Frozen sump pump discharge
Discharge runs from the basement, goes outside about 1ft under the ground and discharges to the surface about 7-8 feet from the house...and it got frozen. Any way to thaw it ? I have a washer/dryer next to the sump pump and there is a sink used by the washer. Is it ok to redirect discharge into the sink ? Any other ideas ? The water is rising VERY slowly right now, but I am afraid when the spring will come and the discharge is frozen. Originally Posted by jake1965 Discharge runs from the basement, goes outside about 1ft under the ground and discharges to the surface about 7-8 feet from the house...and it got frozen. Any way to thaw it ? I have a washer/dryer next to the sump pump and there is a sink used by the washer. Is it ok to redirect discharge into the sink ? Any other ideas ? The water is rising VERY slowly right now, but I am afraid when the spring will come and the discharge is frozen. Officially, most municipals do not allow sump pump discharge directly into the sanitary sewer lines. Among the reasons is that if everybody did it, the extra volume would overwhelm the water treatment system capacity. However, in an emergency I would consider your suggestion as a temporary fix....just make sure you can remove or cover-up the evidence quickly in case there's an unexpected inspection. If you can wait until the ground warms up enough to melt the ice in the discharge line then the problem will fix itself. This happened to me last week and I could not wait as more rain/snow was in the forecast. My discharge line runs close to the ground surface so I was able to dig it up and tap the line with a heavy flashlight. When I hit the spot where the ice was, the ice jam broke loose and water started to come out the discharge end normally. Can you get to the discharge end? Does the line stay buried deep from the foundation to the discharge end? You could try a hair blow drier from the basement end into the hose to melt the ice. Jim Our sump pump lines are frozen as well and water did enter the basement. Have you gotten a reply on unfreeze the outside line? SlateX5 Originally Posted by jake1965 Discharge runs from the basement, goes outside about 1ft under the ground and discharges to the surface about 7-8 feet from the house...and it got frozen. Any way to thaw it ? I have a washer/dryer next to the sump pump and there is a sink used by the washer. Is it ok to redirect discharge into the sink ? Any other ideas ? The water is rising VERY slowly right now, but I am afraid when the spring will come and the discharge is frozen. The pipe outside my house broke. how far away from my house should the pvc pipe be away from the house to the discharge pit. i am having proplems finding the pvc pipe under ground away from the house. any ideas thanks wally For this winter, if you have a clogged/frozen sump pump drain line, I would redirect the sump pump drain into the laundry tub/main house drain. (this is only a temporary fix until warmer weather.) In the springtime; you need to insulate and/or bury this drain hose for the coming winter. In extreme conditions you might need to install a thermally controlled “heat tape” inside the exposed section of drain hose. Just cut a hole in the exposed section of drain hose and run the heat tape through the line to the exit. In the summer time, unplug the heat tape. In the winter, plug in the heat tape and if necessary cover the exposed drain pipe with a layer of poly and a few bails of hay along the run. Simple concept; Flowing water does not freeze. Standing water will freeze. A lot of these problems can be controlled with proper soil drainage. Sand and gravel is better for drainage then dirt and clay. Just think about the system, and what it needs to do, and you should be able to figure it out and build the system for the conditions it needs to survive. wkleit: “how far away from my house should the pvc pipe be away from the house to the discharge pit.” There if no fixed length/limit. It depends on the grade/elevation away from the house, soil conditions, and regional temperature. This may work for your situation...once the pipe is thawed. I had the same problem last winter. This year I removed the check valve. The water in the line now runs either outside or back into the sump after pumping (It does make some noise...may be an issue for you). The pipe stays dry when not actually being used. Pretty common solution around these parts. Originally Posted by TomZ1 This may work for your situation...once the pipe is thawed. I had the same problem last winter. This year I removed the check valve. The water in the line now runs either outside or back into the sump after pumping (It does make some noise...may be an issue for you). The pipe stays dry when not actually being used. Pretty common solution around these parts. Just two weeks ago I had new sump pipe installed, which run from the back of the house down the slope of my backyard. Woke up in the middle of the night... sump pump running, but not working! Unplugged sump pump, but much more snow is expected. What can I do? Why would it freeze? I saw someone else say that running water won't freeze, but standing water will. Any thoughts on why this happened and/or what I can do? Mine froze because when the pump finished its cycle, the water would not completely drain from the line. The check valve was holding it there (as it should). By removing the check valve it accomplished two things--- 1) it allowed the water to drain back into the sump so it was not stagnant and 2) it allowed air into the line to replace the water. So far so good. Not quite sure I have a good suggestion on thaw a line that's already frozen. I had used flexible pipe and was able to work the ice out of it. Originally Posted by TomZ1 Mine froze because when the pump finished its cycle, the water would not completely drain from the line. The check valve was holding it there (as it should). By removing the check valve it accomplished two things--- 1) it allowed the water to drain back into the sump so it was not stagnant and 2) it allowed air into the line to replace the water. So far so good. Not quite sure I have a good suggestion on thaw a line that's already frozen. I had used flexible pipe and was able to work the ice out of it. Thanks for the input. The guy that installed the new pipe said it would NOT freeze. We used to have the flexible pipe, but that froze all the time, which is why we had new one put in using the heavy duty white piping and dug and placed underground.
Related Posts:
Installing sump pump without perimeter drain
Installing Sump Pump without Perimeter Drain??As part of my basement rehab project I've been considering installing a sump pump. Our basement does not have water problems (anymore). I installed gu...
How do i install a backup sump pump
How do I install a backup sump pump?We have had 2 separate sump pumps fail on us and ruin our basement rec-room. I want to install a second pump as a backup and plug it into a battery backup as we...
French drain and sump pump on outside perimeter of foundation
French Drain and Sump Pump On Outside Perimeter Of FoundationHi! I am in the process of designing a plan for installing a French Drain/Sump Pump System on the outside perimeter of my house foundat...
Freezing sump pump pressure switch
Freezing Sump Pump Pressure Switch?I have a sump pump for my drain tile that is in the floor of a basement 7-8' below ground level. When it gets down to single digit temperatures, the alarm on my...
Ejector pump check valve
Ejector Pump Check ValveI have a half bath in my basement which is below the level of the septic. There is an ejector pump that takes the waste from the pit, pumps it up as high as the joists abov...
