Pump running with no water in tank


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Old 02-17-05, 05:45 AM
K
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Pump running with no water in tank

I noticed yesterday that my pump (in the crawlspace) was running for a long time (at least 5 min) even though we had no rain or snow melting (in Chicago area). So I lifted the lid and noticed about an inch of water at the bottom of the tank and noticed the float laying along the bottom resting on one of the bricks along the bottom. The pump itself sounded fine but no water was being pumped out since there wasn't any to pump (aside from the inch or so of water along the bottom that's always there). So I unplugged it, lifted the pump all the way up (in hopes that would reset it) and set it back down. Plugged it back in, pump did not run - thought I fixed it. This morning, got up, heard the pump running, again no water in the tank.

I'm not sure what kind of pump it is since I just moved into this home and the previous homeowner says it's the original sump - 30 yrs old. I'm worried it's going to overheat and burn out since it's "running dry" for at least 5 minutes if not more before it finally shuts itself down.
 
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Old 02-17-05, 05:58 PM
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Hi KevinTheRookie,
- whatever method the pump uses to trigger on is obviously sticking. Is there any kind of float switch or a sliding rod ? If not, it's pressure operated and they are impossible for a novice to fix. As it's apparently 30 yrs. old, i'd opt for a new one.

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