After a long and exhausting day, you are finally getting home and getting ready to go to bed and get some quality sleep. However, as you are getting ready, you hear a noise. It’s a rumbling, loud noise, coming from the basement, but you know that you didn’t do any laundry today. That can only mean one thing: something is wrong with the sump pump.
In plumbing, hearing rumbling, gurgling, banging, humming, or vibrations coming from your pump is almost the equivalent to seeing the blue screen of death in the world of IT and computers. If you react fast and recognize the issue, you’ll be able to stop the noises and get back to your relaxing, quiet night.
Why Is My Sump Pump Making So Much Noise
When a sump pump starts making noise, there is always a sliver of hope that it’s just a normal thing that happens to the pump. You may even find yourself Googling “Can you hear sump pump working” since now, with all the racket, you can’t remember anymore if that’s the noise the pump regularly makes or if this is a new occurrence.[1]
Let’s put it like this – if you start asking yourself whether or not the sound pump louder than normal, that’s an indicator that something is wrong with it. The louder the sound gets, the faster it needs to get fixed.
Yes, a sump pump can be heard when it’s working. It should remind you of a softer humming. But it should never sound anywhere near a washing machine.
It’s important to pay attention to what kind of sound is being produced by the pump.
For example, hearing a gurgling noise usually means that the water is flowing down the pipes during discharge. This isn’t a cause for a lot of worries, but if the gurgling gets louder, that means that you might want to check if you need to replace a valve.
How To Stop Sump Pump Banging Noise
The reason why it’s so important to pay attention to what kind of sound the sump pump is producing is due to the fact that the sound serves as a compass as to what we should do to fix it. Here are some fixes based on what kind of noise the sump pump makes:
- Vibrating noises
If the sump pump sounds like it’s vibrating weirdly, this usually means that the pipes are uninsulated. This is fixed by insulating the pipes. You can do this by covering the pipes with rubber tubular pipe insulation or by using rubber stoppers underneath the lid of the sump pump.
- Loud Motor
Like with many machines, sump pumps also tend to get louder when they aren’t properly lubricated. If you want to fix the loud sound of the motor, you should lubricate the motor with oil or grease. If this doesn’t fix the problem, you might want to replace it with cast iron and steel systems.
The plastic in the sump pump and PVC pipes is the most common source of this noise happening, while cast iron and steels systems tend to perform much better; all while creating less noise.
Sometimes, this happens simply due to the poor design of the sump pump, and too much plastic being used in the creation of the sump pump. If this problem persists and is due to the design of the sump pump, you may want to look for a different one, with a better and more durable (as well as quiet) design.
However, if there is a deeper issue with the motor – the only solution is getting a new sump pump.
Sump pump sounds like washing machine
We all know that recognizable sound of a washing machine going wild. The sound that your sump pump makes in this case, resembles those rumbles all too well. This usually means one of two things. Either you need to replace the valve, or the water level shut-off needs to be modified. [2]
The first option is quite an easy and cheap fix. However, adjusting the water level shut-off usually means that you need to call a plumber.
- Beeping sounds
Beeping sounds, definitely, aren’t the sound that you want to hear your sump pump make. This is one of the most problematic sounds since it’s actually an alarm that tells you that the pump needs immediate attention. The beeping sound happens once the battery or battery backup discovered an issue. [3]
Usually, this means that it’s failing to turn on, the backup system needs to be charged, or that it’s working too fast. All in all, these are all reasons for you to contact a plumber or professional to take a look at your sump pump, as well as the power sources and backup system.
- Grinding sounds
If you hear a grinding sound, contact your plumber right away. The source of this problem is often a faulty impeller. Sometimes, it’s just simply jammed, meaning that a replacement won’t be necessary.
However, if there is something deeper wrong with the impeller, you will need a replacement as soon as possible. You can try to fix the jammed impeller on your own, but if you don’t have any experience working with sump pumps – it might be better if you had a professional doing that instead of you.
Read Also: How Long Does It Take to Replace a Sump Pump
Conclusion
Even though hearing your pump sound louder than normal isn’t a pleasant experience, it certainly isn’t one to start panicking. There is a fix, even if your sump pump sounds like a washing machine from hell. Remember – low humming is a normal sound for the sump pump to make.
Now, you know all there is to know about fixing the noise, meaning that you can completely forget about your sump pump making noise every few minutes.
If these “remedies” don’t help with your loud sump pump situation, then it’s time to call the plumber for some extra help. Sometimes, a sump pump starts being loud due to the age of the pump. Meaning that you will definitely need the help of a plumber, since it’s time for a brand new sump pump, then!
Michael Davis is a heating & plumbing expert who currently works as independent contractor in SC. He also writes for Plumbertip.
For almost 10 years he worked on various plumbing tasks across South Carolina.
