Using sewer drain for sump pump might not be a good idea since most of the states in the USA are now banning this. It’s okay if your sump pump is connected to storm sewers, but you should avoid connecting it to the sanitary sewer.
It’s against the law to discharge a sump pump into the sanitary sewer system. Why? Because you are risking sewage and water damage by doing so.
There used to be a lot of homeowners that do this, but since the municipal is going hard line against this practice, you will see people aren’t doing this anymore.
Peshtigo’s sump pump problems were the top story for a couple of while back in 2019. I’ll talk more about that in the following section.
How To Connect A Sump Pump To The Sewer Line?
As I’ve said before, you shouldn’t connect your sump pump to the sanitary sewer line. You can, however, connect your main pump to the storm sewer line that is designed to handle the floodwater.
You know what? People still ask this question all the time whether you should hook your sump pump up to the sewer drain inside your house.
Back in 2019, I’ve come up with a news article regarding the crackdown on sump pumps in Peshtigo city. The municipality there stated that residents living in that city would need to disconnect their sump pumps from the sewer systems.
Now, the interesting part is that not only were they going to send a letter regarding this notice, they also mentioned that they would be paying a visit to your home later for inspection.
I know why they have decided to go with this approach, and I don’t blame them. It’s okay to send rainwater that’s coming through your sump pump either into your yard, into the rainwater system, or into the local rivers.
You might be wondering; can I drain my sump pump into the sewer if it’s still allowed in my area?
It’s okay if you plan on connecting the sump pump to storm drain. Here is why.
- The sanitary sewer gets backed up and causes problems for the city water supply.
- Possible plumbing code violation.
Using Sewer Drain For Sump Pump – Why You Should Avoid Doing It
Here is why I think it’s a bad idea. Obviously, the municipality is more interested in how much freshwater or rainwater is making its way into the sewer treatment plan.
You have to agree with me here. That’s a big problem. One of the things I think is common sense is that what if you get a sewer backup from the municipality?
If you have got your sump pump hooked up to your sewer system and it doesn’t matter where you live, and if your river system is taxed by the sewer system, you could get feces and all different kinds of stuff in your house.
You probably don’t that happening. Sump pump connected to sewer might sound tempting, but when you think about this, why would you want to hook up a sump pump or a condensate pump into your sewer line?
You can also see some common problems like improper water treatment and all that.
Final Thoughts
So, if your crawl space or basement waterproofing company is hooking your sump drain pump into your sewer system, you may want to get that looked at and have it redirected outside.
It still bugs me to this day when I see homeowners not doing anything about it even after all the trouble that comes for doing so.