Plumbers or sump pump gurus, assistance needed

[a.bentonab]

I moved into a new house 2 months ago. Found out during a heavy rain that the main sump pump was bad and so was the water powered backup pump. Caught it just in time before it flooded the basement. Anyway, got the primary pump changed out no problem it works like a champ. Problem is, the water powered backup still hasn't worked.

Initially I saw that its intake was nearly occluded with scale, so I took the piece out and chipped it all away. Didn't work. got to the point I called a plumber and they installed a new water powered sump pump (Sump Jet) but lo and behold, despite their assurance that they tested it, it does not move water out of the pit. Maybe that one is on me for letting them leave prior to seeing it work but I WAS dealing with a 4 year old and a 2 month old at the time. They did not change the check valve on the sump jet discharge line.

I test it by unplugging the primary pump and letting the water level rise. When appropriate, the float will turn the water powered pump on. Water flows through it. however no water seems to be sucked up the intake. Reaching down into the pit there is no suction. There also is not water shooting out the bottom of the water powered pump.

Another oddity I've noticed is that if both the water powered pump and the primary pump are running at the same time, no water is removed from the pit. If I then turn the water shut off valve to cut off the Sump jet, the primary pump empties the pit as expected in about 30 seconds. This is the situation that really worries me. If I'm out of town and really depending on the backup, lets say electricity goes off, then later it comes back on, the house wouldn't be protected potentially.

Can anyone weigh in with their thoughts? maybe a defective check valve? Do the discharge lines have to be changed out somehow? I thought about instead of connecting both primary pump and Sump Jet into a shared vertical riser, to give each of them their own vertical riser so they wouldn't be fighting each other so much? Here's a picture of my current setup.

 

[hoosierdoc]

We got rid of our water backup and put in a battery backup. Not sure on your plumbing issues. We did have a bad check valve that burned out a pump.

post a pic looking into the pit

 

[nra4ever]

We ended up putting in a second connected pit next to the original with separate power on a different breaker and its own riser.

 

[Old Dog]

I am NOT a plumber, but I have some experience with trouble shooting things. I would suspect the check valve on the backup pump. If you have the ability, disconnect the backup ABOVE the check valve and temporarily route the discharge back into the sump. If it works this way, then the check valve is NOT stuck or plugged. I would also re-plumb the discharge lines to eliminate some of the 6 90 degree fittings as every one of those restricts the flow. Check the manufacturers recommendations on pipe length, diameter, and number of 90's or 45's allowed, and the maximum head the pumps can overcome.

 

[yepthatsme]

I'm no expert, but I have experience in hydraulics and it almost looks like your discharge line is too small. It has been my experience that if you have the proper size discharge line, usually 1 1/2", then it only takes the main sump pump about 15 to 20 seconds to empty the sump pit. With the water backup pump, not only are you trying to pump water out of the pit, you are also discharging your supply water into the discharge line. If the discharge line is too small, this situation would almost pressurize the discharge line preventing the pump from moving any water. This is just my .

 

[a.bentonab]

Discharge line from the Sump Jet is 1-1/2", but from the primary sump is 1-1/4. There's an adapter right where the sumpjet discharge ties in to the riser so the vast majority of the system including the pipe going through the basement wall is 1-1/4", nothing smaller.

 

[yepthatsme]

Discharge line from the Sump Jet is 1-1/2", but from the primary sump is 1-1/4. There's an adapter right where the sumpjet discharge ties in to the riser so the vast majority of the system including the pipe going through the basement wall is 1-1/4", nothing smaller.

I'm assuming that you have a shutoff valve on your supply line. To obtain optimal performance with your Sump Jet, your supply pressure should be set at approximately 30 psi. If the pressure is set too high, it could overcome your discharge line. So, you might try restricting the supply line by using the shutoff valve and see if that has an effect on moving the water out of the pit since your discharge line is reduced below the recommended 1 1/2". (I'm assuming that your pump is in good working order and there are no restrictions in the discharge line.)

 

[a.bentonab]

I'm assuming that you have a shutoff valve on your supply line. To obtain optimal performance with your Sump Jet, your supply pressure should be set at approximately 30 psi. If the pressure is set too high, it could overcome your discharge line. So, you might try restricting the supply line by using the shutoff valve and see if that has an effect on moving the water out of the pit since your discharge line is reduced below the recommended 1 1/2". (I'm assuming that your pump is in good working order and there are no restrictions in the discharge line.)

I hadn't thought of that. Simple. Free. I'll try it before I start cutting stuff. If that works there are in line limiters I could use right?

 

[yepthatsme]

I hadn't thought of that. Simple. Free. I'll try it before I start cutting stuff. If that works there are in line limiters I could use right?

If that works, you can install an orifice (a small disk with a hole drilled into it) to choke down the water supply or a pressure regulator. The easiest solution is to install a gate valve that you can adjust and then leave it at that setting.