You never know when you could experience a sump pump failure. A failing sump pump could result in lots of damage to your house and all the items inside it. Water flooding into the corners and cracks of your basement can lead to problems like mold growth and weakening your home’s foundation. So what to do when your sump pump fails? Read on and find out more.

There is never a good time for your sump pump to fail. They spend most of their time standby in the basements and only start running when the water level rises in the sump basin or the basement. Its whole purpose is to stop your basement from flooding up with water.

Your house doesn’t need to be close to a waterbody for you to experience a flooded basement. As most home basements sit below the groundwater table level, almost everyone should invest in a good sump pump to protect their home.

The times your basement is most likely to flood are during heavy storms. Stormy weather is when you need a sump pump you can count on to keep your basement water-free and safe. If you have lived in your home for long enough, you will probably face a faulty sump pump sometime as the average life of a sump pump is around ten years.

What should you do when your sump pump fails?

Before we tell you about what you should do when your sump pump fails, let’s talk about some preventative measures you should take so your sump pump doesn’t fail at all. The best way to stay safe from sump pump failure is through preventative measures. Remember, prevention is always better than a cure!

Preventative maintenance

Frozen or Clogged Discharge Lines

The drainage channel of a sump pump is a crucial part for a sump pump to function properly. It is where the water is pumped out of your basement from, and if it is blocked, the water will have nowhere to go except back into your basement, causing flooding.

You need to make sure you check and unclog all your sump pump drainage pipes and channels. It is recommended to do this at least four times a year but checking at least every six months should be enough. Also, ensure the discharge line is protected and covered to stop any debris or even animals from entering and blocking the pipes.

If your pipes do get clogged, you need to clean them and make sure they are clear. Loosen the clamps that attach the pipe to the sump pump and remove the drainage pipe. Use a metal wire or a plumber snake to push out any debris that might be blocking your drainage. It would be best to run some high water pressure from a hose after to make sure everything is flushed out and clean.

Back-Up Power Source

Often, during severe storms or flooding, you might experience power failure that would cause your sump pump to stop working. If you experience regular storms and flooding in your basement, a good backup generator or a backup battery pack for your sump pump would be a good investment. With some sort of backup power, at least you can keep the water flowing out of your home until power is returned to your home.

If your sump pump has failed and stops working, it is crucial to react and take action as quickly as possible to keep your basement from flooding completely.

Check the Power Source

During storms and floods, power outages become common, but it can also be your sump pump’s power source that’s not working. Inspect your power source and cables of the sump pump and check the fuses and circuits for damage too. Surges and outages can cause many little electrical problems in the pump and cause it to fail completely.

Overwhelmed Sump Pump

Sometimes, a single pump isn’t enough to keep all the water out of your basement in severe flood conditions. Sometimes they aren’t powerful enough for the amount of water that’s coming into the basement, and sometimes they just aren’t of good enough quality to keep going for long.

Try to upgrade your sump pump if you have regular extreme storms that necessitate a better sump pump. Some large basements could even need two different sump pumps in different corners of the room to keep it from flooding completely.

Remove Water Manually

You might have to put some work into saving your basement from water damage if your pump has failed. You can use buckets and try to transfer the water out of your basement. Having a wet vacuum can save you from a lot of work in these circumstances too. Suck out as much water as you can using a wet vacuum while you wait to get your sump pump fixed.

When the flooding is more serious

When Your basement is experiencing serious flooding and your sump pump isn’t working, you need professional help and equipment to save your home foundation and basement. You could need equipment like a trash-water pump that would easily pump out all the water and small debris like little rocks and mud out of your basement with ease.

Even entering a flooded basement without a professional present can be very dangerous as you never know if electricity is present in the water. Make sure your main power is switched off before you try to enter your basement.

Call 911 Restoration in San Antonio

You should hire water removal experts at 911 Restoration of San Antonio to save your home from all kinds of water damage. Professional help is always the best option in severe conditions. We have the right tools and the right expertise to handle water flooding with ease.

We at 911 Restoration of San Antonio understand how important it is to handle water flooding and damage as soon as possible, which is why we offer 24/7 same-day service. Call us at (210) 570-7877 at your first signs of water damage, and we will have our expert technicians at your home as soon as possible.