Sump Pump Questions

WhitlockConst

A friend of mine just purchased a house and is looking to me to install a sump pump underneath the home. It was built in 2001 and has a good 2-3 inches of still standing water underneath the house. I'm unsure of where the water is coming from, but their main concern is just getting rid of the water. It will be relatively simple, but I'd like to bounce a few ideas off the experienced (I just build the homes, I'm no plumber). All the hooking up will go easily (gfi plug will be converted right above the pump location, and the piping will run for about 3 feet straight out of the foundation vent and back down into the ground to the gutter run off.

Can you guys fill me in on some details I should be concerned with before I dig ground?

Thanks

Double-A

Well, the water is coming from someplace, and as a foundation company, you should understand how important ground preparation is to the longevity of the structure. If the crawl is lower than the surrounding ground level, then you and I both know where all that water wants to go. And now your homeowner does too.

Installing a pump only puts a bandage on the real problem. I would worry more with the source and consider a more permanent solution with no moving parts and I would not consider commandeering a foundation vent for a pipe penetration.

Any mechanical solution is just a maintenance headache waiting to happen at the worst possible moment.

And being in a crawl space, there is no easy way to inspect it without getting down and dirty. Is the homeowner willing?

If you're dead set on a pump, install in the lowest part of the crawl. Don't install under the kitchen, bedrooms, dining room or living room/den unless you like to get calls about noise. Don't strap your pipes to the structure without allowing for mechanical decoupling to prevent sound transmission and be sure to treat the area around the sump just like you would a proper footing drain.

Install per the manufacturer's instructions and make sure the float has plenty of room to go up and down without touching anything.

GL

__________________
"My clients’ wishes are the center of my attention." -- David Guido, a contractor in Woodstock, N.Y.
New York Times, July 20, 2006

WhitlockConst

Thanks for the response. I appreciate your input.

rick99601

also more than likely the receptacle needs to be a dedicated 20 amp line..