Litmus Test

Well, cautious optimism is the word of the day…

You may recall that I replaced the sump pump a few weeks back. Since then, whenever it runs, as the water goes into the underground pipe, it finishes off with a gurgling, and the excess water comes up out of the former downspout connection. So that pipe is blocked. I knew I had to fix that.

In my head, I finally put it together over the weekend. Some water is gurgling out, but not all. That means the pipe is broken at some point, but I wasn’t sure if that could be the only source, it had to be the major one, as none of the ground in the problem area gets very wet during a rain.

Well, we were having another round of rain Tuesday. I decided the sooner I got to work the better, now that I had a plan. I disconnected the sump discharge line from the underground connection (unplugging the pump first!), and ran to Lowe’s to get some pvc to run it out into the yard, just like the gutter downspout. 15 feet of pvc and a connector It cost me all of $6.98. (btw, I learned that a 10 foot section of pipe will fit in the car, with the trunk closed. Cool)

I was racing the clock, as the pump was unplugged, and it was raining, and I had no idea how quickly that water could fill the sump pit. Naturally, it seemed everyone in front of me was driving 29mph.

Once I got home, it took me a couple of minutes to get it all connected up and pointed where I wanted it.

I went down to the basement, plugged it in, and the pump kicked on immediately. I went outside to watch, and the water was flowing leak-free out into the yard well outside the foundation area.

The pump ran for a good 30 seconds to drain the pit, after being off for an hour. The pump will take 40 gallons per minute out of the well. Assuming it was nearly empty when it started, it pumped 20 gallons of water that previously had been leaking out around the house. In a full day of rain, that could easily explain the basement water we were seeing.

Now, as soon as the little demo was done, the clouds broke and the sun came out. Kind of the opposite of when you wash the car, so I must be onto something.

The test will be tomorrow, when we’re supposed to see some heavy rain. Will it make a difference, or are we just pissing in the wind?