If you have a basement in the Midwest it is likely that you have a sump pump. Most Midwestern homes utilize drain tiles to keep ground water out of the basement. Those tiles drain into a pit, which is then pumped out locally. Typically, this water is not allowed to be sent into a town’s sewage system.
This simple system works great, but it has one great flaw. Sump pumps require AC power to operate, and an AC outage is most likely to happen during an adverse weather event, like a storm. If you want to be safe, consider getting a secondary battery operated pump. These can be purchased at big box stores under names like, “Ace In The Hole,” and “Watchdog.” These pumps come in several different versions, and I advise getting one with a maintenance free battery. You will pay a bit more, but you won’t have to deal with the hassle of constantly checking water levels. Remember, these systems are designed as backups, not as your primary pump.
I recently installed a sump pump. This one is different as it contains both the regular pump as well as a battery operated pump connected on the same platform. See photos below.
