What pressure is needed to run a water powered sump pump?

The sump pump in your home is powered by electricity. This pump will be working during normal rainy conditions when you have electrical power supplied to the house. A water powered back-up sump pump will protect your basement in the case of a power outage. This unique product is powered by your municipal water supply and requires no electricity to operate.

Water powered sump pumps are configured to turn on automatically, only in the event of a primary sump pump failure. The best backup option to your primary electric sump pump is a water powered sump pump which is used as an emergency pump when the regular sump pump fails..

A water powered sump pump employs the Venturi effect. The Venturi effect happens when city water under pressure is converted into a high-velocity jet at the throat of an ejector nozzle (a nozzle is made by pinching a tube in the middle, making a carefully balanced hourglass-shape) which creates a low pressure at that point. The low pressure creates a vacuum that draws sump water into the nozzle where it mixes with the city water which together are discharged from the sump. The water powered pump removes two gallons of water from the bucket for every one gallon of water supplied.

A water powered sump pump functions by taking the existing water from the city or town supply. The city water flows through a constricted area, and is forced through an ejector. At that constriction water speed increases causing a pressure reduction. This pressure reduction literally sucks water from the sump crock. Sump water then combines with the flowing city water and exits your basement via a discharge line.

The Water Powered Sump Pump uses a 1 to 2 Ratio

The water powered sump pump uses 1 gallon of city water to pump 2 gallons out of the pit, and then all 3 are discharged from the house. Using the ratio of 1 to 2, at 1,000 GPH the system will use 5,000 gallons of water to prevent 10,000 gallons from flooding your basement. If your water costs 2 cents a gallon, (5,000 x .02=$100) it would cost approximately $100 in water use to keep your basement dry. That is a small price to pay to prevent flooding until the electricity is restored. The water powered sump pump is designed for emergency use only. Prolonged use of the water powered sump pump will result in increased municipal water consumption.

How much Water Pressure (PSI) is required

At A-1 Basement Solutions, we install the Liberty SumpJet SJ10 as our water powered sump pump.  The SJ10 pumping performance varies with inlet water source pressure and pumping head.  The manufacturer requires a minimum pressure of 30 PSI. Because water pressure in any municipality will vary depending on use, A-1 Basement Solutions requires a minimum of 60 PSI to install the water powered sump pump.  With 60 PSI water pressure and an 8 foot vertical lift the SJ10 will pump 17 GPM which is equivalent to 1,020 Gallon Per Hour (GPH).

BECAUSE IT IS DEPENDENT UPON WATER PRESSURE TO OPERATE YOU MUST BE CERTAIN OF YOUR MUNICIPAL WATER UTILITY'S ABILTY TO MAINTAIN CONSTANT WATER PRESSURE DURING A POWER OUTAGE. 

As long as there is adequate Municipal Water Pressure the Water Powered Sump Pump will continue to operate. That means day after day, week after week if necessary, until the electricity is restored.

Should I get my Basement Inspected?

A-1 Basement Solutions provides free basement health inspections to New Jersey homeowners. Contact A-1 Basement Solutions at 908-322-1313, or  info@A-1Basements.com for a free in-home inspection and detailed quote.

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