Water – Is sump pump supposed to discharge back onto property or onto the street curb

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I have a sump pump in my basement that discharges several times a day. Currently, it discharges water right next to my front steps. I read that sump pumps should discharge at least 10 ft away from the the home to avoid damage to the foundation. Mine is definitely too close to my house, and I am getting water in the basement, possibly from my own sump pump discharge. I called my town to get a permit to run my sump pump under the sidewalk in front of my house so it discharges out to the gutter. They told me this was illegal and that sump pump should discharge back to my own property. This doesn't make any sense to me, especially since almost all my neighbors and even the town library run their sump pumps under the sidewalk and discharging water to the gutter! I have seen other towns do the same setup. I want to go to back and tell them this. If However, if I tell them that my entire block has their pumps to the curb, what might happen? Might they come and fine everyone? Can I make a case for myself that I should be allowed?

Best Answer

You cannot make a case for yourself saying just because others do it you should be able to (just try that with a cop when getting pulled over for speeding)

What I have done in the past is to run the drain line to the curb and fill the last foot with gravel, when there is enough water it flows through the gravel and over the curb direct draining was not allowed, but this was legal, a big nosed neighbor trued to cause problems and called the city after I did this I did not get cited but several others on the block did, now every one has the same setup, makes no sense to me but if it flows out of the ground and over the curb it was legal in that city.

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