scratching my head on this one, washing machine discharge goes into the sump pit and the pump pumps it into the main waste line. There was a old iron pipe in the pump pit (best guess a old floor drain they cemented over) since it was a 110 year old house, and newer concrete on the floor.
With this sump pit not taking any ground water/rain water I would assume this would be ok, it just should be sealed. *(normally should be installed in utility sink, then drained to a sump bucket and pumped up)
missing: sealed lid, check valve.
let me know thanks, *(I know a ground water cant be pumped into the main line)
Is the bottom of that pit sealed? Or is it a dirt/gravel base? And don’t tell me you didn’t stick your hand down to confirm.
Either way, you have a potential for sewer gasses to enter the home with that set up. And, if it is open on the bottom, you potentially have ground/storm water going to the treatment plant, which just about every city in our area frowns on.
I see some concrete pits that have an open bottom. They are basically the same as a modern sump pit with tile inlets, but the idea is for the ground water to come up naturally through the open (gravel/sand/dirt) bottom of the pit.
If I had to guess, I would say yours has an open bottom and was originally installed to collect ground water. Then they decided to dump the washer into it and plumb the pump into the sewer.
There are a few concerns with the current arrangement. I think my narrative would say “non-standard sump pit with clothes washer drain and direct connection to sewer. This method may allow sewer gasses into the home, may not be reliable, and may go against city regulations pertaining to ground water discharge…” Or something like that.
Not okay in my area. That cleanout shouldn’t be used for a sump discharge, even if it is grey water, the pit should be sealed and vented, the dischage pipe should have a P-trap installed and be terminated into a drain line above the lateral.
You say it’s a sump pump in there and not an ejector pump. I’d be curious if any of the plumbing experts have an opinion on that. I know I would recommend an ejector pump, not just a generic ground water sump pump to handle a laundry discharge.
