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Here is my situation: I have a crawl space that will turn into a bathtub in the event my sump pump conks out or I lose electricity. So I want to get a battery powered sump pump that I can sit on the floor besides my electric pump.
My question is: I only have the one sump pit for the electric pump. The battery powered pump will have to sit on the floor beside it. My brand new furnace is on an 8" high concrete block. how high would the water level have to be for a battery powered sump pump to work? I have to get peace of mind, especially with the torrential rains we get these days and my crawl space acting like a sieve. Does anyone have recommendations on battery back-up pumps?
Since power loss often accompanies large storms the usefulness of a battery powered pump is pretty small unless you have a very large bank of batteries. You also have the issue of cost and maintenance for batteries you may never use. What they are good for is if you lose power it will provide a buffer if for example you need to set up generator to restore power. If it operates off of regular power in addition to the battery it can also provide a backup pump in case you lose the main one. If it cannot operate off the main power I wouldn't even consider it.
Instead of battery powered pump consider regular pump as backup and small generator to power it. The small generator may have usefulness beyond the water pump. It could also be used for example to power your heat if you have boiler/furnace with transfer switch.
If you have city water there is another option, they have pumps that will operate off of water. Instead of electric it uses water pressure. You wouldn't want to use this as main pump but for an emergency situation it's perfect since you have an infinite supply of power.
Pumps are turned on based on the depth of the the water and may be adjustable, our submersible pump needs about 5 to 6 inches before it will kick in. You can test the depth by putting it in a 5 gallon bucket and fill with water. I would suggest either digging another sump or making room in the original one for another pump. You want to be pumping water as soon as possible, they only pump X amount of gallons per minute and if the pump can't keep up those extra 8 inches are going to give you buffer to allow the source of the water to subside.
I do have a back up generator, but am far more worried with the pump actually going dead then I am with losing power. I may be forced to dig out another sump well but I don't want these pumps competing against each other and it would seem that a shallower sump pit would trigger the back up pump first, which is what I do not want.
I have relied on batter powered back-up sump pumps for DECADES. There are several different approaches to how the various DC motors work as well as some that rely on a more complicated DC-to-AC inverter and supposed more capable AC backup motors. I have seen setups with even a TRIPLE PUMP/MOTOR layout as well as those that rely on a "water powered siphon" as backup, though the discharge of that sump water mixed with city water is both costly and requires a well though-out drainage scheme...
ALL THESE approaches assume that the BACK-UP PUMP IS IN THE SAME PIT AS THE PRIMARY! The whole point is that when EITHER the AC goes out the primary pump fails the back-up switches on. The setup instructions always include specifics about how to stagger the float switch or other sensor so that the back-up is "ready and waiting". Those instructions also explain how to periodically TEST THE BACK-UP PUMP AND BATTERIES. It is fairly straightforward to hook together multiple heavy duty 12V deep cycle batteries and the appropriate chargers to have HOURS AND HOURS of capacity. Even in the most torrential rains a sump pump typically only runs for a few MINUTES at a time and the "reserve" of a big bank of batteries ought to give anyone enough time to think of "contingencies". If the OP is worried about an extended power outage it is smart to have generators, portable are often very inexpensive. Of course if the OP is out of town while an extended power outage and accompanying storms threatens their crawlspace / basement one could spend THOUSANDS for a fully automated generator and associated automatic transfer switch / subpanel.
In any of the situation I have encountered there is NO NEED to have an "auxiliary" sump pit, just follow the instructions to get the proper battery power sump pump then TEST AND MAINTAIN it and the batteries!
Have you considered dealing with the drainage problem that requires you to have a sump pump running to keep your crawl space from filling up with water?
Have you considered dealing with the drainage problem that requires you to have a sump pump running to keep your crawl space from filling up with water?
Yes, I have. I had drain tile improperly installed, they didn't rock it on top, so now crawl fills with water. Great suggestions everyone thanks a lot.
coalman I am going to research the water powered backup system and admit I don't know anything about how they work.
To be honest, in your situation, you need all your bases covered, to minimize your flooding risk.
You need to have:
1) A good quality 1/3 hp sump pump, like a Zoeller, not the big box store crap.
2) Do not wait for that pump to fail! They all eventually fail, usually when you need it the most, during a heavy rainstorm. The average pump lasts 5-15 years. For heavy usage, could be 3-4 years. At about $150, you can replace it every 4 years at a small expense. And always have a spare handy....
3) Get a battery-powered back up sump pump. They aren't as powerful as regular sump pumps, but if you lose power, it will still get the water out for a day perhaps. Depends on how often it pumps to determine how long the battery lasts.
4) Have a small generator. If power goes out, you need to keep your sump pump going. But if you are away, then you are in trouble. This is why a battery powered pump is important. If you really want to go all out, get a whole-house automatic powered generator. Usually powered by natural gas, these start up automatically if you lose power. But these are very expensive.
All this may sound extreme, but if you have an active sump pump, how much are you willing to risk by water damage? Most insurance companies don't cover water damage anymore by sump pump failure.
Another solution - have two sumps. We put in a second one becasue we were getting water leaking in at the back of a large L shaped basement. They are connected through he drainage tile, so either one can prevent a serious flood of the entire basement. However they both rely on electricty so we have water back ups (and a generator).
During construction, our basement flooded. All said an done the losses totaled $35,000. The insurance deductible for this was $5,000. It is well worth a few hundred dollars or even a thousand to prevent that.
Another solution - have two sumps. We put in a second one becasue we were getting water leaking in at the back of a large L shaped basement. They are connected through he drainage tile, so either one can prevent a serious flood of the entire basement. However they both rely on electricty so we have water back ups (and a generator).
During construction, our basement flooded. All said an done the losses totaled $35,000. The insurance deductible for this was $5,000. It is well worth a few hundred dollars or even a thousand to prevent that.
Are your 2 sump pumps in the same pit?
I see some systems that come with 3 pumps....2 main and a battery-back up, all in the same pit. The problem with this is that all that stuff leaves less room for the actual water. That means the water fills up much faster and runs the pump a lot more often.
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