Customer Reviews For The Top 20
Primary Submersible Sump Pumps
Are you wondering what others are saying about the Top 20 best selling primary submersible sump pumps? Here are some customer reviews. They provide another perspective.
When we purchased our last submersible sump pump, we looked at the features, read the reviews and price comparisons then made our decision. For your convenience the site map on the right will take you directly to a specific sump pump review.
Investing in the Primary Submersible Sump Pump that is right for you is so important. Your home deserves to be protected from water damage when those heavy rains come.
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#1 Zoeller M53 1/3 HP
It’s old and rusty, but still a worker, February 13, 2008
By R. Colbourne
I’ve had one of these pumps doing heavy duty on/off pumping for at least 25 trouble-free years. It’s old and rusty, but continues to provide reliable service – I use it in the cellar to control a serious water problem. I bought another, just in case, but the new one just gathers dust. This is the one!
Great sump, indestructible with some simple maintenance., January 6, 2010
By El Guappo NYC
These Zoeller pumps are pretty much indestructible. Typically, the only thing that goes on them is the switch, which is <$20 and easily replaced.
The other thing I finally learned after a few headscratchers with these is that IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU KEEP THE SMALL BLEEDER HOLE BY THE BASE CLEAR (also usually another one by the check valve). These holes are about 1/8 inch and easily clogged with debris. If you don’t, the pump won’t work nearly as well, and may not pump at all. I also periodically remove the base and clear out that area and the impeller as it can get clogged with sediment as well.
#2 Wayne CDU800 1/2 HP
Quite and powerful, December 10, 2009
By Chief
I bought and installed the Wayne 1/2HP sump pump 2 years ago in my basement sump pit. I replaced a 20 year motor that had finally stopped, due to muck at the bottom of the steel lined pit. The only purpose of this pump is to push out the water generated from my furnace and the humidifier that goes into the floor drain and then into a 55 gallon sump pit. No outside drainage tile. So the pump only operates about 7 times a week and pumps out the water out into the sewer line which is located 8 feet above the pit. A powerful pump that works quickly when needed. No problems.
Wayne 1/2 HP sump pump, April 17, 2008
By William J Orlowski
I have owned the Wayne 1/2HP sump pump for over 5 years. Originally I intended this pump to be a primary sump pump but after one week of moderate to heavy rains, I soon found out this pump could not handle the flow of water into my sump well. The sump pump ran continuously and I needed a second pump to keep the basement from being flooded. Now I use the Wayne pump strictly as a backup pump. If you don’t live in a low lying area as I do, you may be able to get by with this pump as a primary sump pump. One other thing, the pump is relatively noisy.
#4 Little Giant 506168 1/3 HP
No customer Reviews available.
#5 Wayne CDUCAP995 3/4 HP
Early Impressions, April 19, 2009
By P. Lundberg
It is hard to do a review on this because as we all know, one of the most important features of a sump pump is its reliability, and I simply have not had it long enough to know that. So keep that in mind as you read this.
This pump is very quiet and powerful. I can just barely hear it run when standing right over the sump pit. My old Zoeller pump could be heard throughout the house. The Switch Genius works fine, and hopefully will eliminate the problem I had with my old pump of the float getting stuck.
The Switch Genius has its own power cord with a receptacle on the back of the plug, and the sump power then plugs into that. The switch receptacle is then what controls power to the sump. For continuous pumping, you simply plug the sump power directly into an outlet. Kind of an odd setup but it works. The cords were a bit short for my setup and I had to use an extension cord. I don’t know how the Switch Genius works but I like the fact that there is nothing mechanical to fail.
This doesn’t seem to be built as solid as my old cast iron Zoeller pump, but it is much quieter. The Wayne is described as cast iron but the only cast iron appears to be the intake/outlet housing. The impeller and top are thermoplastic, and the motor is not housed in cast iron like Zoeller’s are. Only time will tell if it is as reliable or not, but with a 5 year warranty I would expect it to be. My biggest concern is that if it does get stuck on I would never know it until it burns out because it is so quiet. But I do have a backup system in place.
Do not buy this pump if your water softener drains into the sump., December 17, 2009
By T. Dog MACHESNEY PARK, ILLINOIS USA
Just FYI, this pump cannot be used if your water softener brine drains into the sump pit. The salty brine water “fools” the “Switch Genius” and the pump runs constantly. I have confirmed this with Wayne Pumps. Other than that, the pump works great and is very quiet. I am going to have to buy another pump without the “Switch Genius” technology.
Wayne Sump Pump, November 28, 2009
By R. Zink
I’ve had the Wayne pump running for about a month now and it’s performance has been flawless. So far I would recommend this pump to others.
#6 CDU790 1/3 HP
CDU790 Sump Pump Review, March 12, 2009
By Lawrence Coppari
Pump arrived promptly and works as advertised. I am a satisfied customer. I have no hesitation recommending this pump.
I had a flooding problem in my driveway across from several garages. The water had nowhere to go but eventually would reach the point where it would flow down sidewalk across front yard removing mulch from flower/shrubbery beds. The pump was placed in a sump that holds about 15 gallons. It is fed by two drains located at driveway low points and piped to sump. With moderate rainfall, pump comes on about every 40 seconds for a 9 second interval. For very heavy rainfall, pump comes on about every 11 seconds for an 11 second run. I have pump exhausting through a 1.5 in PVC pipe about 60 feet long to city street. The pipe goes uphill about 3 feet including its depth in sump. Calculations indicate it is putting out about 1900 GPM to street. Pump is rated at 2800 GPM for a 5 ft. head. Head includes altitude change as well as pipe losses. Therefore with 60 feet of pipe plus some elbows, the rate must be less.
Dont Buy Unreliable , December 21, 2008
By A. Miles
I like the pump design I have had both ACE and Wayne 1/3 and 1/2 HP pumps. There are two problems – switch life is 2 years or less depending how often its used. The float rod is regular steel and rusts causing the float to stick, which causes the pump to stay on or off. I can’t figure why Wayne would make a great pump with lousy parts. Yup I can see this is a typical American manufacturer; no life testing and poor quality control. Recommend you stay away from Wayne pumps. Remember you don’t need the pump when its dry – they fail when you need them the most, in a rain storm at 2 pm or when your on vacation, again stay away from these Wayne pumps. They have known about these design flaws for years and done nothing about it.
GREAT WORKING SUMP PUMP, May 11, 2008
By R Adams
I bought one of these 12 years ago and it still worked, but the shut of switch quit. I decided not to fix that, get a new one, not only did it get used for the sump pit in basement, but the washing machine was run through the sump pit so the sump pump got a good work out every day. Don’t buy the pedestal type, they only last 1 or 2 years, the submersible pumps are the way to go, very dependable and will last for years.
Great Product, June 20, 2008
By Handy Man Cincinnati, OH
This item was easy to install and has work great.
I highly recommend this product. Also this the second Wayne pump
that I have bought ( different type).
#7 Wayne CDU790 1/3HP
No customer reviews available.
#8 Little Giant 505700 1/4 HP
No customer reviews available.
#9 Wayne WST30 3/10 HP
Bought 2 work fine for our granite shop, March 23, 2009
By D. Worrell
We bought 2 of these for our granite shop. We don’t pre-filter them, so they pump out anything that goes through their strainers (1/2″ I think). They showed up fast like always & are priced better than anywhere else I went.
Not the quality or durability expected from a Wayne Pump., September 14, 2008
By S.A. Robbins, USA
Last time we needed a Sump Pump, we bought a Wayne. We thought it would (should) last longer than the previous Flotec pump. Well it did not last that long, about a year longer than the Flotec. In 25 years, we have gone through 5 Sump Pumps. A Sears, Simer (no parts after 4 years!), Flotec (twice) and now the Wayne. I had bought a Wayne Cast Iron Sump Pump CDU-790 as backup and installed that when the WST-30 failed. The WST-30 acted as though it was tripping the internal thermal protector. It would stop running and then 1/2 hour later it would finally startup. For the last 2 days we have had a very heavy rain and the WST-30 was running quite a bit but it should not have overheated sitting in cool water! The impeller did not turn freely and I suspect the bearings were worn out already. In the meantime I used an Auxiliary pump to get the water level down and then installed the new pump. Our Sump does not fill up to trip the Sump Pump very often so these Sump Pumps should last a lot longer. Really disappointed with Wayne and the other manufacturers.
#10 Flotec FPSC3250A 1/2 HP
No customer reviews available.
#11 Flotec FPOS3200A 1/2 HP
Worked flawlessly for 11 years!, April 27, 2009
By Techmonster
I have a crawlspace that runs anywhere from 12″ to 18″ high (extremely tight), 3 houses from a lake. The house is on very low land (the land is actually at lake level), and if the weather so much as drizzles, there is standing water under the house. In the Spring and Fall, this Flotec pump kicks on roughly every 2 minutes, 24 hours a day, during these rainy seasons. I installed it over 11 years ago, and it has never failed to do just that… pump water out every 2 minutes…. for all that time. It just now seems to have finally given up the ghost. Considering the CONSTANT workload thrown at this thing, you can’t possibly ask for more. You DO need to anchor it to the bottom of the plastic pit-tub with some rocks/bricks to keep it steady and in position (lean them on top of the base), but if you simply take the time to install it properly like that, it works like crazy! Never had one single problem where it failed to operate. I am buying another one right now as it is replacement and expect it to provide another decade of non-stop workhorse service!
Dead when you need it, January 8, 2009
By Cebell Berry
My house has a crawl space about 2 feet high under the house. This area floods during heavy rains. Last sump pump rusted and I had to crawl through the cold, dark water to find it and reinstall with this Flotec. I tested it several times. What happens? It fails its first real test, only several months later, during a dire flood. The float lifted, but the pump didn’t activate. What good is a warranty when your house is flooding?
#12 Flotec 1800A 1/4 HP
This sump PUMPS…, January 15, 2009
By Capt. D.
I installed this unit when another larger, cast iron, older ( more expensive) unit failed. It was easy to connect and once installed, it pumped and pumped and pumped.
San Diego just got almost as much rain in Dec as we got all last year; this pump handled all the water with no problem! I’m hoping for many years of service from it as it has a plastic housing instead of cast iron which corrodes in a year or two.
p.s. Sometimes using a smaller HP sump pump is better as the pump does not pump so fast that it empties the “sump” only to stop and then have start up again once the sump fills; remember the sump pump is cooled by being in contact with the water, so it is not good to have the sump pump above water.
Sump Pump, February 23, 2008
By E. Chicago, IL
The pump works well. Customer service was helpful and polite on the telephone when we had a question about the installation. Pump did not come with instructions, but information is available on the internet.
#13 Simer 2905 1/4 HP
Worked as expected!!
By None Wyoming on June 19, 2008
Powerful, Quite. Needs a longer cord.
This is a sump pump and I need it to work flawlessly to keep my basement from flooding. So far, so good.
#14 Zoeller M57 1/3 HP
A fantastic pump – that lasts and lasts., October 14, 2008
By Brian Denton
I have an unusual set-up in my house: my roof drains rainwater into my basement sump pump pit, and the water is then pumped out through the house’s waste line. Because of this set-up, my sump pump gets a real workout on a regular basis, and it also has to accommodate dirt, sand, grit, and some leaves. Recently the switch wore out on my Zoeller M53 sump pump after over 10 years of worry free use. I initially searched Home Depot and Lowes for a new pump, but reviews of their pumps frequently reported major problems after as little as 2 years of light use! Also, their pumps are not equipped to deal with small solids, so it didn’t take much thought to decide that I should replace a Zoeller with another Zoeller. This time I bought the Zoeller M57 model, but the only difference between the M57 and the M53 is whether the base structure is made of plastic or iron. I don’t really see much advantage of either one over the other, but I bought the M57 with the iron base. I can sleep easy again knowing that no matter how much it rains, my Zoeller M57 can handle the job with ease.
One final note: I would recommend that anyone using a sump pump should also buy a water alarm – to alert you if your basement starts to flood. I never knew such a thing existed until I started searching for new pumps, but this $10-$12 investment can save you a MAJOR headache if, for some reason, your sump pump stops working.
Hoping for better performance, August 3, 2009
By K Smith
Recently I replaced a previous Zoeller with this pump. The M57 came highly recommended. The previous Zoeller failed after 1.5 yrs flooding my basement. It was a low-end Zoeller,M72, however i still expected better. I’m hoping for better from the M57. I upgraded to the M57 for added protection, and because of recent failures. Recently cleaned out the pit and had lots of dirt, grit and sand, etc. in it hence the effluent M57 pump w/ all cast iron construction. However, recently opened the pit and was surprised at the amount of rust around the base of the pump and at the seams in only 1-2 weeks. Had been getting some regen. water from water softener into this pit. I stopped this flow. We’ll see if the rust continues. I will rate performance further down the road.
#15 Little Giant 505300 1/6 HP
No customer reviews available.
#16 Little Giant 506158 3/10 HP
Not totally happy but then again I was abusing it…, February 24, 2007
By Z. Yang Great Falls, VA
I use it for my koi pond. When water gets low or when the filter gets clogged the automatic switch would go on and off every 15 seconds, which in itself is OK, but if that continues for days, like when I am out of town or simply being my lazy self, the switch gets stuck. I had to replace the switch with an older one from a broken pump that was bought quite a few years ago. You know, they just don’t make things with quality parts like they used to in the old days… or maybe I should just remember to get by old butt off the sofa and clean the filter more often.
Nice little pump for the price
By Dan with a low backyard from Dallas, tx on 10/12/2009
Cheap, Easy to Install, Easy to Use
It worked for 2.5 years with no maintenance After 2.5 years it died with no visible problem! Probably switch burned out. I am on my third now. 2.5 years of keeping my house from flooding is worth it for the price. Would buy again and will try to fix the switch with the kit.
Great sump pump!!
By MLRYAN from State Center, Iowa on 6/8/2008
We had this sump pump installed after the heavy rains of 1993. The Little Giant 6-CIA has been very reliable and not given us a bit of trouble. Today, June 8 2008, we had 3.5 inches of this morning and the pump is cycling every 3-4 min. I highly recommend this pump. Fifteen years and it still keeps pumping away. Keep on pump!!
By Donna from Rhode Island on 3/14/2008
I have always used Little Giant pumps and their quality outlives all others.
17. Little Giant 508158 4/10HP
No customer reviews available.
#18 Basement Watchdog BW1033 1/3 HP
No customer reviews available.
#19 Basement Watchdog BW1050 1/2 HP
Quiet, Compact and Powerful, February 15, 2009
By Captain Janeway
I purchased this pump as a replacement for my standard noisy sump pump with an exposed float. I kept having problems with float hang-up and shaft seizure on three different “dry motor pumps”.
Installation was a breeze. The pump is compact and quiet. It is removable by unplugging the AC cord and loosening one plastic pipe union about six feet up from the pump discharge outlet. Since I have a dry bottom sump, I do this periodically (at least once per year) to replace the top 2 inches of sand with coarse blasting sand. This keeps the pit clean and dry. I keep the pump inlet about 4 inches from the bottom to avoid handling debris. That bottom drainage removes the remaining water so there is no standing water in the sump pit.
The only additional thing that I had to do was to use a Ty-Rap® to hold the control box to the wall receptacle. Just loosen the wall plate and tighten it again about halfway on a Ty-Rap®, then engage the Ty-Rap® and tighten it after the control box is plugged in. It is a bit too easy to accidentally bump this and have it fall out for my liking.
This is the best pump that I have found for this purpose so far. None of my other pumps have lasted the three years that this one is warranted for. There are no customer reviews.
Reviews of Top 20 Submersible Sump Pumps
1. Zoeller M53 1/3HP
2. Wayne CDU800 1/2 HP
3. Wayne CDU900 3/4HP
4. Little Giant 506168 1/3 HP
5. Wayne CDUCAP995 3/4HP
6. Wayne CDUCAP725 1/3HP
7. Wayne CDU790 1/3HP
8. Little Giant 505700 1/4HP
9. Wayne WST30 3/10HP
10. Flotec FPSC3250 1/2 HP
11. Flotec FPOS3200A 1/2 HP
12. Flotec 1800A 1/4HP
13. Simer 2905 1/4HP
14. Zoeller M57 1/3HP
15. Little Giant 505360 1/6HP
16. Little Giant 506158 3/10HP
17. Little Giant 508158 4/10HP
18. Basement Watchdog BW1033 1/3 HP
19. Basement Watchdog BW1050 1/2 HP
20. Zoeller M137 1/2 HP