On Aug 3, 7:22 am, lagman wrote:
All,

I just moved to the midwest from Texas, into a house with a basement.
The sump pump runs every 15-20 minutes when dry, and every few minutes
when raining (The previous owner installed a drain tile in the front
yard that empties into the sump, and the area I live in has a high
water table). The previous owner claimed that the pump ran even more
frequently before the tile was installed. The pump empties into a
city owned french drain. It has a backup battery powered pump that I
have tested and works fine. Since basements are new to me, I have a
few questions:

With the amount of use this pump is getting, what is its life
expectancy? Are there any warning signs I can look for that will tell
me its time to get a new pump (other than a flooded basement)?

I had a house with more or less similar drainage and pump situation
and a pump would last several years, say 5 years. In my experience
the pump itself rarely fails, its the switch that gives trouble. The
switch becomes intermittent/unreliable. Given how often your pump
runs, don't you'd think you'd notice if it stopped? An unnatural
quiet?


How much electricity do these things use? Would it be worth looking
for a more energy efficient solution?

I don't think its a huge amount; in any case, there is no more energy
efficient solution (well, maybe pumping with a windmill!)

Do you think it will run this often during the winter (I am in Iowa)?
Will the pump be able to keep up when the snow melts in the spring?

As for winter, it depends. In my current house the pump essentially
stops when the ground freezes; in a previous house, the pump ran
throughout winter too. As for snowmelt, well, did the basement flood
every spring before?

If the worst were to happen and the pump and backup pump were to fail,
there is a drain in the basement located about 6 feet from the pump.
I checked to see if it empties into the sump crock and it does not, so
I assume it empties into the sewer. Would all the water just go down
the drain?

It probably drains to the city storm drain system and would limit your
water damage, unless in a severe storm the city storm drains back up
too.

Thanks,
Dan
One last note: often when a sump runs a lot it's because the water is
somehow short-cycling; the pump pumps it out and then it drains right
back in. You might consider whether the outlet pipe could be leaking
or maybe the french drain is clogged or is just too close to the
house.