neighbors running their sump pump (water) to the street

[kacaju]

I posted a while ago about how we have lived with one neighbor who pumped his water to the street and how the water backed up at my driveway. This man has lived here for 40+ years and we have lived here for 13. I never said anything about this problem. I always thought, he was here first. I would keep pushing the water down the street to get it away from my driveway.

Then this spring new neighbors had their sump pump water pumping out to the street. I couldn't take it any more... I just knew this will end up making MORE of a mess in front of my house.

So I asked here and many of you said to call our Dept of Public Works.
Well, I did. I was told I would have gotten a phone call the next day. I never did get that call, but when I came home from running errands that next day I saw a PW truck in front of the houses.

So, here in NJ we have had a very wet June, I am happy to say I DO NOT HAVE WATER in front of my house!!
With the amount of rain we have had both of their pumps should be pumping almost 24/7 and they have not been... or I should say they have not been pumping in the street anymore!!

Thanks for helping me make that call.....

 

[dis-happy]

Glad it worked out for you. But I have to admit....my sump pump has a pipe that runs the water into the street; the water has to go away from the house. We do have a curb and big street drains though.

 

[MissyDVC]

Not at all criticizing--just wondering where would you pump the water?

 

[suejai]

Where I live we are required to have the sump drain into the street or back alley so that the water runs into the storm sewer rather than have them hooked into the municipal sewer system. The town is part of a regional sewer system and pays for every cubic meter of flow, and it is already expensive enough without adding the flow from sump pumps.

Your issue, though, is a bit different and may require a swale or something similar to direct the water away from your house. Do you have the same issue from runoff from the street when it rains?

 

[tiggr33]

OP glad you don't have any issues now. But many areas (including some of NJ) require black water to be discharged to a sewer system. Sometimes the roadway is used, depending on many variables for good reason.....and some are just plain lazy or too frugal to run into their own sewer line.

 

[kacaju]

This is what it looked like. I am in NJ (middlesex County) and I was told it was illegal for them to pump it in the street.
When it was just the one neighbor and he is an elderly man who has lived here long before we moved in. His pump would run for WEEKS after it would stop raining.
With all the rain we have had here in NJ if it stopped raining as of today, I would still have water in front of my driveway until mid July, no lie!!

When the new neighbors put the pipe into the street I just knew I would end up with twice the amount of water.

Since neither of them are pumping water into the street, the end of our drive way is dry as of right now. Natural rain, even when it comes down in buckets it drains away propertly.
Just to add, that water would sit there for weeks on end, dead worms and all kinds of crap would be floating in there, birds would bathe in it!!

 

[happygirl]

This is what it looked like. I am in NJ (middlesex County) and I was told it was illegal for them to pump it in the street.
When it was just the one neighbor and he is an elderly man who has lived here long before we moved in. His pump would run for WEEKS after it would stop raining.
With all the rain we have had here in NJ if it stopped raining as of today, I would still have water in front of my driveway until mid July, no lie!!

When the new neighbors put the pipe into the street I just knew I would end up with twice the amount of water.

Since neither of them are pumping water into the street, the end of our drive way is dry as of right now. Natural rain, even when it comes down in buckets it drains away propertly.
Just to add, that water would sit there for weeks on end, dead worms and all kinds of crap would be floating in there, birds would bathe in it!!

I'm sorry I don't see the big deal. It looks like a rain puddle.

 

[wdwiala]

Ours runs under the grass into the street. Can get a little green in the spring . The other option is to run it down our yard toward our neighbors' houses. I think the street is the better option. Neighbor behind us had their's running toward my bushes which eventually started getting water logged and falling over. Thankfully, they moved the drain.

 

[kacaju]

your right it is like a rain puddle, one that stays there for weeks after the rain has stopped. With all the rain we have had this year is the first time I have no puddle at the end of my drive way.

 

[suejai]

kacaju, it looks to me like there has been a little bit of settling around what looks to be the curbstop (not sure what you guys call it there, it is where the municipality would turn the water off to your house) in your driveway along the path of the water line from the mains in the street to your house - the sidewalk slab adjacent to where the water pools is slightly lower as well. But I don't think it is so significant that Public Works would feel the need to fix it. Not saying it's not irritating to constantly have the water pooling right in front of your house, just that if your PW dept is like the one at the municipality where I used to work they likely won't do anything. If you are not allowed to drain your sump onto the road, are you required to have it hooked into your sewer system? Every town is different in it's rules for this kind of thing.

Hopefully, all of that made some sense.

 

[kacaju]

yes it makes sense, which is why I called to ask them to fix it. When I called they told me it was illegal to pump it to the street. I do not have a sump pump in my basement so I have no idea where the neighbors are supposed to drain it or what they did. All I know is finally I have no water at my driveway. My next door neighbor once told me his goes out behind his house (we have town owned property behind us)

 

[daughtersrus]

Ours runs under the grass into the street. Can get a little green in the spring . The other option is to run it down our yard toward our neighbors' houses. I think the street is the better option. Neighbor behind us had their's running toward my bushes which eventually started getting water logged and falling over. Thankfully, they moved the drain.

Where I live, you can not discharge your sump pump anywhere where it will effect someone else even if that location is on your own property. This stops people from pointing the hose at the neighbors house or the property line.

Most of our neighbors have the line under ground with holes in it so that the water spreads out under their lawn. Ours is underground but was discharging at the back of our property line (We bought the house this way). We received a notice from the lawyer representing the small airport that our yard borders saying that our water discharge was effecting the owners ability to farm the land on the opposite side of the airport. I contacted the village and since we're on a corner, they were able to connect the line to the storm sewer on the street with very little trouble and at no cost to us.

 

[shellybaxter]

What is the purpose of a sump pump -I've never heard of one

 

[mjkacmom]

No pump here (although we have pumped a few times with flooding), but everyone pumps into the street, even pools. You need your town to add a sewer - where else can you pump? I'm in NJ, and am SO happy our basement hasn't flooded this month! Knock on wood.

 

[LisaNJ25]

What is the purpose of a sump pump -I've never heard of one

For basements that floods. We have one and we pump the water out to the sidewalk. I have a hose going out a basement window. New Jersey here also. It doesn't effect any of my neighbors.

 

[Nancy]

What is the purpose of a sump pump -I've never heard of one

pumps the water out of the basement when it rains.

Here we have a very high water table, even a small amount of rain gets our pump going. We can not have our lines hooked into the house sewer lines, they have to go to the street and to the drains that take away the rain water.

All houses here have lines that either just discharge into the front lawn or buried underground and out to the curbs...we call them "bubblers". If your house just discharges into the yard and you sell you can not until you get the lines buried and out to the curb. They don' make current owners do it but it has to be done before you can close.

 

[Laz]

For basements that floods. We have one and we pump the water out to the sidewalk. I have a hose going out a basement window. New Jersey here also. It doesn't effect any of my neighbors.

Growing up in Cleveland, I had never heard of one either. Now I have two half-horsepower pumps in my basement. The purpose is to keep water away from the outside walls of the basement to prevent it from leaking into your basement. Tile is put down around the outside of the basement that leads to a sump pit (or in my case, pits). The submersible pumps are place in the pits, and when the water rises to a certain point, the pumps push the water out of the pit to where ever. In my case, it is pumped to a drainage ditch in the back yard. In the north, the pits are in the basement to prevent freezing in the winter. Most home owners insurance covers failure of the pump EXCEPT for power failures. Therfore, it is highly recommended that you have a back up system in place. I have a generator and (in case the generator doesn't start) two marine batteries connected to a recharger and dc/ac converter to keep the pumps running.

 

[Nancy]

We have a generator too. We also purchased a rider for the insurance for overage in the event that it fails. Costs more but just in case we aren't home and it goes out...well, we want all bases covered.

 

[Disney Doll]

My neighbor across the street has her discharge onto her front lawn. The grass that grows in the "pump runoff" area is always very green!!!!

 

[shellybaxter]

pumps the water out of the basement when it rains.

Here we have a very high water table, even a small amount of rain gets our pump going. We can not have our lines hooked into the house sewer lines, they have to go to the street and to the drains that take away the rain water.

All houses here have lines that either just discharge into the front lawn or buried underground and out to the curbs...we call them "bubblers". If your house just discharges into the yard and you sell you can not until you get the lines buried and out to the curb. They don' make current owners do it but it has to be done before you can close.

Oh - okay - thanks for the explaination. We don't have a basement - or a street gutter for that matter - LOL. People let water run pretty much wherever they want here in the forest