If you have a home located on a high water table, or in a place where rain water does not drain well, you likely have, or need a sump pump.  Sump pump pits are designed for exactly that purpose – to remove standing water from places where the water will not drain on its own.

To make sure your sump pump system is really doing its job, here are some guidelines you can follow.

Common places for a sump pump pit

One of the most common places for a sump system is in a basement.  This is especially true if the house is on a high water table.  During the winter season, the water table rises (due to the rain), and can often cause anything from puddles to flooding in your basement.  This is the perfect scenario for a sump system.

Not having a method for draining the water out of your basement, can cause a few problems.  Not only can you not store anything on the ground, for fear of water damage, but the water turns stagnant, and can attract bugs, and all kinds of other nasty things.  It can also do some damage to your foundation over time.

Another fairly common situation is for a house with a crawl space, where the water settles and does not seep into the ground or drain away.  This is also usually caused either by a high water table, or a home that is built “below grade” (meaning that the surrounding landscape, roads, and/or storm systems are actually above the level of the home).

Although it is in your crawl space, and you do not need to worry about “stuff” as much, since the water is on soil, the possibility of breeding vermin and bacteria is much greater.  Also, if the water rises regularly to your wood piers, the potential damage is much more serious.  The last thing you want is the wood pilings that hold your house up to rot.

There are other situations where a sump pump pit is needed, but the two examples above are the two most common.  In essence, whenever a section of a home sees standing water on a fairly regular basis (whether seasonally or continuously), you may want to think about a solution for removing it.

Some tips for a solid sump system

For basements or other places where the floor is concrete, it is important to have your sump pit in the lowest part of the floor.  Ideally, the floor should slope towards the pit to make draining as easy as possible.

Make sure the pit is larger than the container you put it in, and down to the soil (this will help with ground water draining).  The container should have plenty of holes, and be surrounded with 3/4 crushed rock.  The rock will filter the dirt from the water, so your container does not get clogged (or your pump).

If you are looking for a crawl space instillation, it may be a little more complicated.  Since crawl spaces are not usually graded very well, it is usually best to put the sump pit in the lowest spot you can, and have trenches dug under the home.

The trenches should be graded towards to pit, and filled with crushed rock, so they do not wash away.  You also want the pit to be lined with crushed rock, just like in the basement example.

No matter what the situation, keep in mind that water runs downhill, so make sure your pump is in a spot where the water can easily reach it.  Make sure you have a good float mechanism for turning the pump on at the right time, and always have a high water alert that will warn you if the pump goes out, and allows the water to get too high.

Also, make sure that the pump you have is strong enough to take the water from the sump all the way to where you are draining it, and get a check valve in your drain line to prevent the water from flowing back into the pit.

Finally, if you want a qualified plumber to take a look at your sump pump pit to make sure it is functioning properly, or you are thinking of getting one installed, give Allstar Plumbing a call.  We are standing by, ready to help.