Major iron bacteria problem in sump

[dnoyeb]

I thought it was just red mud. I've been cleaning my pit and pump for about 5 years now. The builder left me a sewerage ejector pump but I never used it. its huge cast iron and my sump pit is in my entertainment area so I though it would be loud. Turns out its quieter than the regular 1/2 HP sump I bought from Lowes.

Anyway, my pump requires semi-anual cleaning, but typically I do it anually when it fails. I also installed a clean-out on the exhaust pipe from the pit. I can't snake the whole thing because of the type of corner put in at the top. My drainage system has cleanouts where it crosses into the house, but sadly the builder installed some of them with an uphill grade to the pit. They need to be cleaned of sand as well. Whats worse is since there is appearantly no sock on my drain tiles, there is lots of sand that goes into the pit.


As for making the pit deeper, I don't think that is going to make much difference on a pump that runs every 5 minutes. It might make your pump run every 8 minutes, depending on how much deeper you make it. Probably easier on your pump, but I don't think it will help with the bacteria.

Im using my pit water on my grass. This sprays on one side of my house and you can guess what is happening there. Yep, its turning orange. Not much deeper than the paint I already had though, so I'm just going to match it and call it a day...

I don't think this problem can be "fixed."

[JacobPM]

making the sump pump basin deeper will only add to the possible issues. Basins/Liners deeper than 24" can lead to undermining of the foundation as soil can be coaxed into the basin as the water moves in. Iron bacteria would be the least of your problems at that point.

From re-reading all of the statements in this thread everyone seems to have a few similar issues

1.) awkward or non-existent clean outs

2.) badly pitched discharges and systems

3.) no way to properly separate the iron bacteria and isolate the issue.

[wighardt]

I looked into the perimeter drain system and like the idea. However, I need to do more research on how to properly clean out the perimeter drains once the iron ochre gets into it. There is nothing worse than spending lots of money on a product that only clogs up several years later and is useless.

I don't think the iron out will help eliminate the clogged pores once they harden. I do question the muratic acid and would love anyone's experience if muratic acid actually eliminates the dried out iron ochre.

CLR seems to be a good product that helped to take away some (not all) dried out iron ochre but I don't want to spend $400 on enough CLR to fill my clogged perimeter drain every few years.

[JerseyGuy]

Living in my home for 24 years, I decided the time had come for installing a basement waterproofing system. As we all know, there is nothing "waterproof" about drain and pump systems since they allow water in, channel it and pump it out.

Anyway, in the first year, the system worked flawlessly. Sometime during the second or third year, after the installer performed maintenance on the system, we started to see the rust colored water that we later learned to be iron ochre. Thinking back, I often wondered if the maintenance guy "seeded" my system by using dirty tools. After all, what mechanic sterilizes his tools between clients? Further, neither of my neighbors have an iron ochre issue. Anyway, regardless of the "how" and the "when", the problem exists.

For the past few years. I have been searching the web for a solution. While I have encountered many of the suggestions noted earlier in this message thread, the reality is that all of these solutions are somewhat hit-and-miss. They work sometimes... but not for everyone.

My installer claims that because so many of their clients have the issue, they are also searching for answers. They indicate that they have yet to find anything that is promising. I have some doubts as to how hard they are working on the problem since they seem to want to do more frequent maintenance... collecting more fees for such service.

I am fortunate that water is only an issue for my basement when it rains... not the everyday issue that many others have. The system I had installed includes not only a sump but a secondary, smaller pump on a battery backup. The idea is that when storms hit the northeast, we sometimes lose power, rendering the main pump inoperable. This is when the backup pump kicks in.

A few months ago during a particularly heavy rainfall, we lost power. Shortly thereafter, I heard an alarm going off in my basement. Although it sounded like my CO2 detector, when I investigated, it turned out to be the water level alarm on the sump pit. Why? The exhaust/waste pipe on the backup pump was clogged... thus, neither pump was operational... one clogged and the other without power. Fortunately, I was able to flush the clog and the backup remained operational until the power returned later that night.

Since then, I try to flush the system more frequently with fresh water. I also spoke to someone with a chemical background to see if they could suggest a chemical solution. So far, no luck.

Meanwhile, I happened across an article written by someone at the University of Florida. I think it answers some of the questions posted to this forum and I recommend that everyone take a few minutes to read it. You can find that article here:

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ae026

Good luck to all... and please share any info you find in your quest to beat this "red devil of a problem".

Regards to all,
JerseyGuy

[Leah Hokmah]

After struggling with the iron slime build-up in my sump pump for a while now, I sprinkled some oxygen cleaner (Oxi-clean) powder into the residual water in the sump pump pit. Within a minute or two, the iron slime build-up on the bottom lifted itself off and floated to the surface in a bubbly mass.

The other areas along the sides I treated the same way. I dampened the dried areas first, then sprinkled a little Oxiclean powder on. The slime just came right off. After waiting a couple minutes, hooked a hose to a basement sink and sprayed the inside of the pit, pouring in enough water so that the pump kicked in several times and flushed out the solids.

The pump and pit now look completely clean of iron slime. I would imagine that the oxygen cleaner had the same effect on the outflow pipes as the water flowed through them.

This was by far the simplest, cheapest treatment I've found. I may need to do it again in a few months, but I can't complain about how simple it is.

[JerseyGuy]

Thank you for your thoughts and suggestion regarding the use of Oxiclean to remove iron ochre slime. While I am unfamiliar with this product, I have heard of it and it sounds like your suggestion may have some merit. I suppose I should be happy knowing that there are products that will remove the slime with relative ease. However, I can not help but note that this is certainly not a "cure" in that it will not resolve the underlying cause of the iron bacteria build up.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I appreciate hearing of your experience. I may give this a try....

-JG

Originally Posted by Leah Hokmah

After struggling with the iron slime build-up in my sump pump for a while now, I sprinkled some oxygen cleaner (Oxi-clean) powder into the residual water in the sump pump pit. Within a minute or two, the iron slime build-up on the bottom lifted itself off and floated to the surface in a bubbly mass.

The other areas along the sides I treated the same way. I dampened the dried areas first, then sprinkled a little Oxiclean powder on. The slime just came right off. After waiting a couple minutes, hooked a hose to a basement sink and sprayed the inside of the pit, pouring in enough water so that the pump kicked in several times and flushed out the solids.

The pump and pit now look completely clean of iron slime. I would imagine that the oxygen cleaner had the same effect on the outflow pipes as the water flowed through them.

This was by far the simplest, cheapest treatment I've found. I may need to do it again in a few months, but I can't complain about how simple it is.