Best Washing Machine & Laundry Tub Pump?

[Antlerman]

I'm going to be helping my son work on a duplex he is purchasing that has a bad setup for washing machine draining - BOTH apartments drain their washing machines AND laundry tubs into the sump pump basin. It smells bad and, most likely, will cause the motor on the sump pump to fail prematurely.... not to mention it shouldn't be run this way. The sump pump runs outside into the yard vs into the septic system. The whole setup is in the basement, which means it has no floor drains and the main discharge (correct term?) for the house is about 4 ft. off the basement floor as it leaves the duplex and runs into the septic tank outside.

Solution: Should I install a pump that can handle this amount of water that will send it out to the main discharge and ultimately to the septic field?

If so, what type of pump would you recommend? I need something that can handle the lint and other junk coming from a washing machine and not get clogged.

Help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Antlerman

 

[wwhitney]

If the building is in MI, then it is under the IPC. That means that any drain for a washing machine plus another fixture has to be at least 3" in diameter. That would mean you either need a pump and basin with a 3" drain entry (plus the atmospheric vent), or you need one with (3) 2" drain entries plus the atmospheric vent. [1 for each washer, one for both laundry sinks.] This came up recently in another thread.

Also, do you have access to a vent line that goes through the roof? Pump basins can't rely on an AAV, as I understand they need to be inhale and exhale. If you don't have an atmospheric dry vent available in the basement, running a new one could a bit of trouble.

Cheers, Wayne

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Antlerman]

If the building is in MI, then it is under the IPC. That means that any drain for a washing machine plus another fixture has to be at least 3" in diameter. That would mean you either need a pump and basin with a 3" drain entry (plus the atmospheric vent), or you need one with (3) 2" drain entries plus the atmospheric vent. [1 for each washer, one for both laundry sinks.] This came up recently in another thread.

Also, do you have access to a vent line that goes through the roof? Pump basins can't rely on an AAV, as I understand they need to be inhale and exhale. If you don't have an atmospheric dry vent available in the basement, running a new one could a bit of trouble.

Cheers, Wayne

Thanks for the quick reply Wayne and YES, I am in Michigan. I have not yet seen the setup, but it's possible there's a vent line nearby. If so, can I "tap into" an existing vent, or will this need to be separate and go all the way through the roof..... or just through the outside wall?

Pump basin? I assume this is a pump in a basin that sits at floor level, so no need to jackhammer and run lines? My son said the line for the "neighbor's laundry" comes through the wall at about 2 ft. high.

 

[wwhitney]

By pump basin I just meant a pump and a basin, self-contained; if you have the elevation to put it on the floor, there's no need for anything to be buried.

As for the vent, I'm not aware of any requirement that it be dedicated, just a dry vent. Meaning like any dry vent it can combine with another dry vent at an elevation at least 6" above the flood rim of the fixtures served. But since you said the building drain exits the basement at 4' off the floor (hence the pump), there would be no reason for there to be any DWV vents in the basement, as there would be no other fixtures in the basement. You may need to tie into a vent for a fixture on the floor above and open part of the wall there to do that.

Cheers, Wayne

 

[Antlerman]

By pump basin I just meant a pump and a basin, self-contained; if you have the elevation to put it on the floor, there's no need for anything to be buried.

As for the vent, I'm not aware of any requirement that it be dedicated, just a dry vent. Meaning like any dry vent it can combine with another dry vent at an elevation at least 6" above the flood rim of the fixtures served. But since you said the building drain exits the basement at 4' off the floor (hence the pump), there would be no reason for there to be any DWV vents in the basement, as there would be no other fixtures in the basement. You may need to tie into a vent for a fixture on the floor above and open part of the wall there to do that.

Cheers, Wayne

Okay, that makes sense. They close in a week and I'll be able to get in there and see what's up, maybe take a couple photos.
Thanks!

 

[Bannerman]

This is the type of drain pump system commonly utilized for basement laundry sink and washing machine drainage where there is no gravity drain system available. One may be located on the floor below each home's laundry sink and each would discharge to the main DWV line leading to the shared septic system.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Simer-Sime...-Under-Sink-Laundry-Sink-Sump-Pump/5000196793