Mark wrote:
Hi group,

I've been looking (but not extremely hard!) for a switch I can use to
trigger the pump I'm using to drain water from a low spot in my yard.
On heavy rains I get several inches in an area next to my garage, and on
very heavy rains it actually gets deep enough to roll into the garage.
I don't want to dig and put in a dry well, I don't know that I have
enough space for this without tearing out a lot of driveway and yard.

The problem is my yard is lower than neighbors on each side, and general
drainage, downspouts from our garages, etc is the source of the water,
and there isn't much I can do with it at the source.

I have the pump I'm going to build into a decorative planter to place at
the lowest spot. It can handle a garden hose or a 1" pipe on the
discharge, and I can run either inconspicuously out to the alley behind
the garage where it can drain away to the storm drains. Problem is most
of the switches to I've seen are for pumps in a sump-pit, and aren't
designed to turn on and off in a couple inches of water. Does anyone
know of such a switch?

Thanks!

Mark

Have you calculated how much water you get? I had a problem with
standing water near my back door during heavy rains - enough that it
came in the house a couple of times.

I dug down just enough to drop in a plastic 55 gallon drum and have not
seen standing water in over 20 years.

Granted, my lot is all sand and I was able to dig the hole straight down
by "shaving" the walls with my shop vac until it was wide enough and
deep enough. I didn't have to go wide to get deep, if you know what I mean.