As Spring starts to finally move in in Minnesota, we’ll unfortunately start to get some rain as well. And while it beats the snow in a lot of ways, too much rain can mean a flooded basement. Fortunately, though, most homes in St. Cloud, Sartell, and Sauk Rapids come equipped with a sump pump just for this situation. Sump pumps are designed to take any excess water and pump it away from the home instead of letting it fill up your basement. Wet basements are more than just inconvenient. They also help to promote mold and mildew growth, and they can be the perfect environment for pests.
However, sump pumps in Minnesota aren’t perfect, and they can often fail. And it’s extremely frustrating to think you have a system in place to prevent it and still find yourself with a wet or flooded basement. So before there’s a spell of hard rain and you find out that you were ill-equipped to deal with it, here are some common problems with sump pumps:
Your MN sump pump doesn’t have enough power.
Sometimes, and especially in cases where you’ve purchased a cheaper model, your sump pump simply may not be able to handle the amount of water that’s coming in at once. If the volume of water is large enough, sump pump may short out and stop working altogether. Or, it may just not be able to pump out all of the water. Either way, your basement can flood.
Improper installation.
Your Minnesota sump pump could be in perfect working order, but if it isn’t installed correctly, it can’t do its job. Often, during a DIY installation of a sump pump, homeowners miss important details and won’t, for instance, correctly link the pump to the drainage system. So it may appear that your sump pump isn’t working properly, when in fact there’s simply a problem with your installation. Call one of our St. Cloud sump pump specialists to make sure that yours is correctly installed.
Clogs.
Clogs in the system can occur at any time and can occur frequently. Dirt and debris can collect in the system, and this is especially easy if the system doesn’t have a lid. Your discharge lines may also become clogged, which means your Minnesota sump pump won’t be able to get rid of the water it’s attempting to pump.
Loss of power.
This is the simplest problem to fix and probably the first one you should look for if you’re troubleshooting your MInnesota sump pump. It could have come unplugged during the storm, or you may need to reset a circuit breaker. Looking out for this problem can save you a lot of time and money.
The post Common Problems with St. Cloud Sump Pumps appeared first on Neighborhood Plumbing, Heating, Air Conditioning and Electrical.
