Sewage Pump Help!

[big bad bob]

Please be patient long post....

I have a Zoeller M267 pump that is in the crawlspace underneath my home. My home sits on the bottom of a hill so the pump is used to pump my wastewater up to the sewer lines. It is in the black basin from them as well. The pump was installed 5 years ago, I did not install it, the prior owner had it installed. I recently purchased the home.

A week ago i went in my crawlspace and noticed that my pump wasnt working and wasterwater was overflowing from the basin and i had considerable amount of water in my crawlspace. I initially thought it was a plumbing issue and called a plumber who came out inspected the pump and said it was fine and that my issue was eletrical. The pump is connected to a convetional outlet that is on a 15 amp circuit breaker. The previous home owner said he never had an issue when i called him. I called an electrician who came out, everytime he plugged the cord back into the outlet, the GFCI was tripped. Thinking the outlet was bad he replaced it, but the pump continued to trip the GFCI everytime it was plugged back into the outlet. So I ran an extention cord running from the pump into my house, the interior outlet is on a 20 amp circuit breaker, so says my electrician, this did work until this morning, when i checked on it and once again i had wasterwater in my crawlspace, the motor does not seem to be working at all now. The previous owner said he never had a problem, my plumber blamed the outlet, my electrician is blaming the pump for pulling to many amps which is why it is tripping the GFCI hence my pump is not pumping any wastewater. I just need my pump to work and prevent another pond from forming in my crawlspace.

Do i have a burned out pump? Just buy a new one?

Is it normal for a pump to go out after 5 years?

Could it just be clogged? All of my wasterwater flows through this thing, grey and black water. How can I check that it is clogged?

Are there any other methods besides using a pump to get my wastewater to the main sewer lines?

Thanks yall in advance, this is very frustrating I just bought this house 3 months ago, at least i bought the extended warranty...

Is there any advice yall can give?

[TOPDAWG]

Welcome to the forum Bob, I would Pull the pump and check if the impeller spins freely, If so plug in pump and lift the float switch to see if pump kicks on. The pump draws 10 amps so a 15 amp breaker will be fine. It sounds like there may be an internal short that is tripping the breaker. If you have a lift station it is because you have to have it as the main sewer is higher at the street than where your sewer leaves your house. I would call and see if your home warranty will cover the pump, If your pump is not pumping at all now I would spend the $400 and put a new one in. 5 years on a pump that gets that kind of use is a good life!!! I would also buy a spare just in case it breaks down on a weekend or holiday!

[big bad bob]

Mike,

Thanks alot! I appreciate the advice, I have never dealt with a sewage pump so i was unaware that they do burn out. Any suggestions on good pumps? What horsepower? The pipes are 2" that feed to the check valve.

[TOPDAWG]

Mike,

Thanks alot! I appreciate the advice, I have never dealt with a sewage pump so i was unaware that they do burn out. Any suggestions on good pumps? What horsepower? The pipes are 2" that feed to the check valve.The pump you have is a good pump so I would stick with the same! Pumps will burn out but that usually happens when a seal goes bad and water enters the pump housing or if the float sticks and the pump remains running for a prolonged period of time. Sewage pumps have a 2" discharge as they will pump 125 gpm with a 5' head or 90 gpm with a 10' head. I would also install a 2" ball valve for service reasons (place it above the check valve so when the check valve or pump goes bad it makes it real nice to replace them).

[plumberjr]

buy another zoeller--they are the best on the market--no ifs ands or buts