The short answer
A sump pump alarm going off in a Northern Virginia basement means one of two things. A loud, steady shriek is the high-water alarm: the water in the pit has risen past the point where the pump should already be running, so the pump is losing the race or not running at all. A chirp or beep every so often is usually a battery backup talking: it’s running on battery, its battery is low, or it ran and wants you to know. Look in the pit first. That one look tells you which problem you have.
Which alarm is it?
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| What you hear | What it usually is | What to do first |
|---|---|---|
| A loud, steady shriek or buzz that won’t stop | The high-water alarm. Water in the pit is higher than it should ever get. | Look in the pit. Water near the top means check the pump’s power now. |
| A chirp or beep every minute or so | A battery backup with a low or worn-out battery | Read the lights on the backup’s charger. Backup batteries wear out in a few years, and the chirp is how they say so. |
| A beep and a light on the backup’s panel | The backup pump ran, or the power went out and it switched to battery | Check the main pump. If the backup had to run, the main pump may have failed or fallen behind. |
| A beeping puck on the floor, away from the pit | A floor water alarm. Water reached the spot where it sits. | Find the source: the pit, the water heater, the washer hose. The parts that flood houses lists the usual ones. |
$697 Sump Pump Replacement
A new cast iron pump in your existing pit, a quiet check valve, new pipe to the discharge, the old pump hauled away and a bucket test before we leave. See the offer
What to check, in order
- Look in the pit. Water near the top with the pump silent is the urgent case. Water low and the pump quiet, but the alarm still sounding, points at the alarm’s own float (the last step).
- Check the power. Is the pump plugged in? Many pumps share a GFCI outlet that trips and kills the pump without a sound. Press reset, then check the breaker. Keep your hands out of the water while you do it.
- Unplug it, then look at the float. The float very often wedges against the pit wall or the discharge pipe. With the pump unplugged, work it loose and lift it by hand, then plug the pump back in. If it runs, the float needs room to swing. If it hums and no water moves, here is what a humming sump pump means.
- It runs, but the water keeps rising. Then the water isn’t getting out: a frozen or blocked discharge pipe outside, a failed check valve letting the same water fall back in, or a pump too small for a two-inch storm. Each one ends in a call.
- The pit is low and the alarm won’t quit. The alarm has its own float, separate from the pump’s. When it sticks up, the alarm sounds over a nearly dry pit. Work it loose and the alarm stops. If it keeps happening, the alarm itself is worn out.
Most alarms have a button that quiets them for a while. Push it so you can think, then go find out why it sounded. The alarm only knows the water is high. Silencing it doesn’t move a gallon.
If the water is coming up right now
Move boxes and anything plugged in off the basement floor, and stay out of standing water that has anything electrical in it. If the power is out, a pump with no backup can’t run at all, and that’s how a lot of basements flood in a storm. Then call (703) 997-9757. We answer day or night, and a plumber can come after hours.
Why it went off now
Heavy rain and snowmelt are the usual reasons. Plenty of sump pits sit quiet for weeks, then fill fast in one storm, and a pump that sat all summer can stick the first time it has real work. Zoeller puts a sump pump’s service life at seven to ten years, so if yours is older than that and the alarm is going off, the pump is the first suspect. How long sump pumps last goes through the signs.
What we do when the alarm sends you to us
The plumber finds out why the water got high, then gives you the price of the fix before starting. A tripped outlet or a stuck float is a short visit. If the pump is done, our sump pump replacement is $697 installed, normally $997: a new cast iron pump in your existing pit, a quiet check valve, new pipe to the discharge, the old pump hauled away and a bucket test before we leave. A water alarm is included.
A battery backup is extra, and it’s the piece that keeps the pump running when the power goes. The backup prices, and Fairfax County’s rebate for one, are on our sump pump repair page. Our rainy-season sump guide covers the backup choices, and what sump pump work costs in Northern Virginia has the rest of the prices.
Every other alarm in the house
A sump alarm is one of the sounds a house makes on purpose. Our guide to error codes and warning lights covers the furnace, water heater and thermostat ones, and what house noises mean covers the ones nobody designed. If the alarm box sits on a sealed basin by a basement bathroom, that’s a sewage ejector, not a sump pump, and what an ejector pump alarm means is the one to read.
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
Why is my sump pump alarm going off when the pit is dry?
The alarm’s own float is stuck in the up position, or the alarm unit is failing. Work the float loose and lift it by hand to test it. If it sounds again with no water in the pit, replace the alarm.
Why is my sump pump beeping?
A beep or chirp every so often is usually a battery backup: the battery is low, it’s worn out, or the backup ran during a power outage. A loud, nonstop shriek is the high-water alarm, and that one means look in the pit now.
Can I turn off a sump pump alarm?
Press the silence button to quiet it while you look, but don’t unplug it and walk away. It sounded because the water got higher than the pump should allow. Find out why first.
Is a sump pump alarm an emergency?
The high-water alarm can be. If the water is near the top of the pit and the pump isn’t running, check the power and the float, then call. A chirping backup battery isn’t an emergency, but replace the battery before the next storm.
What does it cost to fix a sump pump that set off the alarm?
Sometimes it’s only a tripped outlet or a stuck float. If the pump has failed, our replacement is $697 installed, normally $997, with a new check valve, new discharge pipe and a water alarm included. A plumbing diagnosis visit is $49.
