Sump pump repair in Louisville

Most of our sump pump calls come after heavy rain. That is when the pump has to work hardest, and when a weak part shows up.

Louisville gets about 48 inches of rain in a normal year. That figure comes from National Weather Service climate data for 1991 to 2020. Some storms bring much more at once. In early April 2025, more than 2 inches fell at Louisville three days in a row. The National Weather Service says that was a first in the Louisville record.

When we find a pump that quit in a storm, the cause is usually one of these:

• The power went out. A standard sump pump needs electricity. Storms knock out power when the pit is filling fastest.
• The float switch is stuck. It can catch on the side of the pit or on the pump cord. Then the pump never gets the signal to start.
• The pump wore out. A motor that has run for years can slow down or stop.
• The pump cannot keep up. In a hard rain, a small pump may not move water as fast as it comes in.
• The discharge line is blocked. If the pipe that carries water outside is clogged or crushed, the water has nowhere to go.
• The check valve failed. This valve stops pumped water from falling back into the pit. When it fails, the pump runs more than it should.

A sump pump must not drain into the sanitary sewer in Louisville. The discharge rules of Louisville MSD, the Metropolitan Sewer District, forbid it (section 2.04). The same goes for downspouts. MSD's rules send sump water onto the ground outside, where it can soak in, or into the storm sewer system.

MSD explains why: pumped rain water overloads the sewer pipes and causes backups and overflows, sometimes in a neighbor's basement. On its illicit discharge page, MSD calls these connections illegal. An owner who does not disconnect gets a $75 charge on each monthly water bill.

MSD has a program for owners who disconnect a sump pump from the sewer on their own. After MSD inspects the work, the program may pay a licensed contractor directly, up to a limited amount. Call MSD at (502) 540-6600 to ask if you qualify.

Not sure where your pump drains? We can look at it when we are there.

Because storms cut power, Ready.gov suggests a sump pump with a battery. A battery backup pump sits in the same pit. It runs when the main pump loses power or cannot keep up.

A high-water alarm is a simple add-on. It sounds when water in the pit gets higher than it should, so you know before it reaches the floor.

Ask us if a backup pump or an alarm makes sense for your basement.

These pumps look like a sump pump, but they move wastewater, not rainwater.

• A sewage ejector pump serves a basement bathroom or laundry that sits below the sewer line. It collects wastewater in a sealed basin and pumps it up to the sewer.
• An effluent pump moves septic wastewater out of a septic tank or a dosing tank.

Kentucky's plumbing code sets rules for these systems. A sewage ejector in a home needs a 2-inch vent. A sewage basin that relies only on a pump needs an alarm you can hear and see inside the home. See 815 KAR 20:130, sections 16 and 17.

Ejector pump stopped? Stop using the basement toilet, shower, sink and washer, or wastewater can back up into the basement. Then call us.

Water in a basement does not always come from the sump pit. Where it shows up helps tell what is wrong.

• Water around the sump pit after rain: likely the sump pump or its discharge line.
• Dirty water coming up through a floor drain: likely a sewage backup from a clogged drain or sewer line. Keep people out of it. See drain cleaning and sewer line repair.
• A wet wall or a puddle with no rain: could be a leaking pipe. See leak detection.
• Water around the water heater: see water heater repair.

Not sure? Call and describe where the water is. We will tell you the likely cause.