Sump pump burnt?

[tom_sawyer70]

Last fall we had a major storm and were without power for several days. I bought a generator and a portable, submersible sump.

The regular sump is acting strange...from time to time it stops pumping, but if I unplug and replug it in, it starts to work again. When I noticed it this morning, I decided to use the portable to help pump out the volume of water that had accumulated. The portable sump is not pumping, but the body of the unit heats up.

There doesn't appear to be much to service on the unit, but I wanted to ask to see if there was a part or two that I may be able to replace rather than toss an $80 pump after basically one use.

TIA. Dave

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Motor is probably shot, or the bearings in the motor. See if you can take it apart. If bearings, they are much less than $80.

[Lawrence]

You can check the inlet at the bottom of the pump to be sure it is not clogged. Other than that, a pump in that price range is typically replaced when it give up.

[mm]

There is almost always more than those two choices. Sounds to me like it is clogged. If there was flooding, maybe that brought in something that normally isn't in the water. There are probably screws to open in up. Look inside. If not clogged, See how well it spins when you turn the impeller by hand. I don't know that it will coast after you let go, but it should spin pretty easily when you are pushing it.

Then put on safety glasses and/or a face mask, position the motor so it won't throw things at you or anything important and turn it on. See if it spins, how well it spins, etc. turn it off,

Remember, if you didn't find a clog and maybe even if you did, something piece of junnk it sucked up might be stuck in the impeller where you can't see it, which might come loose at any time. Or if a vane is cracked, part of it might break off. Not so likely but don't get your face in there when it's running.

[tom_sawyer70]

That was it. I did not find anything clogging the filter, but the impeller was "stuck." When I took the cover off and lightly tapped it, it did not move. So I plugged it in to see if it spun (it did not). I unplugged it, and with a little more force (and nothing to lose at this point), turned it. I heard a snap, similar to the sound when you open a jar, and it then easily spun with just the push of a finger. Plugged it back in and it spun. Put it back together and it worked.

Thank you for all the replies!

Dave

[mr burns]

i would be careful of trusting this pump, i had a similiar problem with mine and it seized up again. came home to a half flooded basement. keep a close eye on it for a while.

[tom_sawyer70]

I have concerns with the current sump, which seems to go to sleep every once in awhile. The pump that had the impeller stuck is a backup for the main. I appreciate your reply.

Dave

[dnoyeB]

Indeed. When a pump does this its usually a sign the motor is going bad, or the impeller is very dirty and too hard for the motor to turn reliably. Or the pipe is dirty and requiring too much pressure now.

Most likely the pump is on its last leg. Cheaper to replace the pump than clean the basement?