The short answer
An ejector pump alarm going off in a Northern Virginia basement means the water in the sealed basin under the basement bathroom or laundry has risen higher than the pump should ever let it. The pump stopped, its float stuck, or more water is coming in than it can move. Stop using every sink, toilet, shower and washer downstairs right now, check the pump’s breaker, and call a plumber. Silencing the alarm doesn’t lower the water, and the next flush downstairs can come back up through the floor drain or the shower.
What to do, in order
- Stop the water downstairs. No flushing, showers, laundry or sink use on anything that drains to the basin. The washer is the big one: a single load sends a lot of water into a basin that can’t empty.
- Silence the alarm. Push the button so you can think. The light usually stays on until the water drops.
- Check the power. Look for a tripped breaker, and if the pump plugs into a GFCI outlet, press reset. Reset it once. If it trips again, leave it off: something in the pump or the wiring is shorting.
- Listen. If the pump hums and the alarm keeps going, the impeller is probably jammed, very often with wipes. Turn it off at the breaker so the motor doesn’t burn out.
- Leave the lid on. An ejector basin has a gas-tight lid for a reason: what’s inside is sewage, and the lid holds the sewer gas in. Opening it is a plumber’s job.
- Call. (703) 997-9757, day or night.
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What sets it off
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| Cause | What you notice | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| The pump failed | The alarm is on, the pump is silent or humming, and the water isn’t dropping | A new pump in the basin you have |
| A stuck float | The pump never starts, or never stops | Unstick or replace the float switch |
| Wipes or debris jammed it | A hum, or a breaker that trips | Clear the pump, or replace it if the motor burned out |
| A failed check valve | The pump runs over and over, and you may hear water rush back into the basin | A new check valve |
| No power | A tripped breaker or GFCI, or a power outage | Reset once. In an outage, wait it out and keep the water off downstairs. |
| More water than it can move | The alarm comes on during laundry or a long shower, then clears | Spread the water out, and have the plumber check the pump is the right size |
| The alarm itself | The alarm sounds while the pump works and the basin is low | A new alarm or alarm float |
Ejector, grinder or sump?
Three kinds of pumps live in basements, and they get mixed up. A sump pump sits in an open or loosely covered pit and moves groundwater out of the house. Its alarm is a different problem, covered in our sump pump alarm guide. A sewage ejector pump sits in a sealed basin with a vent pipe and lifts wastewater from a basement bathroom, laundry or bar sink up to the sewer line. A grinder pump chops the waste up first so it can push it farther or uphill through a smaller pipe.
If a grinder pump sits out in the yard and feeds a low-pressure sewer, it may belong to the county or your HOA rather than to you. Check your paperwork or call them first.
What it costs
A stuck float, a bad check valve or a jam is a repair, priced at the visit once the lid is off. A plumbing diagnosis visit is $49, or $250 after hours.
When the pump is worn out, our sewage ejector pump replacements run $2,350 to $2,750 installed, in the basin you have, with a new check valve and the lid sealed back down. From about $39 a month at 0% APR for 60 months, the whole price financed, on approved credit.
We install Zoeller ejector pumps with a quiet check valve on the line out of the basin. A new basin, or a grinder pump, is a bigger job, and the plumber prices it at the house.
Keeping it from happening again
- Only toilet paper down the basement toilet. Wipes, even the ones labeled flushable, don’t break down in time, and they’re what we usually find wrapped around a jammed impeller.
- No grease down the basement sink. It coats the float and the basin walls until the float can’t move.
- Spread out the water. A washer draining while someone showers downstairs is the classic way to outrun a pump.
- In an outage, the pump is off. Hold off on downstairs water until the power’s back. Our winter power outage guide covers the rest of the house.
- Listen to it. A pump that runs more and more often, or a basin that smells, is telling you something before the alarm does. Why a pit smells like sewage covers the smell.
Already backing up?
If water is already coming up through the basement floor drain or shower, stop using every drain in the house until you know which line it is. What to do when sewage backs up in the basement walks through it, and a basement floor drain backing up covers the drain itself.
Book it
A plumbing diagnosis visit is $49, or $250 after hours, and you get the price of the fix before we start. Call (703) 997-9757, day or night, or book online with the problem already filled in. Every current deal is on our offers page. Rated 5.0 stars across 1,138 reviews on Google, Angi, Yelp, the BBB and Facebook, Virginia Class A license 2705192276.
Questions people ask
Can I flush the toilet upstairs when the ejector pump alarm is on?
Usually yes. In most houses only the basement fixtures drain to the ejector basin, and everything upstairs drains to the sewer on its own. If anything downstairs gurgles or backs up when someone flushes upstairs, stop: in that house, more drains run through the basin.
How do I turn off an ejector pump alarm?
Press the silence button on the alarm box. That quiets it, but the water in the basin is still high, and the alarm clears on its own once the pump empties it. Stop using the basement fixtures and find out why it sounded.
How long can an ejector pump go without power?
As long as nobody uses the water downstairs, the basin just sits. Every flush, shower or load of laundry in the basement adds to it, and once it’s full, the next one comes back up. Hold off until the power’s back.
Why does my ejector pump alarm go off and then stop?
More water came in than the pump could move for a minute, often a washer draining, and then it caught up. Or the float is sticking. If it happens more than once, have a plumber look before the day it doesn’t catch up.
How much does it cost to replace a sewage ejector pump?
Our ejector pump replacements run $2,350 to $2,750 installed, in the basin you have, with a new check valve and the lid sealed back down. From about $39 a month at 0% APR for 60 months, the whole price financed, on approved credit. A new basin or a grinder pump is priced at the house.
