Klunkless Check Valve for sump pump

TomFOhio said:

I never have on those pumps. Only if I installed something else would I check in booklet to see if it was needed. Put in
quite a few pumps with no problems not having weep hole. I knocked on wood because there is that first time.

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Of course a weep hole would not be required if conditions never allowed the sump water level to go so low as to allow air to enter the pumps volute area. Although I would think upon startup there could be a slim chance it could get enough air in there to require more water be added in the sump to force itself into the pump.

EDIT: There is at least one manufacture of sump pumps that doesn't require a weep hole, as it designed so the water enters the impeller from the top.

TomFOhio said:

I never have on those pumps. Only if I installed something else would I check in booklet to see if it was needed. Put in
quite a few pumps with no problems not having weep hole. I knocked on wood because there is that first time.

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This is from Zoeller

3. Vent hole. It is necessary that all submersible sump, effluent, and sewage pumps
capable of handling various sizes of solid waste be of the bottom intake design to
reduce clogging and seal failures. If a check valve is incorporated in the installation, a
3/16" (5 mm)vent hole must be drilled in the discharge pipe below the check valve and
pit cover to purge the unit of trapped air. Vent hole should be checked periodically for
clogging. The vent hole on a High Head application may cause too much turbulence.
If you choose not to drill a vent hole, be sure the pump case and impeller is covered
with liquid before connecting the pipe to the check valve. NOTE: THE HOLE MUST
BE BELOW THE BASIN COVER AND CLEANED PERIODICALLY. Water stream will
be visible when pump is operating.

So this application being the turbulence. Might plug that hole. ? Sounds elective if your careful to have float set to shut off above impellers so water stays that high? Am I reading it correct ?

Jamesplumbing06 said:

So this application being the turbulence. Might plug that hole. ? Sounds elective if your careful to have float set to shut off above impellers so water stays that high? Am I reading it correct ?

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I think it depends on the application. Sump pumps usually aren't high head pumps. Those are usually for septic effluent systems. When drain field is way up a hill.

Ah gotcha.

Jamesplumbing06 said:

So this application being the turbulence. Might plug that hole. ? Sounds elective if your careful to have float set to shut off above impellers so water stays that high? Am I reading it correct ?

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That's correct! so long as the water level in the sump is never lower than the top of the pumps volute, air should not get in there. That's the same reasoning as the Zoeller quote above that says, "
If you choose not to drill a vent hole, be sure the pump case and impeller is covered
with liquid before connecting the pipe to the check valve."
High head pumps don't enter into it, so long as they follow the same rules. (NO AIR SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GET TRAPPED IN THE IMPELLER VOLUTE AREA.)
You could plug the hole with a manual vent cock just in case. That would allow someone to bleed out the air if it ever happened to find its way in there.

Ah ok thx

Diehard said:

That's correct! so long as the water level in the sump is never lower than the top of the pumps volute, air should not get in there. That's the same reasoning as the Zoeller quote above that says, "
If you choose not to drill a vent hole, be sure the pump case and impeller is covered
with liquid before connecting the pipe to the check valve."
High head pumps don't enter into it, so long as they follow the same rules. (NO AIR SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO GET TRAPPED IN THE IMPELLER VOLUTE AREA.)
You could plug the hole with a manual vent cock just in case. That would allow someone to bleed out the air if it ever happened to find its way in there.

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This is true. However, some choose to put pumps on bricks or small stands in the pit to keep debris from clogging them. It's a case by case situation.

SHEPLMBR said:

This is true. However, some choose to put pumps on bricks or small stands in the pit to keep debris from clogging them. It's a case by case situation.

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As in "case" they don't know what they're doing.
Well you can't go wrong with a small weep hole but I would think locating it below the min. water level would be preferred.

Diehard said:

As in "case" they don't know what they're doing.
Well you can't go wrong with a small weep hole but I would think locating it below the min. water level would be preferred.

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I sell the Liberty Pump "brick" all day long. These guys out here swear by them.

Just looked at their Series 230 sump pump. Looks like they may have a built in weep hole. ???

Most sump water levels are created by the float. The float is mounted to pump. So put the pump on ceiling. Until float switch floats nothing working. Bricks or bottom Pump is in water.

Just got this back from Liberty Pumps...

I did not raise the check valve, I simply put in a Zoeller Quiet Check Valve. I do not have a weep hole, however, my Zoeller M53 pump is always submersed in a few inches of water. I also have a Liberty water powered backup installed above the Zoeller. Quiet as a mouse..