Sump pump install in Westfield

Challenge

The Crawl Space Solutions By Cowleys team recently installed a sump pump for a homeowner in Westfield who had recently completed finishing his basement. The homeowner had wet basement problems in the past because the home’s surrounding soil, with its high water table, was saturated with groundwater. He contacted us to protect his investment.

Wet basements and crawl spaces are a fact of life in New Jersey. Our homes are surrounded by groundwater that is constantly trying to find its way inside. Many homes are built in areas with a high water table, the level at which the ground is completely saturated with groundwater. High water tables are especially common for homes in coastal communities and in areas near our many estuaries. Also, we have many areas in New Jersey where homes have poor drainage due to high levels of clay. And sometimes it’s just location. With homes built on the lower side of an upward grade, there is a natural movement of water to lower elevations making crawl space and basement water problems even worse. Water table levels are seasonal. You’ll see elevated levels come during periods of high rainfall or snow melt. And when the inevitable Nor’easter blankets our state with snow or rain, flooding problems are not far behind. The excess water and moisture also encourages dangerous mold growth, sending the air quality of your home into a tailspin. 

Crawl spaces are especially problematic because they are often “out of sight, out of mind.” Problems down below can fester for quite awhile without it being discovered.

For any basement or crawl space system, the sump pump is critical. It does the heavy lifting to keep your basement dry by pumping out whatever water is collected in the sump pit. Dehumidifiers are necessary to remove excess water in the air, but the sump pump takes care of any groundwater that has found its way inside. This is one piece of equipment where reliability is everything. The sump pumps that we install have the best motors in the industry. They have a power outage protection with a battery backup system so they work all the time, even when your power goes out during a bad storm. And for added protection, they come with a built-in alarm that sounds if the water level rises about the level that should activate the pump. 

Solution

We installed a powerful powerful Zoeller® Sump Pump to resolve this customer's water issues. The homeowner was happy with our service and our product. He was concerned about the aesthetics, and our sump pumps look great. Even though sump pumps are not built for looks, they need not be an eyesore. These sump pumps are housed in a durable plastic sump liner with a patented airtight cover. Covered sump pumps prevent adding more moisture into the air, which can trigger mold growth. If there’s a pipe beneath that drains water into the sump well, a solid cover is best. If water drains into the well after flowing across the basement floor, a perforated one is needed. A sump pump lid also reduces pump noise, stops debris from falling into the pit, and keeps out curious kids from playing around in a place where they shouldn’t.