"z" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Aug 3, 8:22 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)?

My old house was exactly like yours. After several years the switch broke
and it continued to pump even when dry; which killed the pump.
I recommend having a second pump on hand so you have it when necessary.
I eventually put in a second sump (and them moved to a much dryer house)

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

You won't find one, so it doesn't matter how much electricity they use.

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?

Your neighbors can tell you what to expect.
Has the house flooded? If not, then it can keep up with the snow melt.
If it has, think about a second sump.

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?

If it goes into the sanitary sewer, it is probably illegal. That being
said, it is great to have.
My house flooded during a major ice storm. My neighbor had installed an
illegal drain and he stayed relatively dry. I hate to think how many
millions of gallons went down that drain.

Thanks,
Dan

Hmm

1) the drain tile drains into the sump? where the pump is?? not
exactly optimum. see if you can get the outlet rerouted easily. as
mentioned, local laws might not let you go into the sanitary sewer,
although maybe the sump pump was grandfathered. but maybe you can have
the drain outlet downslope.
2) a pump will seize from lack of use much more quickly than it will
wear out from overuse, in my experience. (i know that's useless info.)
3) the floor drain might give an outlet for any excess water, but
could also become a nice artesian well when the sewer backs up, again
from experience. You might check into having a cap put on it that you
can remove if necessary for drainage, which will keep sewer backup
from coming up. It's nontrivial, i've had the sewer backup pressure
rip the threads right off a cap that wasn't robustly installed.