The pump only matters on the days it has to work, which are the days you can least afford it not to.
A sump pump sits in a pit at the lowest point of a property and removes water that collects there. It spends most of the year doing nothing, which is exactly why so many are found to be dead at the worst possible moment.
Tampa's situation is specific. Basements are rare, so sump pumps here are usually dealing with a high water table, crawlspace intrusion, or stormwater around the foundation rather than classic basement flooding.
Test yours now, not in August. Pour a bucket of water into the pit and watch. The float should rise, the pump should start, the water should go, and the pump should stop cleanly. Any step that doesn't happen is a fault worth fixing before hurricane season.
| Fault | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Won't start | Power, float, or failed motor | Check the circuit first, then the pump |
| Runs but no water moves | Blocked discharge or failed check valve | Clear or replace |
| Stuck float | Debris, or the float fouling the pit wall | Clean, reposition or replace |
| Discharge freezing or blocking | Obstruction at the outlet | Clear and protect the outlet |
| Overwhelmed in heavy rain | Undersized for the actual inflow | Resize rather than replace like for like |
| Dead during an outage | No backup power | Battery backup system |
Here is the problem in one sentence: the conditions that make a sump pump essential are the same conditions that take the power out. A tropical storm brings the water and removes the electricity, usually in that order.
A battery backup pump sits alongside the primary and takes over when mains power fails. It's the single most worthwhile addition to a sump system in this city, and it's worth doing before storm season rather than after the year you needed it.
A pump is a symptom manager, not a cure. If yours is running constantly, it's worth asking why there's that much water to move. Common causes: grading that falls toward the house rather than away, gutters discharging next to the foundation, a high seasonal water table, or a leak in a supply or drainage line feeding the pit.
That last one matters. We've found more than one hard working sump pump that was faithfully removing water from a leaking service line. Fixing the leak retired the pump.
A short list, worth running every year before June:
Pour water into the pit and watch. The float should rise, the pump should run, the water should clear and it should stop cleanly. We will tell you to do that yourself rather than booking a visit, because most of the value here is knowing before August rather than finding out during it.
That is the whole problem in one sentence, and it is why battery backup is the most worthwhile addition to a sump system in this city. We fit them, and we would far rather do it in May than talk to you about it in September.
A pump manages a symptom. If yours runs constantly, the cause might be grading, gutters discharging at the foundation, the water table, or a leaking supply line feeding the pit. We have retired more than one hard working pump by fixing the leak it was emptying.
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Pour a bucket of water into the pit. The float should rise, the pump should start, the water should clear and the pump should shut off cleanly. If any part of that doesn't happen, it needs attention. Do this before storm season rather than during it.
In Tampa, it's the most worthwhile addition you can make. The weather that fills your pit is the same weather that takes out the power, so a mains-only pump is unavailable precisely when it matters.
Not usually. It suggests either a lot of water arriving, which is worth investigating at source, or a fault such as a stuck float, a failed check valve letting water run back, or a pump that's undersized for the inflow.
They're mechanical and they wear out, and running hours matter more than age alone. If yours is old and has worked hard, replacing it before storm season is cheaper than dealing with the consequences of it failing during one.
Here they usually manage a high water table, crawlspace intrusion or stormwater around the foundation rather than basement flooding. The job is the same, the water just arrives for different reasons.
Getting the whole property ready before hurricane season.
Learn moreThe other pump that fails when the power goes.
Learn moreFinding out why the pit keeps filling.
Learn moreAbout Tampa Bay Plumbers or see every service and area we cover.
Pour a bucket of water into the pit. If it doesn't start, call now rather than finding out in August.
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