Sump pumps

Back in the 60's my dad installed a sump pump pit. The pump was below water but the motor was installed above the pit on a long shaft .
Well they hae come along way since then.

Today we normally use a basin, like this one. It is a 22 gallon Polyethylene basin. They come in both vented and non-vented, check local codes. A vented style goes to a vent on your roof.

I personally like the Zoller family of pumps, as they are cast iron and they take a beeting. Please dont buy a pump with the integeral floats., as you can not adjust the water level for optimal perfomance. So what are you going to use as a float? There are two solutions:

1. A float ie not adjustable.
2. A sensor, there are a bunch you can use, Capacitve, Ultrsonics, etc.

   Capacitve sensors are what we use in aircraft. it is basicly two tubes inside each other with spacers so they dont touch. Both tubes have holes drilled into them to let the water in.
   So as the water rises the Capacitance changes. This is a great video on the subject.
   The other way is to use an ultra-sonic module. In ether way I like to have a float at just under the max of the tank.
   Ether way you can control it with an Arduino and a Contactor (for the power to the pump itself. Make shure you use a GFI curcuit breaker as well.
   GFI -> Contactor -> Pump put all of this in a box near your pump make sure you keep the low voltage section isolated from the pump voltage.