A sump pump sucks out rain or waste water from a basement floor, basement floor drains, around foundations, etc.  When the sewer line level is above the basement floor, a sump pump is required for pumping the water up to the sewer line level.  The way an automatic sump pump works is that when the water level rises, it pushes up a float that turns on the pump motor.  As the water is pumped out and the float drops down, the pump motor automatically shuts off.  Some sump pump systems have a backup battery so that the sump pump will still operate during a power failure.  See also:  Basement, Foundation, and Plumbing.

Shown below are the recommended routine maintenance tasks for your sump pump.  

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