unfinished.one

Uniformat D2040

Sump pump

Also called sump

  • Confidence C
  • Version 0.2.0 (permanent link)
  • Reviewed 2026-10-22

This is version 0.2.0. The latest is 0.4.0.

Service life

17.5 yearsmedian of the stated lives · sources say 15–20 years
05101520251520

Years in service. The band runs from the shortest to the longest life the sources state, so it shows how much they disagree, not how long 80% of units last. The line is the median of the stated lives.

One source. This value rests on a single document (CNA e-Tool Estimated Useful Life Table, p9). Treat it as that source's figure, not a settled life, until others confirm it.

Basis

  • 20 years · CNA e-Tool Estimated Useful Life Table, p9 · HUD CNA 3.4.1.1.8 “Commercial Sump Pump” — U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (planning life)
    Same life for family and elderly properties. US multifamily housing. HUD gives 20 years for commercial and 15 for residential sump pumps.
  • 15 years · CNA e-Tool Estimated Useful Life Table, p9 · HUD CNA 3.4.1.1.9 “Residential Sump Pump” — U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (planning life)
    Same life for family and elderly properties. US multifamily housing.

How sources are chosen and recorded: sourcing policy.

Municipal lives for plumbing (D20)

26 municipalities in Ontario and British Columbia state a life for plumbing as a whole, in 18 distinct tables: 15–50 years, median 25. 34 rows come from capital asset policies (accounting lives, used for amortization) and 1 from asset management plans (planning lives, used to forecast replacement). They describe the system rather than this component, and none is a measured life.

Median 25 yearsKingston: Building Fixtures, 15 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - Water Treatment System, 15 yearsTrent Lakes: Mechanical Systems - Fixtures, 15 yearsComox Valley: HVAC systems, mechanical, plumbing, wiring, etc., 20 yearsCranbrook: HVAC, plumbing, lighting, etc, 20 yearsTelkwa: Electrical/Plumbing/Fire, 20 yearsLondon: Building Components - Services (HVAC, lighting, communication, plumbing etc.), 20 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - Fixtures, 20 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - Boiler, 20 yearsLantzville: Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, 25 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - Septic System, 25 yearsRainy River: Building Improvements - Electrical/Plumbing, 25 yearsRainy River: Building Improvements - Electrical/Plumbing, 25 yearsThe Blue Mountains: Septic System, 25 yearsGreater Napanee: E30 Chillers, Rink Piping, Fuel Storage Tanks, 30 yearsGrey Highlands: Septic System, 30 yearsThe Blue Mountains: Plumbing System, 30 yearsTrent Lakes: Mechanical Systems - Piping, 30 yearsParksville: Plumbing Infrastructure, 50 yearsGreater Madawaska and Quinte West: Piping, 50 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - System, 50 yearsMeaford: Plumbing - Cistern, 50 yearsThe Blue Mountains: Cistern, 50 yearsFort St. James, Revelstoke and 3 more: Electrical/Plumbing/Fire, 15–20 yearsOkanagan-Similkameen: Electrical/Plumbing/Fire, 15–20 yearsSalmo: Electrical/Plumbing/Fire, 15–20 yearsBancroft, Centre Hastings and 2 more: Electrical/Plumbing, 25–30 years0102030405060

Years. Each dot is one stated life and each bar a stated range; equal values stack. Hollow marks are planning lives from asset management plans; filled marks are accounting lives from policies. The dashed line is the median. Policies that copy the same table count once.

All 27 stated lives
MunicipalityAs writtenYearsKindSource
KingstonBuilding Fixtures15accountingp15 · 2016
MeafordPlumbing - Water Treatment System15accountingp17 · 2020
Trent LakesMechanical Systems - Fixtures15accountingp10 · 2009
Fort St. James, Revelstoke, Rossland, Sicamous, Tumbler Ridge · same tableElectrical/Plumbing/Fire15–20accountingp5, p9, p7, p9, p5 · 2010
Okanagan-SimilkameenElectrical/Plumbing/Fire15–20accountingp11 · 2023
SalmoElectrical/Plumbing/Fire15–20accountingp6 · 2016
Comox ValleyHVAC systems, mechanical, plumbing, wiring, etc.20accountingp6 · 2010
CranbrookHVAC, plumbing, lighting, etc20accountingp9 · 2010
TelkwaElectrical/Plumbing/Fire20accountingp8
LondonBuilding Components - Services (HVAC, lighting, communication, plumbing etc.)20accountingp2 · 2023
MeafordPlumbing - Fixtures20accountingp16 · 2020
MeafordPlumbing - Boiler20accountingp17 · 2020
LantzvilleElectrical, Mechanical, Plumbing25accountingp11 · 2019
MeafordPlumbing - Septic System25accountingp17 · 2020
Rainy RiverBuilding Improvements - Electrical/Plumbing25accountingp11 · 2010
Rainy RiverBuilding Improvements - Electrical/Plumbing25planningp17 · 2026
The Blue MountainsSeptic System25accountingp11 · 2019
Bancroft, Centre Hastings, Hastings Highlands, Wollaston · same tableElectrical/Plumbing25–30accountingp5, p4, p6, p5
Greater NapaneeE30 Chillers, Rink Piping, Fuel Storage Tanks30accountingp16 · 2012
Grey HighlandsSeptic System30accountingp11 · 2026
The Blue MountainsPlumbing System30accountingp11 · 2019
Trent LakesMechanical Systems - Piping30accountingp10 · 2009
ParksvillePlumbing Infrastructure50accountingp9 · 2023
Greater Madawaska, Quinte West · same tablePiping50accountingp17, p38 · 2025
MeafordPlumbing - System50accountingp16 · 2020
MeafordPlumbing - Cistern50accountingp16 · 2020
The Blue MountainsCistern50accountingp11 · 2019

Of 35 rows, 2 were compared with an image of their page; 33 were matched to their page automatically (the label and number appear in the page text). Follow the page link before relying on an automatically matched row. About the policies · All approved rows as JSON

Preventive maintenance

6 tasks in 1 work order.

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12Annual

Months from the schedule start. Download the tasks as CSV for a CMMS, or ask the MCP tool get_pm_schedule for dated visits.

Annual · 6 tasks

Source: Public Buildings Service Preventive Maintenance Guide (Public Buildings Maintenance Standards), PLMB-DWV-03-01Y Sump Pump

TaskPage
Remove cover, flush pit and pump outp560
Check level sensors, floats, switches and alarmsp560
Clean pump and motor; lubricate if requiredp560
Inspect check valvep560
Inspect pit for cracksp560
Inspect cover gasketsp560

Frequencies are ISO 8601 durations in the data (P3M = every 3 months).

Open questions

  • Only one source so far: HUD planning lives for US multifamily housing. Canadian and observed sources are needed.
  • Written for GSA contracted O&M in US federal buildings; job plans are generic and defer to manufacturer instructions, and the fire extinguisher plans only point to NFPA 10.

Know the answer? Send it with a source to [email protected].

Cite this

Citation

unfinished.one (2026). Sump pump, v0.2.0. https://unfinished.one/c/sump-pump/v/0.2.0

BibTeX

@misc{unfinished_sump_pump_0_2_0,
  title = {Sump pump},
  author = {{unfinished.one}},
  year = {2026},
  version = {0.2.0},
  url = {https://unfinished.one/c/sump-pump/v/0.2.0},
  note = {CC BY 4.0}
}

Licence CC BY 4.0 · How to cite · JSON · Versions: 0.4.0, 0.3.0, 0.2.0, 0.1.0