Hi,

I was hoping someone could answer a few questions about sewage ejector pumps. I knew nothing about them before moving into current house, so when my power went down during a storm recently, we did not realize that without electricity, our sewer could back up. (And it very nearly did) Before this potential crisis happens again, I was hoping someone could provide a little insight into what I need and why. I read some very helpful info from speedball1, so I've got the basics.

But I was wondering if there is any reason I might need 3 ejector pumps. (Which is what the previous homeowner told us we have) There are 3 total bathrooms in the house, but only one is in the basement. The other two are on the upper floors, and so shouldn't need an ejector pump, right?

Second, I am assuming I should get some type of battery back up for the pumps, so that if there is no electricity, the pump will still work. Basically, since we didn't know about the pumps, the sewer started backing up into the basement tub about 22hrs into the power outage. I assume this is because, since we continued to run water/flush toilets, some kind of tank filled up. Is this a correct assumption on my part? And will a battery back up allow the pump to continue to work when the power is out at a normal level, or would we still have to be concerned about overflow?

Finally, can someone explain the difference between an ejector pump and a sump pump? Do I need both, or will the ejector pump do it all?

Thank you so much for any info anyone can provide- I hate not knowing how things work in my house :rolleyes:

Hi Jo137:

The two bathrooms on upper floors do not require a pump... they drain by gravity and as long as you have city/town water you should be able to use plumbing during power outage... but you can't run the fixtures in the basement... ok?

The basement bathroom requires the SEWAGE EJECTOR. The other 2 pumps in your house must be SUMP PUMPS.. Perhaps you have 1 sump pump at one area and another sump pump at another area? Any chance one is a battery back up sump pump already? How many holes in the ground..

A sewage ejector usually has a 2" discharge pipe (and separate 2" vent) for solids/toilet paper, etc. to be discharged to sewer and has a gas tight lid associated with an inground PIT that doesn't allow sewer gasses to enter into the home... it will be piped directly into the sewer main drain line. This system, if used during a power outage will back up and fill basement tub or shower first.

A sump pump will usually only have an 1.5" discharge pipe and will usually NOT connect into the sewer main drain line and it won't have a vent associated with it. It will usually be piped to outside the home somehow and then gravity drain away from the home. Its pit in the ground does not require a gas tight lid as sewer gasses are not associated with a sump pump (note... some sump pumps connect into sewer main drain... but they are not supposed too).

It is never a bad idea to purchase a battery back up for your sump pumps... idea here is that if electricity fails from a storm with lots of rain you will need to have battery back up to keep the water from coming into the home and flooding the basement.

Your sewage ejector should not need battery back up because as you have already learned... during a power outage you don't use the basement bathroom... ONLY USE UPSTAIRS BATHROOMS as they run on gravity alone! Now, if you rent the basement out or have family member there that may not be able to access your bathrooms during a power outage then you may need a battery here, too...

So, basically, sump pumps protect against groundwater and sewage ejector deals with basement bathroom exclusively... in other words, the two systems should not be related at all.

There are a number of battery back up pumps and battery back up systems...

Click on... Zoeller Corporation to start...

Then click on... Welcome to EmergencyPowerSupply.Com

Marine batteries are used for backup power!

Come back and let us know more if you can... look for pumps in floor, pipes discharging outside, etc...

Hopefully, all your pumps will have check valve associated with them (see picture below)... that will make finding them easier...

Let us know what you think...

MARK

A sump pump is only for water. I have never herd the term "ejector" pump. A sewage pump is designed to pass 2" solids, so the force line must be 2" id. A macerator pump grinds stuff up presumably so it can be pumped through a smaller force line. I have no idea why you would have 3.

I have a sewage sump in my rental building that collects the ground floor sewage and pumps it up to the second floor where it crosses a breezway to my home and thence runs away by gravity down my sewer line. I have had to change the pump a few times. Not a pleasant task. The plumber who did my rental building installed a 2" sump pump, which jammed and had to be replaced. Of course, I replaced it with the same one, which jammed. I replaced THAT one with a proper sewage pump which lasted 3 years or so. (cycling every 5 minutes or less during business hours because one of my tenants is a beauty parlor, and I have a coin laundry as well.)

I posted mostly because I want to be alerted when the experts chime in on this.

You are asking good questions. It tells me that you are trying to understand your system. Not too many people do so...

3 pumps is certainly an overkill. You need 1 properly sized sewer ejector system. Call Zoeller engineers. They will tell you exactly how big collection bucket and pumps you need.

Usually, for family house, you would use 2- Zoeller 267 sewer ejector pumps with 5 mercury floats operating in about 36" wide x 60 " fiberglass bucket with metal lid. (... can be smaller - please, verify exact dimensions with Zoeller - as per your fixture count ). The bucket is self-contained and designed to house 2-pump system. The two pumps alternate in ejecting sewer. When pump #1 finishes pumping - it turns off and power switches to pump #2. And process repeats. Floats are connected as follows: 2 - On float switches, 2 - OFF float switches and 1 - Alarm Float Switch. Alarm is important. It will start buzzing if pumps fail to pump. This system requires control switch panel that is installed away from the pumps, like in garage or service room in your basement.

As WW Piere correctly said, Sump-Pump is for clean water like rain water. Sewer ejectors are Heavy Duty pumps that will pump solids through the system.

Milo...

I've seen the system you describe installed exterior to a building as a LIFT STATION...controls inside home. There would not be 3 pumps in this system.

Jo137... are your pumps interior or exterior..? Like I stated in my first post.. we need more information here...

Thanks... MARK

Thank you all so much for your info!

Massplumber, here is what I have, as far as I can tell: there are 3 pits all together (about 20-25" dia holes). All interior. Two of them are in the utility room, near the main water and sewer lines. One of these is sealed, and has two pipes coming up, both of which appear to tie into the main sewer line. So I assume this is sewage pump #1? The other of these is not sealed and has only one pipe, so I assume this is my sump pump? However, this one also appears to connect to my main sewer line.

The third hole is directly behind the basement bathroom (on the opposite side of the basement); also a 25ish " dia pit with a sealed lid and two pipes coming up. So I am guessing this is another sewage pump? The lines go into the walls, and I cannot tell where they go after that.

Based on images I found online, I do not see a battery backup. I also do not see the check valves you posted.

I don't know if this is possible, or why anyone would do such a crazy thing, but is it possible that all of my bathrooms are using sewage pumps? I am planning to have a plumber come in to evaluate my situation, and install the backup for the sump pump, but the more info on all of this I can gather beforehand, the more comfortable I will feel. So I really appreciate all the help you all are providing!

Oh, also- I did find a tag on the pump behind the bathroom that tells me it is a Pentair Hydromatic, if that helps at all.

Thanks again!

Hi Jo137:

OK... basement bathroom definitely on the sewage ejector (pump) closest to basement bathroom (wondering where the pipes go... especially the vent from the pit..? ).

Sump pump probably shouldn't be piped into sewer main... ask plumber about this and fact that the check valve is missing (print off this thread and show it to him).

Sewage ejector #1 (pump) appears to pick up the bathroom(s) from above..? Usually... this would simply not happen... somethings up (wondering if they collapsed an old cesspool or septic before going over to this new ejector system for above bathrooms)??

Get a plumber out and have him look at all these setups... or maybe you could post some pictures?

The discharge pipe from sewage ejector #1 and the vent should NOT both connect into the main sewer line... only the 2" DISCHARGE pipe should. The 2" vent from the sewage ejector is supposed to penetrate the roof by itself (or should connect to the other sewage ejector vent before penetrating roof)..? Again..need to discuss this with plumber...ok?

Anyway... very unusual for 1st and/or 2nd floor fixture to dump into an ejector pump... VERY UNUSUAL!

Please let us know if you have more questions... otherwise... please let us know what plumber has to say on this one.

Thank you...

MARK

Hello,

I have a sewage ejector pump in my finished basement. It has no backup. I figured I should invest in some sort of a backup system, but I need some help.

The pit ejects the bathroom sink and toilet waste, washing machine and also my kitchen drains to the pit too including the sink and dishwasher. It would appear that there is one pump and a sensor in the pit.

Two questions:
What type of backup system would be best and most economical?

Is a secondary pump really necessary? Should I just get a battery type backup for the existing pump and if so, what do I need to buy?

I called one plumber who proceeded to tell me there's only one pump out there that fits the bill and it would cost me $6,000. Seriously! This can't be right. It's a pump, not a bar of gold and I'd need to win the lottery to afford that amount.

Any help you guys can offer me to understand what exactly I need to buy to properly backup this system,and get it installed economically.

Isn't there some sort of battery backup like I have for my computer? It's basically just a battery that you plug your computer into and then plug the battery into the wall. If power at the outlet is interrupted, the battery provides the power to the computer. Why can't something like that work?
Many thanks for any advice!

I started my own thread, please answer there... Thanks