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Sump pump failure is the leading cause of basement floods. You should never count on just one pump to keep your basement or crawl space dry.
Like any mechanical utility within your home, your sump pump can eventually fail. A sump pump contains moving parts that can wear out or malfunction over the years.
The best way to make sure your home is protected from a sump pump failure is to make sure that you have a battery backup pump and secondary sump pump ready to operate in an emergency.
At Foundation Systems of Michigan, we install sump pump systems that are equipped to handle your basement water problem.
Sump pumps lose power for a variety of reasons. Aside from the obvious power failure, it's possible for a circuit to trip, especially for pumps plugged into GFI outlets.
At Foundation Systems of Michigan, we've also seen many cases where the pump was unplugged by someone who needed to use the outlet, but forgot to plug the sump back into the outlet. In some situations, this has led to water damage to nearly everything stored in the basement.
You'll be glad to have a battery backup sump pump installed!
Generator-Powered Pumps
Sometimes, a homeowner will tie their sump pump system into their generator to keep it powered during outages.
However, this only works if you are home (and awake) to turn the system on. Automatic systems typically cost $7,000-$10,000 to install. Because there is only one pump, you will have no secondary system to address heavy rains or primary pump failure.
AC-Powered Primary Pumps
Some sump systems include a battery that converts DC battery power into AC power to charge your primary pump.
Transforming DC power to AC is a highly inefficient process, and these battery backup systems often lose their charge within an hour's time. Because there is only one pump, you also will not be protected from pump failure or overwhelming water volume.
Water-Powered Sump Pumps
Water-powered sump pumps use your water supply to run your sump pump system. Thus, they can operate without power.
Unfortunately, water-powered pumps pump very slowly and require you to have very high water pressure. They are also wasteful systems, discharging 3-5 gallons of good water for every gallons of groundwater pumped out of your home.
Battery Backup Sump Pumps
Battery Backup Sump Pumps use a battery and a separate battery-powered sump pump to operate.
When a high-quality battery backup is installed, you can pump out thousands of gallons of water on a single charge. And because you have a second pump installed, you're covered during sump pump failures and during overwhelming rains as well as during power outages.
We recommend installing Basement Systems UltraSump® Battery Backup System.
The UltraSump® system can pump out an excess of 11,500 gallons of water on a fully charged battery-- that's enough water to fill a small swimming pool!
To alert you of power failure, the UltraSump® sounds an alarm when it runs and silences when the pump cycles off. For your convenience, the alarm can also be hooked up to your home security system so you can be notified by phone.
If you have a primary sump pump and a battery backup sump pump, your basement is already well on its way to being protected.
However, if your primary sump pump fails due to mechanical failure, your basement waterproofing is only good as long as your battery backup can last. And if your sump pump is being overwhelmed due to an unusually high volume of water, it's best to have a secondary sump pump that can kick in and help keep the water down.
| The Problem | Primary Sump Pump | Secondary Pump | Battery Backup Pump |
| Normal Rainfall |  |
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| Heavy Rain Overwhelms Primary Pump |
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| Complete Power Failure |  |
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| Primary Pump Failure | |
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| Primary & Secondary Pump Failure |
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Please Note: You must be the Homeowner to receive our Free Estimate. Prospective buyers, renters, and non-homeowners will be charged a $250. fee for the written quote. This fee is payable upon setting the appointment, but will be credited to the final job cost if the work is completed by Foundation Systems of Michigan.
Providing Quality Zoeller® Sump Pumps in Michigan Since 1939
With many different models of sump pumps available on the market, it can be difficult to choose the right system. We have carefully researched each sump pump model available.
Six Steps to a Dry, Usable Space in your Basement
Foundation Systems of Michigan
32985 Schoolcraft Road
Livonia, MI 48150
Foundation Systems of Northern Michigan
3805 Elmers Industrial Drive
Traverse City, MI 49685
© 2019 Foundation Systems of Michigan
