Sump Pumps: How they Work & Why they're Important

6/20/2018 (Permalink)

In-order to understand how a sump pump works and why it’s important, it’s helpful to first understand the home building process.  After a hole is dug by an excavator for a basement, the next step is to put in foundation footings.  Foundation footings in Wisconsin are typically a poured cement slab, often reinforced with rebar.  The footings are poured into the excavated trench essentially in an outline of the foundation walls.  The footings provide a foundation upon which the cement bricks of the foundation will be laid, or upon which the cement walls of the foundation will be poured, depending on the type of basement wall construction used.  The soil upon which these footings are poured needs to stay at a consistent moisture level to prevent settlement, heave, or differential movement.  That’s where the sump pump and it’s supporting system comes into play.

A drain system is installed around the perimeter of the foundation/footings.  This drain system is essentially a system of pipes (surrounded by crushed stone) with holes in the top that collect water that is heading towards the foundation walls.  The water that is collected in these pipes is redirected into a sump crock in the basement, where a pump then pumps the water up and out of the basement.  Proper installation and maintenance of this entire system is essential to keeping a basement dry and stable.