# Curious about my gutters and sump pumps



## tack77 (Jul 29, 2011)

Hello,

I just closed on a house Monday, built in 2005.  In the basement, I have 2 sump pumps, located in either corner on the back side of the house.  During the home inspection, my inspector told me that  this was a good system and one pump would work if the other wasn't, so i thought this was great.  One pump when plugged in wouldn't stop running and he said it had stuck float and would need to be repaired ( have radon covers over each one, so he didnt remove them for inspection)

Anyway, getting to the sad part, I closed on the house on Monday, and Tuesday we had a hilacious rain storm here.  After working a midnight shift, i drove the the new house and found my basement with about a half inch of water over the whole thing.  Ive never had a sump pump before so I knew nothing about them, but obviously one pump wasn't plugged in, so therefore not working.  The pump on the other side of the basement would kick on every couple of minutes, shoot some water then shut off.  I plugged in the other pump and it started depleting water in the basement right away.  I took the gazillion screws off of the radon cover, and pulled slightly on the pump fixture and must have shook something loose, and the pump started working as it should.  My father in law came to look at it and said the pump was running fine, but I opted to replace it instead of taking a chance with it.

Ok, my father in law said he never had seen a set up with the 2 sump pumps like that so he wasn't really sure how it was set up.  When its raining hard, the new pump runs like crazy, but the other hardly kicks on.  Could this be a rpimary and a back up to control water if it gets too high int the basement?

Also, my downspouts are piped right into the ground (assumably to the sump pumps), my father in law said in his residence, this kind of setup isn't even allowed.  

So Im wondering, is there any other way i could set this up to keep water out of the basement?  Could I put downspout extenders out into the yard instead of having them run to the sumps to prevent all that water in case of a sump failure?  Or is this set up like this for a reason maybe?  

ANy help or info greatly appreciated!


Tack


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## Redwood (Jul 29, 2011)

You definitely do not want the downspouts going into a sump pump...

Usually in a backup situation you will see 2 pumps in the same pit, not in separate pits...
Me thinks the home inspector may not have known what he was talking about....


Take a look at these links...

Zoeller Aquanot I & II Battery Backup Sump Pump Review

Duplex Sump Pumps For A Dry Basement


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## kok328 (Jul 29, 2011)

I've never seen this dual pump setup either but, yes, I would cut the downspouts and attach an elbow and redirect them away from the house with a 8' section of downspout.


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