The water is coming up fast. Unfortunately it’s not in your bathtub; it’s in your basement. Cleaning up after high levels of water in your basement can be a disaster and it’s better to be proactive in that situation with a sump pump. If you’re looking to rent or own a sump pump for your home, here are some things you should know about them:

Two Types
There are two different types of sump pumps, submergible and pedestal. As its name may suggest, submergible sump pumps are meant to go below the water and can withstand this because the motor is housed within the unit. While these are nice, if you plan on owning one it’s also harder to repair. The answer to that problem is the pedestal sump pump. Its motor is external but can not be subjected to getting wet.

Know the power
Horsepower in normal homeowner sump pumps usually range from .33 hp to .50 hp. The more water you have to move the higher you should go with the horsepower. The distance you need the water moved should also be a consideration.

Where’s the power coming from?
If you have a battery-operated sump pump, make sure that it’s charged. If you have it plugged into a power source, make sure it’s in a grounded outlet. On another note on plugged-in sump pumps, if you find that you seem to be running it primarily when there’s a power outage, consider hooking up your sump pump to a generator.