Flush/Inspect Sump Pump? - Advice Needed

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scottspray

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Hello! :D

When our sump pump was put in (like 10 years ago, and it is an inside sump pump) the company said we should have our sump pump flushed/serviced annually by them. We've never had it done. Is it really necessary? Is there any danger of it overflowing? We have a built in basement with many perishable items near the sump pump, ie books and other paper items. Here are some items of note:

- It gets a lot work during raining season and snow melt season (in MD) but I would guess it's probably an 'average' amount of work and not a lot. Meaning I really don't think this thing is overworked at all.
- They said it should last a lifetime. I remember them calling it the Hulk when they put it in if that helps.
- It is not easy to get to.
- It does not smell and has never smelled.
- It has never overflowed. 🤞

Thanks in advance! :thumbsup:
 
First thing I would do is get the perishables away or off the flooring it's 10 years old you should keep an eye on it .our basement bathroom ejector stopped working without notice after 15 years I think, I didn't put it in
Washing out your pit can't hurt even if it's pumping clear water, installing a new one is pretty straightforward
 
Even if it appears to be working fine, I'd want to pull it for inspection, cleaning, and sump washing every decade. I went to inspect my (outside) sump pumps before this hurricane season, and I'm really glad I did, the stainless steel hose clamps steel(!) screws had rusted out and all the clamps failed, the pumps were clogged with roots, and the magnetic sensors had rusted away, so I had the trifecta. All working fine now, and still cycling 15 days after Fiona. [Yes, Apples and Oranges, but the point is that _every_ system has a Critical Need Detector, and Murphy's Law says it's the things you don't inspect and maintain that'll fail at the worst possible moment.]

If you think it's not easy to get to _now_, how is it going to be when it fails, the sump and the basement fill with water, and your company tells you it's going to take 6 weeks to get parts?

Yearly inspections and flushing by the company sounds like a money grab, but 10 years is about 2X longer than I'd be comfortable with.
 
I would remove the sump pump and with a good wet vac suck out all the debris at the bottom of the tank , then clean the float on the pump , reinstall and check operation, if in doubt install a second back up pump or replace.
 
Thanks for all the input!

I think this is all good advice. I think of where it is situated, we should have it serviced.

Thanks again. :thumbsup:
 
Do you have a back up pump for when that pump fails or you loose electric?
I also live in MD and mine runs all the time. Been running lots the last few days.
I don't think any pump will last forever. The float switch will also fail.
 
Do you have a back up pump for when that pump fails or you loose electric?
I also live in MD and mine runs all the time. Been running lots the last few days.
I don't think any pump will last forever. The float switch will also fail.

No back up pump but back up battery if power goes out.

Thanks for the info!
 
So if the pump fails are you going to flood?
What did they install?

Umm...not sure, hope not!🤞

I don't think there's space for more than one. It goes off when it rains etc but it doesn't get a crazy amount of use. It was initially put in because one year there was a lot rain and the water 'seeped' into the cracks in the foundation, so they created a 'trap' to capture moisture and rain. That was the whole purpose.

They said it should last a lifetime. I remember them calling it the Hulk when they put it in if that helps.
 
My maternal grandfather, a Scottish Stationary Steam Engineer, always told us that "The last time any machine starts and runs properly may well have been the last time that machine starts and runs properly."

It's an engineering analogue to "Things always go well, right up until they don't."

At 10 years old and never serviced, i would be very wary of depending on it...
 
We're in the process of having it serviced by the same company that installed it.

Thanks everyone! :D:thumbsup:
 
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