While performing home inspections in New Jersey I come upon sewage ejector pumps often. A sewage ejector or grinder pump is designed to pump out household sewage to an area that is elevated above the pump. This elevated area can be a the city sewer system or a septic tank that is installed in a position that is elevated. There are times were these pumps are needed even though the home is at the same level as the septic tank or sewer lines. Most waste systems need to pump waste water at a rate of 2 feet per second.
A sewage pump may also be installed at one or more fixtures in the home if the fixtures are located below the waste pipes in the home. An example would be a bathroom located in a basement with the waste piping in an area that is above the toilet, sink and shower. The sewage pump lifts waste from the lower level bathroom up to the sewer line where it flows out to a septic tank or municipal sewer.
A sewage or grinder pump grinds sewage into a finely ground slurry of waste and water which can then be pumped to its destination. There is a float switch mechanism in the interior of the pump that turns the pump on when water inside the pump reaches the required levels. The higher end sewage pumps will have an auxiliary pump and an alarm to indicate pump malfunctions.
Sewage pumps do require regular maintenance to keep operating properly. Periodically the interior of the pump should be cleaned out completely. Remove all debris that may cause damage to the pump impeller and cause the pump to bind. Make sure to turn off power to the pump before attempting any maintenance on the unit. You may want to leave the maintenance of the sewage pump to a qualified plumbing contactor.
There are objects and materials that should never be flushed down the waste system, the following items can clog and cause damage to the grinder. Cotton swabs, cigarette butts, condoms, diapers, disposable wipes, paper towels, plastic bags, and any other semi hard objects.
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