Kenneth wrote in
news
*trim*


Hi again,

My desire for backup electric power IS for a sump pump, to
prevent flooding. I regret any confusion. We are in a rural
setting, and have our own well. So, no electricity means no
water pressure...

Thanks again,

It sounds to me like you need an alternative. Would a passive drain of
some sort be feasable? If you can keep water from entering your
basement, you don't have to pump it out.

How about a neighbor? His power's likely to be out at the same time as
yours, so he could start your generator and switch the sump pump over.
(You'll probably have to bake him a cake now and again or something.)

How much water are we talking about anyway? Does the pump run constantly
as it's raining, or does it run maybe 4 times a day? You could enlarge
your sump pit and size it to fit your longer average outages.

How about... I just thought of this: A pump that's turned by water
coming down your down spout. When it starts to rain, the pump starts
going and drawing water out of your basement. You might even be able to
use a water powered sump pump by directing the water from your roof
through it.

Solar electricity is getting better. You might be able to charge a bank
of batteries during the day and have them run your sump pump.

You could just go for a whole house generator and enjoy the extra power
it can provide while you're there. It's sure nice to not have to reset
all those clocks.

Keep thinking and asking, someone's bound to come to a workable solution.

Puckdropper
--
Wise is the man who attempts to answer his question before asking it.

To email me directly, send a message to puckdropper (at) fastmail.fm