Sump plumbing question

[Sandia97]

Setting up my basement sump and it's time to go buy PVC and materials. I was wondering if the pipe feeding DT water into my sump (about 10' total vertical and 3' horizontal ) should be smaller than the return pipe? I'm just worried the flow down will fill up the sump faster than the return can pump it up? DT is 75gal, Sump is 55 gal, Pump is Gen-X-PCX40 and am expecting about 550gph return
Can anyone who has a basement sump tell me their experience with this scenario? Just trying to be prepared. Maybe I should buy same size and smaller and just be prepared to tweak it after a test run..

 

[KRAZE]

You just need ball valves on both up and down, then you can adjust yourelf until you get it just right.

 

[Collinrb]

^+1 and you should throw unions anywhere you might need to take something out to clean/replace it

 

[Sandia97]

Ah..ok duh! ha ha.. I guess I am overthinking this thank you

 

[KRAZE]

Yup, those unions are key, especially in a basement sump set up

 

[thor109]

What size pipes are you planning on? The line back to your sump should be bigger as the water is flowing with gravity only. The pressurized line going up can be smaller and accommodate the 600 gph flow because its under pressure. You are going to need a lot of extra room in your sump for power off water storage. I would not make baffles higher than 12 inches.

 

[Sandia97]

What size pipes are you planning on? The line back to your sump should be bigger as the water is flowing with gravity only. The pressurized line going up can be smaller and accommodate the 600 gph flow because its under pressure. You are going to need a lot of extra room in your sump for power off water storage. I would not make baffles higher than 12 inches.

I was planning on 1" pipes..and yes I have planned my sump level to accomodate the rise in water level in case of power failure... I also heard you can put a check valve in the down flow to prevent that? I'm not sure how the valve closes when the power turns off though

 

[mufnman]

I do not know where in ct you are located, but you are welcome to come and take a look at my setup if needed

 

[mtc1966]

check valve goes on the up flow pipes if power goes off the flow of water back down snaps it shut.

 

[KRAZE]

Check valves are a one way flap that is opened by water flow, and will close when water tries to flow in the opposite direction, so that is only good for the return.

 

[frankyrivera]

I heard check valves are trouble I would be weary

 

[Sandia97]

I do not know where in ct you are located, but you are welcome to come and take a look at my setup if needed

Thanks I'm in Windsor and you?

check valve goes on the up flow pipes if power goes off the flow of water back down snaps it shut.

Check valves are a one way flap that is opened by water flow, and will close when water tries to flow in the opposite direction, so that is only good for the return.

Ok gotchya ..that would be cool though if it worked both ways

 

[thor109]

You could get buy with 1" but 1" up and 1 1 1/2" would be better and quieter. Water will only drain as fast as you pump in. There are different types of check valves, all can fail. It's best to design your system not to depend on them. Ball valves are not necessary on drain line going into sump.

 

[Sandia97]

You could get buy with 1" but 1" up and 1 1 1/2" would be better and quieter. Water will only drain as fast as you pump in. There are different types of check valves, all can fail. It's best to design your system not to depend on them. Ball valves are not necessary on drain line going into sump.

Ok so 1" on return and 1 1/2" into sump Did I read that correctly?

 

[Zalman]

If you are in windsor feel free to come check out my basement sump. I live in Enfield and would be happy to show you my set up

I personally would avoid anything restrictive on a drain line. Control everything with your return and a simple ball valve can do that. My drain lines are like inch and a half pipes and I have them separated all the way into the sump. Then I have a single 1inch return pipe that I split under my tank into two 3/4" pipes.

 

[thor109]

Yep.

 

[KRAZE]

You could get buy with 1" but 1" up and 1 1 1/2" would be better and quieter. Water will only drain as fast as you pump in. There are different types of check valves, all can fail. It's best to design your system not to depend on them. Ball valves are not necessary on drain line going into sump.

I'd have ball valves on the pipes to the sump for sure... how else would you be able to stop water coming in the overflows when you might need to service the sump? Also, IMO its better to have the return open 100% in a case like this, and then adjust the down flow to match. You never know, the pump might not even be as strong as you calculated.

 

[thor109]

If you adjust the downflow you DT would overflow. If you need to turn ball valve on drain line to prevent overflow while servicing sump what happens when power goes off and you are not home.
There is no reason to have a valve on the drain line into sump. Your sump should be designed to hold enough water for power off. In this case its about 5 gallons. I would do 10 as a buffer.

 

[Zalman]

I'd have ball valves on the pipes to the sump for sure... how else would you be able to stop water coming in the overflows when you might need to service the sump? Also, IMO its better to have the return open 100% in a case like this, and then adjust the down flow to match. You never know, the pump might not even be as strong as you calculated.

Once you shut the main pump off the water stops coming down the drain lines. I wouldn't put any valves on drain lines, too easy for something to get caught in them and clog the pipe.

As for your return pump. Have you picked one out yet?

 

[Sandia97]

If you are in windsor feel free to come check out my basement sump. I live in Enfield and would be happy to show you my set up

I personally would avoid anything restrictive on a drain line. Control everything with your return and a simple ball valve can do that. My drain lines are like inch and a half pipes and I have them separated all the way into the sump. Then I have a single 1inch return pipe that I split under my tank into two 3/4" pipes.

Thanks I'll take you up on that, I've only seen one basement set up so far. I think the more I see the better I can decide what will work best for me.
PM'd