in completed basements. If you want to put plumbing in your basement, you have to pump the sewage up until it’s as high as the line that goes out of the house.
As a result of this, some people have been pumping groundwater into their sewage systems through sump pumps. This is a crime. Rather than treating pure groundwater, the wastewater treatment facility prefers to discharge it into a storm sewer. The wastewater treatment plant might not be able to handle too much extra water.
One more reason is that sumps were the best solution at the time of construction, which may explain why your property has more than one. Now, though, having more than one sump pit can be a problem, and you should just think of it as an eyesore.
