When your sump pump fails to do its job, you can experience several serious issues in your home. In the best-case scenario, you may only have a small basement leak with minimal water to clean up. Unfortunately, the best-case scenario rarely happens when your sump pump fails. More often, your basement will flood, causing extensive water damage that threatens the structural integrity of your home, results in significant property damage and creates a variety of health risks for your family.
Water damage is one of the most serious issues that can impact your home. Regardless of whether you end up with a small basement leak or significant flooding, it’s important to work with a professional water damage restoration company who can ensure the cleanup process is performed properly.
Common Reasons Why Your Sump Pump May Fail
A sump pump’s job is to prevent flooding in your basement. When water levels rise, whether from rain or a leak on the property, the pump activates and moves the water outside and away from the foundation. However, there are many reasons your pump can fail to work properly, including:
- Severe Flooding – Severe storms, a water main rupture or a municipal sewer backup can create a larger volume of water than your sump pump can handle. This can result in the sump pump being completely submerged for an extended period of time, causing it to fail.
- Overuse – If your sump pump is forced to run for an extended period of time, its motor can generate excessive levels of heat that can cause the sump pump’s components to seize up or fail.
- Wear and Tear – Sump pumps are mechanical devices. Over time, the parts may break down from general wear and tear, causing the sump pump to stop working properly.
- Improper Maintenance – It’s easy to forget about your sump pump since it sits out of sight in an out-of-the-way part of your basement. While it’s understandable that sump pump maintenance may fall off your radar, neglecting this essential maintenance can cause internal corrosion or result in parts breaking down, leading to outright failure of the device.
- Power Failure – Most sump pumps run on an electric motor. If you experience a severe storm that causes a power failure, the sump pump won’t be able to operate and any water accumulating from the storm won’t be directed away from your property.
Common Signs Your Sump Pump Is Failing
The best way to avoid water damage from a failed sump pump is to know the signs that the device is failing. This will allow you to repair or replace the broken sump pump before you suffer basement flooding that can damage your home’s foundation and threaten the structural integrity of the building.
The following signs are a good indication that your sump pump may be failing:
- Failure to Turn On – If the sump pump doesn’t activate when water accumulates, it may indicate you have an issue with the power supply, float switch or electrical wiring.
- Strange Noises – Unusual sounds such as rattling, grinding or loud humming are an indication that you may have problems with the motor or other internal parts.
- Continuous Running – Your sump pump should only run when there is water to divert from your property. If you find that it’s running constantly, it may be overwhelmed by the volume of water it’s dealing with, or it may have a faulty switch.
- Excessive Vibrations – Vibrations can occur if debris is trapped in the impeller. If this happens, the part may need to be replaced to avoid sump pump failure.
- Visible Rust or Discoloration – Rust or brown water can be a sign that there is corrosion or bacterial growth inside your sump pump that may negatively impact its performance.
- Motor Failure – Complete failure of the motor can occur due to wiring issues, overheating or wear and tear.
- Age of the Pump – Most sump pumps need to be replaced every seven to ten years, depending on usage and maintenance. If your sump pump is significantly older than this, you may run the risk of failure.
Always Work with a Professional to Clean Up Water Damage from a Sump Pump Failure
While it might seem appealing to try to handle the cleanup process on your own to save money, the reality is that taking a DIY approach to sump pump cleanup will usually cost you a lot more in the long run. Water damage restoration is a highly complex process that involves a series of steps performed by highly trained professionals who use specialized equipment and techniques. Regardless of whether your sump pump failure resulted in small amounts of water or significant flooding, failure to address the cleanup process properly can create serious long-term issues for your house, including:
- Structural damage to your home’s foundation, walls, floors, and other critical elements of the building
- Mold growth that can weaken the structural integrity of your home and lower the property value of your home
- Health hazards associated with mold growth
- Damage to electrical systems that can create potential fire hazards and other safety risks
- Pest infestations
The only way to ensure these issues don’t develop is to have the cleanup process handled by a professional water damage restoration company who possesses the experience necessary to complete the job according to industry best practices.
How Just Right Cleaning & Construction Can Help if Your Sump Pump Fails
At JRCC Damage Restoration Experts, we offer comprehensive water damage restoration services for homes and businesses throughout the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area. Our team adheres to a rigorous process to ensure the cleanup after a sump pump failure is handled properly and all water is removed from the property. This multi-step process includes:
- Inspection and Water Damage Assessment – Our water damage restoration experts will come to your home to assess the scope and severity of the damage to your property. This will allow us to determine the best strategy to restore your home to its original condition.
- Locate and Shut Off the Water Source – If there is still water flowing into the area from a pipe or a leak, our team will shut off the water at the main valve to prevent additional water damage to your home.
- Water Removal – We use specialized equipment that includes extraction units and pumps to remove all standing water from your property.
- Removal of Damaged Materials – Damaged materials will be removed from your home if they can’t be repaired. In addition, our team will remove any personal possessions that can be restored and take them to our secure facility to complete the contents restoration
- Cleaning, Sanitizing and Deodorization – Specialized techniques, equipment and cleaning products are used to make sure your home is properly sanitized and disinfected. This process is essential to eliminating any health hazards associated with water damage.
- Drying – Industrial-grade fans and dehumidifiers are used to remove any remaining moisture from your property and prevent mold growth.
- Monitoring – Our team will perform moisture testing and other monitoring services throughout the process to ensure your home is completely dry before moving onto repairs.
- Repairs and Reconstruction – Once all moisture has been removed, our team will perform all necessary repair and reconstruction work to restore your home to its pre-damage condition.
Your Trusted Water Damage Restoration Partner in the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area
The stakes are extremely high if you suffer water damage from a failed sump pump, and it’s critical to work with restoration experts who can do the job right. JRCC Damage Restoration Experts has been the leading water damage restoration company in the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area since 1954. Our technicians are fully licensed and certified in your area, and they have extensive experience handling water damage associated with failed sump pumps. We offer 24/7 emergency water damage restoration services and will come to your home, day or night, shortly after receiving your call to begin work right away. This quick response time is critical to minimizing the damage to your property.
We also have a great deal of experience working with insurance companies and can assist you with the claims process. Our team will coordinate with your insurance provider on your behalf and provide all necessary documentation to facilitate a smoother claims process that helps you recover the maximum benefits to which you’re entitled. When you work with JRCC Damage Restoration Experts, you’ll have peace of mind that the entire sump pump cleanup process is handled properly from start to finish.
Contact us today at 844-967-4911 to schedule an appointment. JRCC Damage Restoration Experts serves customers throughout the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area.