I have been in my 9 1/2 year old home which is on a relatively high
water table for almost 3 months now and I am having nothing but
problems with my Flotec sump pump. It's a submersible 1/2 HP model and
the problem stems from the tethered float switch. The first problem
was during a couple rainstorms the float got caught up either on the
electrical cord or the drain hose and failed to turn on. I fixed this
as best as possible by strapping these items to the wall to keep them
out of the way. It kept happening anyway because when the pump kicks
on it tends to "walk" a little and it just seems that this tethered
float switch is a bad design for something you need to be reliable such
as a sump pump. The pump this week had the opposite problem. When I
came home from work and heard it running continuously, even with the
tethered float switch in the dropped position I determined the switch
is no good. I believe this is a sealed item and cannot be opened for
repair. It seems my options are as follows; replace the switch for
around $35, replace the entire unit with the same model for $89,
replace with a pedestal type for somewhere in the middle of those two
prices, or invest $160 in a model made by Rigid which uses a
bolted-in-place diaphragm type switch which I know nothing about. The
downside of the pedestal type appears to be they are louder and since
the sump is located below the bulkhead stairs clearance may be an issue
although I have not measured yet. The sump "bucket" measures 11 1/2" W
and 12" deep. A separate issue is even when the Flotec pump I have was
working correctly I still had a decent amount of water that would make
it's way into the basement because the point at which the tethered
float switch would turn on was when the water would reach the top of
the sump bucket. This water was from right around the sump but also in
other areas of the basement (seam at the bottom of the walls where the
floor meets the wall, and in some small cracks in the floor) so I'd
imagine while not directly related to the timing of the pump, had the
pumped turn on a few inches earlier this water wouldn't have made its
way to the foundation level. I may be incorrect on that theory but I
mention it here to be corrected if I am mistaken. I guess the easy
answer is to try the Rigid pump but I know not all problems are
corrected by spending more $$$. While looking at these pumps @ HD &
Lowes I noticed a smaller version pump made by Flotec and referred to
as a utility pump. Some even stated "not designed for use as a sump
pump." While it may not be designed for it why wouldn't this work in a
sump application? They appear to be better designed in that there is
no tethered float switch, just some internal type of switch. My guess
is the reasons may lie in the fact that their specs indicate they pump
down to 3/16" but wouldn't placing it on as many bricks as necessary to
place it at an acceptable level correct this? The other reason I could
think of is the lack of a reasonable timeframe between low-water level
and high-water level in that if it rose just 3/16 of an inch it would
kick on again causing what I'd imagine would be a short cycle
condition. I am thoroughly confused at this point and would really
appreciate any help you can offer.