Have a client who's looking for some kind of battery-backed sump pump solution.
Not knowing a lot about this equipment, I did a little research. Starting at a business that was suggested by the client (Sump Pump Direct,
There are two types of units available. One is a battery-backed power supply, essentially a UPS, though they're not called that in this application. These are used to power existing ordinary AC operated sump pumps.
The other thing available are sump pump back-up "systems". These are pumps that are designed to operate from household AC *or* 12 volt DC battery power. When power fails, they switch to DC and run from a sealed lead-acid battery. The whole thing is sold as a unit and replaces an existing sump pump.
My customer already has a sump pump installed (two, actually). She also has frequent power outages during the times when the pump is needed. These outages can last as much as 4-6 hours.
I've looked at some of these "back-up system" pumps. They don't give me a whole lot of confidence that they'll be there on the job when needed. And while one of them claims a "battery life" of 7.5 hours, I'm not sure that means it'll actually run that long on battery power.
I'd like to at least research the other (UPS) alternative. One unit on the Sump Pump Direct site is this one:
It looks great; uses two deep cycle 120-amp marine batteries. Only problem: these systems "start at" $1,800 (not incl. batteries). No thanks.
I then discovered that it's very difficult to sort through all the UPSs available out there in web-land. I stopped looking after most of my searches returned results from bizrate.com, nextag.com, and other scum-of-the-earth, shake-you-down with tons of ads while you're sucked through their vortex of web sites.
I did look at some UPSs at this site:
So I'm hoping someone here might have experience with these units. I know that most UPSs are made for computers, network gear, etc. But if there is one that can provide enough power for the sump pump motor (including any starting inrush current) for long enough, it should work. I'm not absolutely sure of the motor ratings at this point, but I would reasonably assume a maximum of 1/2 HP (induction motor), so probably 7-8 amps operating current max. I will, of course, nail this down before seriously recommending a UPS, if it comes to that.
Of course, it needs to be reasonably inexpensive. $3-400, maybe: $1200, I don't think so.
Any help here much appreciated.