What to Do When Your Septic Pump Quits Working

If you have a septic system with a pump in it. If that pump quits working it can cause the lift station to overflow or even worse, back up into your home.

If your system has a pump, it is helpful to know what function that pump performs. Is the pumps function to move water to a discharge point or pump the water to leach trenches or a mound? Some systems installed after January 2015 may be timed dosed to the leach trenches or mound. With a lift station that is time dosed, excessive water usage or leaking toilets could trigger an alarm. In that case, the pump may not be bad but too much water has entered the system and the pump must catch up.

If your pump is not working, first and foremost, check the power source. Make sure the breaker that serves your lift station is on and not tripped. If the breaker is tripped it could be caused from a power outage or a sign that the pump is going bad. Reset the breaker and see if the pump starts working. If it
does, that’s great, continue to use the pump and just keep an eye to make sure the breaker doesn’t trip again.

If your pump still isn’t working after checking to make sure the pump has power, it could be the pump float switch has failed. The job of the float switch is to turn the pump on and off when the water in the lift station reaches a certain level.

If it’s determined that your float switch has failed, in most cases the float switch can just be replaced, it doesn’t mean you need a new pump.

The professionals as Tim Frank Septic can trouble shoot your pump and determine if there are repairs that need to be made or if a new pump must be installed. We stock a few sizes of pumps to try to accommodate all our customers but if your system requires something special, we can order it in.

Call 440-636-5111 today to schedule an appointment with one of our professionals.