Buddy of mine is looking for a unit that will give him some back-up for his sump pump. What he wants is a device that:
Plugs into an outlet The pump plugs into the device The device trickle charges a car battery If AC power fails the battery provides AC through the device
I've done some googling but can only find complete systems with battery included or stand-alone inverters. He already has the battery and pump just needs the 'device'. Anyone know where to get such a gizmo?
If he uses a DC pump, like a marine bildge pump, then all he needs to do is attach that to the battery with the float switch in series with the pump. The pump runs off the battery. The charge keeps the battery charged. Like a "UPS." In fact, a UPS might do the trick if it will handle a load like a small pump.
you use a small cheap charger on the battery and will need to replace it every few years. trickle charger
you put the float switch above the level of the regular pumps switch so it kicks on in high demand or power failure. either way prevents floods.
use a backup DC pump and ideally a seperate drain line in case the primary one fails for some reason.!!!!
Using a nverter or UPS isnt a good idea, the conversion loss from 12v to 120 will waste a LOT of the batteries power. UPSs espically are built for clean computer grade power whereas sump pump duty needs brute force.
I am amazed how mnany neighbors have pumps that COULD drain or overflow drain by gravity. the pump owner should look at this gravity tends to be reliable:) does require digging:(
Funny how many people assume that. UPSs produce square waves because computer power supplies don't much care what they get. Pumps on the other hand really need sine waves, which are much more expensive. An adequate inverter for a pump would be cost prohibitive.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.