# Sump pump humming but not removing water



## NHMaster (Dec 21, 2009)

Lift it out of the pit and see if the intake has some crap stuck in it.


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## rustyedge (Aug 30, 2009)

The pump looks to be a Zoeller brand. That is a very good pump. but at ten years old it needs to be replaced. On the side of the pump housing near the bottom should be a small hole about 1/8" diameter. That hole in your current pump could be plugged, causing it to be air locked and therefore not pumping. Also, about a foot up on the discharge pipe below the check valve there should be another small 1/8" hole. Both those small holes are VERY important to discharge trapped air. Go here for installation instructions https://app.qleapahead.com/rtp/libraryget.aspx?asset=92494,63 and read about the weep holes.


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## ilyaz (Dec 7, 2009)

rustyedge said:


> The pump looks to be a Zoeller brand.


rustyedge, thanks. At this point I am not ready to replace it but might do it soon. In the meantime, I want to make sure it it can operate with minimal maintenance. 

I actually did not have to pull it out for cleaning. All I did was lift it a bit and move it a couple of inches to the side. It started pumping again. Does this mean that some particular hole got clogged? 

Thanks.


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## NHMaster (Dec 21, 2009)

Probably, yes. You should pull it out and maybe clean the sump area. roll the pump over and check the inlet. It's an older Zoeller pump but they will last many years.


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## rustyedge (Aug 30, 2009)

Yes either the pump inlet is blocked by something or the bottom weep hole is plugged. Yours may not have a second weep hole in the discharge pipe, but it should have one. I always install a tee about a foot up and plug the branch of the tee. Then drill my second weep hole in the bottom of the plugged branch. That way the water stream shoots straight down back into the basin and doesn't splash outside the pit. I have seen pumps work for years and years without that second hole, then one day the pump gets air locked and the pit doesn't pump out and basements get flooded. All sump pumps when using a discharge check valve regardless of brand name need both weep holes for reliable operation.

Also when you eventually replace the pump replace the check valve too.


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## hanksterr77 (May 1, 2018)

I had a similar problem. Turned out to be the check valve. It has a small plastic disk inside, attached to the inner wall by a piece of rubber. The rubber was broken in mine, allowing the plastic to move freely and block the outflow intermittently. Replaced the check valve and the problem went away.


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## Gregsoldtruck79 (Dec 21, 2017)

O. T. A. !


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## hanksterr77 (May 1, 2018)

Apologies, what does O. T. A. mean?


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## jmon (Nov 5, 2012)

It's an 8 year old thread from 2010.


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## hanksterr77 (May 1, 2018)

For folks on the internet (like me) who stumble across this thread, I would think my answer would still be helpful, no? I had the same issue as the person who started this thread (motor runs, but some of the time, ejects no water) and spent several months trying to figure out what was going on. When I finally got to look inside the existing check valve (as part of starting to replace the pump with a new pump), I found my answer (and I can now return my new pump  ). What does O. T. A. mean?


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## Gregsoldtruck79 (Dec 21, 2017)

*O*ld *T*hread *A*lert


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## hanksterr77 (May 1, 2018)

Ah, ok 

That's a new acronym for me


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