sump pit

In by Jackie Dunn

Dug at the lowest part of the basement floor to capture and contain any flowing water from a sump pump. The sump pump sits at the bottom of or beside this trench and expels excess water through a series of interconnected pipes to a suitable discharge location. The pump can sense water levels through a float that rises and falls with fluctuating water levels in the trench. Also called a sump trench.

sump pit (Wikipedia)

A sump (American English and some parts of Canada: oil pan) is a low space that collects often undesirable liquids such as water or chemicals. A sump can also be an infiltration basin used to manage surface runoff water and recharge underground aquifers. Sump can also refer to an area in a cave where an underground flow of water exits the cave into the earth.

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