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Friday, December 18, 2015

Most homeowners understand that they have a Sump Pump in their basement to protect them from flooding. However, that's not the end of the discussion.

At some point one of the following situations will occur, rendering the primary pump inoperable, and putting the homeowner at risk for a flood:

  • The power goes out
  • The level control on the primary pump is obstructed or fails
  • The primary pump fails due to some other mechanical problem
  • The primary pump gets clogged with debris

That is why every home with a sump pump should have a reliable battery-powered backup sump pump system for peace of mind when one of the above situations occurs. In addition to protecting valuable possessions and property, the best benefit of all is avoiding the frustration, aggravation, hours of cleanup time and money associated with a flood.

A battery backup sump pump is not a battery hookup for your primary pump, but rather a separate sump pump system that is installed adjacent to your primary electric pump in the sump basin. It typically runs on 12 volt or 24 volt DC battery power and can either be plumbed into the primary discharge pipe (the pipe hooked up to the sump pump to carry the water outside of the house) or can be installed with its own independent discharge pipe.

The battery backup sump pump has its own float switch so that when the water rises in the sump, it raises the float and the backup pump is activated. This is important for two reasons;

(1) If the primary pump cannot keep up with the inflow due to excessive amounts of water entering the sump pit during an abnormal event, the backup pump will assist the primary pump in evacuating the water.

(2) In the event of a power disruption or primary pump/level control failure, it will assume the role as the primary pump allowing time for the power to be restored or the AC electric pump system to be serviced.

When operating intermittently with a fully charged battery, most battery backup sump pump systems can provide pumping relief for days. Some of the more advanced battery backup sump pump models incorporate unique monitoring systems that signal the homeowner with a visual and audio alarm when the following conditions exist:

  • Fluid in the battery is low
  • Battery terminals are corroded or the battery is defective
  • Unit is not receiving AC power
  • Pump is defective or not connected
  • Pump was activated
  • High Water Alarms
  • Pump failure detection
  • Battery charging level

In addition, top-of-the-line battery backup sump pump systems will also include export terminals, so that the homeowner can connect the system to an auto-dialer. When connected to a home security system, it can be programmed to notify one or more contact phone numbers.