Universal Dual Float Switch Replaces Piggyback Sump Pump Switches (BWC1)

This is a great product we have had it for over a year now. We've had multiple power outages, and it's not short-circuited and stopped working. We do have it on a search protector but we have several others in the past. That tore up a lot quicker. So this product is reliable. We haven't installed in our basement for our sump pump

So far this unit works perfectly. I have had water issues for many years on and off due to faulty pump switches and switch systems that stick in the on or off position. After doing a lot of research I found that there are no integrated pump switch systems that are completely reliable. Plumbers have fixes similar to this one that cost anywhere from $100 TO $300. But this solution thus far is the most elegantly simple, low cost and about the only thing that I can see that might fail is the electronics that turn the pump timer on and off. I have had this unit in for about 6 weeks and so far so good it works every time. It's been almost a year now and this switch is still working well, it has saved me a lot of worry and I trust it to work every time. As for the 10 second delay that seems to trouble some people, you can easily adjust the height of the float to make sure you empty the sump completely or make sure it doesn't drain before timer shuts down. This is no big deal. I still recommend this product 100% Coming up on 4 years and this product is still working great not 1 single failure! I originally purchased in 2011, 7 years later the back up float system saved me from flooding. The fist magnetic float switch failed and the second one kicked in as advertised and kept the pump working. I noticed one day that the sump hole water level was higher than I had originally set. After some preliminary investigation I realized that the primary switch float wasn't working but the back up kicked in just as designed. I quickly purchased a new unit which arrived in a few days. I just finished replacing the unit and I'm back to normal. I took the time to disassemble the failed float unit (which is easy to do) and I cleaned up all the caked up silt, and once i did this the old float switch unit is working again! Now I have a reconditioned backup. What I learned is that after 7 years of flawless performance, the unit developed some silt/muddy build up that interfered with the magnet sensing on the primary float inside the cage. Once cleaned all was good again. hence if you have one, it worth the few minutes it takes to clean it up once in a while. So now I'm a 7 year test lab with nothing but excellent results. if I could give it 6 stars I would!

The basement watchdog arrived today; mounted it on my sump pump, and, behold, it works! Nice. The float unit is 2 inches in diameter and 5 inches tall. It fits in my small sump bucket with room to spare. Nice - other float switches won't work in my cramped space. In the fabulous future of flying cars and robotic maids, I expect sumps to be 18, 20, or even 24 inches across. But for now, I must be content with a 12 inch diameter muckhole. Even better: the float unit apparently runs on low voltage. This is a good thing, since it'll live around water. When it activates, I hear the guy call out, "Click" ... a sure sign that the wallwart has changed states (well, it stays in California, but perhaps it's yearning to return to its birthplace in Shanghai) I'm happy with its timer, which keeps the pump going for 10 seconds beyond the float hitting the low end. During this time, my sump-pump slurps the last half inch out of delicious sump-syrup from the bucket. What's wrong with it? Other pump switch connoisseurs and sump-o-philes will object to its color. It is, alas, all black. Hey - everything around a sump is black: the bucket. the hole. The mud is black. The ABS pipes. And it's the darkest corner of my cellar. Why can't someone make a float switch that shows up when I shine my flashlight there? How about a reflective or white float? Especially, a white cord, so I can see where it's twisted amidst the mud, muck, and debris? Then, too, this is one big wallwart. A 4x3 inch lump that sticks out two inches from your wall outlet. It weighs a shade under a pound; if you often go hiking with your sump pump, you'll eventually notice this weight in your backpack. A very useful feature would be a glowing green LED to say that, Yes, power is reaching the switch. This would save time during those all-too-wet emergencies -- is there power getting to that cellar outlet? ? ? Ideally, the light would glow green when the pump is switched off, yellow when the pump should be powered, and red when the planet Saturn is about to collide with Earth. Sadly, this is a power vampire (even without any LED!). Using an ammeter, I measured it eating 2 watts in standby (which is what it'll do 99 percent of the time). This translates into $3/year for those of us who enjoy the flavorful electricity from Pacific Gas and Electric. So the little guy does not qualify for Energy Star (Level-V requires less than 0.5 watts in standby). In addition, it's quite silent after the sump has been drained. I'd hoped that it would play a rousing Sousa march during the pump action, and then improvise on a few riffs by Thelonius Monk followed by a Bach cantata with a tromba da tirarsi. No such luck.

I have a completly finished basement with a kitchen, office, several bedrooms, and a home theater room. In other words, I cannot afford to have my basement flood ever! (Unless it's the end of the world, in which case who cares.) I have a redundnat sump pump system that is connected to my automatic back-up generator system. I also have an automatic phone out alarm system that will call my cell phone if the water in my crock reaches within 3 inches of the top. I have yet to see a float system built into a sump pump that is actually reliable. I never depend on the built in float. I used to have a series of independent floats that worked off gravity switches, but eventually the switches wore out, and I could not find replacements. I decided after much research to give this float system a try, and I am very impressed. It is very reliable, and easy to install. It seems virtually fail safe compared to any other system I have seen, and is much more afforadable than other systems you can build. I will order a second unit for my second pump now. I highly recommend this system for anyone who wants a very dependable and affordable float switch system. Update: After about 1 year of having this float system in place, it has worked great! Not a single problem. Very happy with it's performance. I would highly recommend this float to anyone who wants a reliable float system that will not fail when you need it most.

March 3, 2019: update Still the easiest and fastest way to keep a sump pump running and not repairing switches or buy entire pumps. 10 minutes with a screwdriver and the replacement is working and the problem is solved. NOTE: When it fails it usually leaves the sump pump running, which could in theory burn out your pump. I have not had that issue. Failed again after 14 months. I checked and in my house with the amount of use this gets, it lasts from 12 to 15 months consistently. I do get more water in my sump than most. If your sump gets a lot of use, buy the square trade warranty. It is basically a 2 for one benefit. Jan 1/2018 update: 1 year later, the switch went bad again. Within 10 minutes I replaced it with my standby and ordered its replacement on Amazon. Compared to completely replacing the pump or disassembling to replace the switch plus the PVC work that I used to do no less than once every 2 years, this is a fantastic deal and much appreciated. We have a very active sump pump. About once every one to two years our sump pump switch used to go bad, while the pump was fine. We ordered the replacement switch from the sump pump company and installed it. Eventually though, the switch housing "screws" would make it so the switch could not be replaced causing the need for a full new pump. Replacing this switch when it could be done required taking the pump out of the pit, disassembling it, installing the new switch and then reinstalling the pump. Replacing the pump could be less effort if all of the fitting till worked. By comparison, replacing this switch takes under 10 minutes. It does go bad but the cost of a bad switch is the 10 minutes to replace and whatever the price of the switch is, which I believe is still under $40.

Works exactly as designed, installation could not be easier. If you have a screwdriver you can install this thing. Love the fact that it has a backup float in case the primary fails. If you live in an area where your sump runs quite a bit though I would suggest investing in a battery backup system or if you have city water check out the Liberty SJ10. I have this installed and it got a workout while I was waiting for this replacement float. You can't beat it if you have city water, no worries if the power goes out since you still have water pressure. If you have a well you are stuck with the battery backup system which are not bad either other then the maintenance / replacement of the battery and the worry that your battery will run out of juice before the power comes back on.

We bought this to install in a dry well outdoors for a spot that floods during heavy rain. This product is not intended to be used this way but is working for us in a very small dry well that did not have room for a regular sump pump float. I'm including photos with a ruler showing the controller so you can see the size and install. It took a few emails to get sizing info from the manufacturer. The controller is just under 2" deep not including the prongs, 3.5" tall and 3.5" wide. If outside or you are wanting a cover, the cover needs to have room for your sump plug and cord to come our and down. Due to our outdoor installation, we needed a weatherproof outlet and cover that the controller would fit in. In case anyone else is in this situation, this is the cover that works with the Basement Watchdog controller. Taymac MM7440C-B Weatherproof Double Outlet Cover Outdoor Receptacle Protector, 4-3/8 Inches Deep, Clear The smaller depth MM2420C cover will not fit. Also, due to it being outdoors to pump out a drywell, there will constantly be leaf litter flowing into the area with the sump and float. We added a fine mesh bag zip tied on (not included) to keep debris from interfering with the two floats. The bag was something we already had, but even a leg from panty hose might help. You can see from the photos in the dry well that there is a lot of sand and yard debris, it is still working just fine. It cycles on to pump out the water, then cycles off a few seconds later. We've had very heavy rains the past few days, rains that normally would have flooded into our house. This little controller is working well with the sump pump we added to our existing drainage. We haven't even had a puddle on the patio since adding them, much less flooding in the house.

This thing is great: The Basement Watchdog comes with a 2 year warranty on it and is so easy to install I felt I had to test it out. It worked like a charm every time I filled the sump pit. No matter if it was a slow drip or a relatively fast release between the pump I have and the sensor it would kick off consistently and accurately (always right at the same water level) unlike what I replaced. My Reason for buying it on Amazon: I replaced the bulb / ball floater style that had been failing inconsistently for a week with this. I had it rush shipped from Amazon. Over 50 miles I couldn't find one in any of our local stores and now I see why! This little beauty works like a dream and its hard to keep in stock in here because we get a lot of water. The way it's packaged they don't keep many items per store so it would be easy to run out.