Condensate Pump – Blog 2 – An Elegant Solution to Flooding

When your insurance company tells you they won’t cover another flood it’s time to look for a different approach and that’s just what this homeowner did when she decided to phone R&B.

The answer as affected by our popular technician Malcolm, was elegantly simple.  His solution was to wire the furnace through the condensate pump.  Wired this way, when the condensate pump is working, the furnace is working. No furnace, no condensate, no flood, no pain.

As much as we’d like to lay claim to this brilliant solution, it is actually a feature of the pump they had.   This is how it works.  As the water level raises it triggers the pump to active.  This is the first stage.  If the water continues to accumulate  – from a pump failure or blocked outlet tube – it will trigger the second stage where heating equipment is turned off.  This stage can also be connected to an alarm to alert the homeowner of an issue before they notice that they are cold.

Our technician noticed that this feature of the condensate had not been put to use prior to our visit.  It took just under five minutes for him to wire the furnace to this pump feature and it was still within the time of our regular annual furnace service.

What is the moral of this story?  Industry experience and product knowledge do make a difference.  This year when we are in your home servicing your heating equipment, please ask us to check the wring of your condensate pump to ensure all safety features are taken advantage of.

If the pump fails and turns off your heat, yes that is inconvenient.  However if it fails and does not turn off your heat, that can be a way bigger mess and expense.   Remember, R&B has 24-hour emergency service.  Ask us to check your condensate pump wiring when you are booking your Fortis BC recommended annual furnace service.