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Health & Fitness

Sump Pump and Home Inspections in Oak Forest

Sump pumps and home inspection in Oak Forest & surrounding cities.

The importance of sump pumps can not be over stated, but they are often overlooked by homeowners. Sump pumps and pits are routinely inspected during a home inspection in Oak Forest or any of the other cities that I serve. The reason for the sump pit and pump is to collect ground water, then the pump can expel the water to the outside of the home. When the house was built their was a drain system (tiles) installed around the perimeter of the house near the foundation footings to collect the water and keep it away from the foundation and the house. The tiles direct the water to the pit and the pump sends it through the discharge pipe  hopefully to a point at least six feet away from the house. Many time you will hear the pump running, especially when it is raining, my pump will operate about every twenty minutes during a good rain.

I have included a picture of a sump pit and pump with this article so that you can compare it to your pit and pump. But do not confuse it with an ejector pump, which is for sewage. The difference between the two pumps is that the ejector pump should be a sealed system, lid secured down and air tight, and there should be two pipes exiting the pit. One pipe is the venting and the other is the fluid discharge that connects to the house sewage drain system. The sump pit will have a lid, but usually they are not secured or air tight and there is one discharge pipe exiting the pit.

If you go to the outside of the house you should find the sump pump discharge. It should be configured in a manner that delivers the water at least six feet away from the house. Always remember, the house is built to keep water away from the house, water is the biggest issue a house can face because of the damage and peripheral issues that go along with water intrusion. Your sump pump discharge should NOT be connected to your sewage drain or the sanitary system of the city. As a matter of fact, Oak Forest and many other cities have an ordinance that makes it illegal to have your sump pump empty to the sanitary system. The reason is because it can easily over burden the sanitary system and cause flooding of sewage into homes. I have seen many pumps connected to the sanitary system and I report it to my clients during the home inspection in Oak Forest and other areas. The city of Oak Forest does want to be able to come into your home and inspect your sump pump connection to be sure it meets the ordinance. At this time I do not think the city has finalized any plans, but I can see issues with that plan, but that is for another article.

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Be sure to check your system on a monthly basis for proper operation and that it discharges to the exterior of the house and not to the sanitary system. If you need help with this issue you can contact me and I will be glad to help.

If you have any questions about sump pumps, home inspections or home inspectors you can reach me at 708-612-6679 or at my email MerinosHIE@gmail.com. Please visit my websites for more information. www.MerinosHomeInspection.com or www.OrlandParkHomeInspections.com

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