Thank you for this easy to follow video. I ordered the pump and replaced it. My new pump did come with the electrical wires that you mentioned and I am not confident to hook them up so will leave them for now. Funny, I filled the box and waited to hear the pump kick on. Waited, waited....then I remembered - the little cardboard slip! Pulled it out and wa-la. So funny. It's the little things, right. onward. Have a great Monday.
Ha ha, yep. Gotta get that little slip pulled out! With the wires, you can just put some wire nuts on the ends and leave them hanging. Glad you got it figured out!
You just wire your ac line to it that is normally plugged into your control board. Then the other lead you wire back to the same port on control board. It basically acts as an interrupt to ac if the pump stops working.
I replaced mine today and just want to add that anyone whose pump is hard wired inside your furnace, make sure your main power to your furnace is shut off before you start disconnecting your old pump. Most furnaces have a disconnect switch, but if yours is older, you may need to flip the breaker.
Thanks a lot Flip!!! I bought the same pump from Amazon and this really cleared up how to connect it. I really appreciate that you shared your experience. Best wishes to you Buddy!
My old pump does not have the safety switch. But the new one has. Should I leave those two wires without connecting to the furnace? Can I just add the wire nuts on the ends and leave them hanging? Great video. Thanks a lot :)
No problem. You can attach them (there are diagrams on the web) if you want the added security of preventing a overflow or you can just put the wire nuts on.
Ugh, I did the install before watching a video and I forgot to take out the cardboard tab. When I went downstairs, my floor was flooded, but thankfully it all went down the drain. When I was looking at what caused the leak, I pulled the tab and the water shot up 10 feet in the air because I removed the pvc. It was an interesting experience for me lol.
aww man, just got out of the shower after being in my crawl space installing this with a dehumidifier... time to crawl back down there and remove the tab lol edit: tab was there still but no flooding
I had to go outside, attach a leftover piece of vinyl tubing to the discharge copper line and suck out the air in the line in order to "prime" the pump. Otherwise the column of water only went 4-5ft up from the pump and stopped, and box overflowed. Make sure you check proper pump function with bottles of water several times to ensure proper functioning before you turn your AC back on - otherwise you could end up with alot of water in your basement if your new pump isn't working properly. Replaced a crusty 30yr old Hartell with a Little Giant in May 2022 - let's see if this one goes 30 yrs!
Do you have to connect the safety switch wires? My old little giant pump failed after 13 years and improper maintenance and it didn't have the safety switch option.
You do not HAVE to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off. You can just put wire nuts on the ends of the wires if you don't want to hook it up.
That should not mess anything up. But I would switch your furnace off as well while the pump is off. So it doesn't keep draining into it and flood. Unless its just gonna be a little while, then its no big deal.
my unit does not have a pumo.. is this because its in the attic so it used gravity to flow water out? not sure if this is a stupid question. Is a condensate pump always required?
Not a stupid question. Not all homes have condensate pumps. If your furnace is in the attic than you probably just have a gravity fed drain, so you don't need one!
Great vid! re the safety switch wiring, are you saying to just cut the red wire coming from the thermostat and connect one end of thecut red wire to one of the leads from the pump. and connect the other end of the cut red wire to the other lead from the pump?
You're not actually "cutting" the red wire. Just breaking the circuit. So the red wire goes from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. (edit) Reading back what you wrote again that does make sense how you explained it. Just make sure power is off!!
@@fixitFlip I am confused! I thought cut off or split the Red wire that goes to the t-stat then connect with wire nuts the 2 ends of the condensate pump safety switch together with the t-stat red wire!
Installation is great and all but where does the 3/8 inch hose go? Does it go exit the exterior of the house and where is the exit for the discharge tube
Thank you! The discharge tube runs up and over a wall into a back room into a sump pump that the previous owner had installed by a water proofing company. The sump pump pumps it up out of the house.
were will you connect the 2 black wires from the pump there is brown wire with black and white wires inside coming from the furnce which is which is to connect
Just break the circuit of the red wire. It should go from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. There are some diagrams on the web that would help.
You do not have to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off. And yes, just put wire nuts on the ends of the wires.
The old one you took off you said the pipe was too long and that's why you had to take it apart. My question is of the pipe is going that far down am I wrong to think it would be past the water line in the pump acting as a p-trap now? Shouldn't terminate just above the water line?
Yes the pipe was going down too far for me to have room to take the pump off. It still functioned properly but was making really loud noises and on it's last legs. The pipe should just barely go into the pump.
Hey my man my new pump doesn't have the safety switch wires,,,But my old pump does basically backwards of urs what am I supposed to do with the wires on the old pump,,,,Or do you think that I should send it back and get the pump with the safety wires PLEASE 🙏 I NEED SOME HELP!!!
Was your new pump supposed to come with them? If you want to hook them up, then I would send it back. If you didn't plan on hooking them up then I wouldn't worry about it. You do not HAVE to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off.
Excellent video and thanks Flip. Installed in less than 10 minutes and I even got lucky with not having to drill new holes. How often does that happen!
had one of these setup for my standing air conditioner. there's still some excess water left in the water line that doesn't get pumped all the way out like the rest of the water does. is that a problem to be worried about? great in depth video man really explained a lot especially with the wires because i was confused if i needed to use it in my situation.
Shouldn't be the end of the world as long as there are no clogs in the line and most of the water is getting pumped out of the tank! Just don't want an overflow.
It won't totally prevent it. It depends on how the pipes are positioned outside. This guy has a pretty good DIY fix. rodhomerepair.blogspot.com/2010/01/furnace-intake-clogged-by-ice-crystals.html
This is a great video. Question. I want to connect this to a portable A/C. I need it to pump the water up to the window height. If not, my other option is to drain it into a bucket every once in a while. I’m trying to avoid my A/C condensation from overflowing. Thanks!
@@achilleze It's gotta come back down somewhere. These things can only pump water so high. There is no drain hose or drain pipe coming down in an adjacent room on the other side of a wall?
If you connect the furnace wire to the pump and the safety switch activates, will it also turn off the condensing unit, or do you need to hook up the air conditioner wire to it as well?
Can you use a Little Giant in place of a Beckett pump? Do they all hook up the same way? This is probably a dumb question but I have never replaced one of these before. Thank you!
If the pump is working properly, should the water discharge tube be empty of water? I’m not sure if my little giant is working or not. I’m getting a warning of “condensate pan overflow” and the discharge tube is full of water. Plus I don’t hear the little giant pumping at all. Would be nice if it had a light to indicate if it was on or not. Any suggestions and thanks!
I would say you'rs is malfunctioning. It sounds like maybe the motor went out on it. It should be moving the water through the tube. One way you can do a test is just take a bottle of water or pitcher and pour water into the top hole. It should kick on pretty quickly after it starts to fill up. If it doesn't kick on, there you go.
Regardless their will be water in the clear discharge line thats why the check valve is thier.. the pump is designed to only push water not air if it pushes air it will burn up.
Any chance you have a plug between the furnace and the condensate pump? Was a U or V trap (like under our sink) installed? I had one with my system and a sludge ball formed. The catch Pan I'm the furnace filled up, overflowed onto the floor. i blew air through the pvc pipe and unclogged the sludge ball. water drained well afterwards.
When the drain tubing goes up and to to outside.....how do you unclog or replace that? I have a new pump but it seems the hose isn’t draining the water up and to the outside very quickly/ the pump will actually overflow
Just follow the tubing all the way to where it goes, then detach it from both ends and replace as I do in the video. I would test that pump. Pour some water into and see if it kicks on pretty quickly. Or the link could be kinked somewhere.
Installing mine this weekend, the little giant instructions say yellow to yellow for the safety switch tho, dows that make sense? Thanks for the video!
Just break the circuit of the red wire. It should go from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. There are some diagrams on the web that would help.
Hello! Had a question, I am using this same pump but for a dehumidifying unit in my basement, do I need to do anything with those two leads with the safety switch?
very nice job! Question what does that pvc pipe that goes up from the hole in condensation pump? I know water is pushed into the unit from the furnace. Is the other end of pvc open just for air?
The Little Giant instructions are clear that a hose clamp SHOULD be used to secure the 3/8" ID discharge hose to the pump's check valve hose barb. It is not presented as an option. Especially if you are pumping up some height with the discharge hose, there can be quite a bit of pressure at the check valve's hose barb, and it can actually pop off quite easily, and then you will have possibly a lot of water draining back onto the floor. Best to use that hose clamp as recommended; WHY Little Giant does not just include one with the pump is a mystery.
Great video, thanks. I am going to use to pump out condensate from a dehumidifier in a vacation home. I think it would be good to wire the safety switch to turn off the dehumidifier if the pump fails. I take it that is possible. Can you give me some idea how that is done?
Did you have to switch it from "NO mode" to "NC mode" for the wires you hooked up? I see that in the Little Giant's instructions, but not clear when it's needed 🤔
I thought maybe for people who live alone, if they shut off the main supply and had this flowing into the tank, they could save some money. I was hoping to find a video on it but apparently I'm the first to think of it.
I know that air conditioning condensate can amplify Legionella and other airborne bacteria so it is probably why nobody does that. It can be used or certain things if it is treated a certain way but normally should just be disputed of.
That makes sense. I'll have to look into the water treatments available. I live in a very humid part of the country and I read an air conditioner can pull as much as 20 gallons of water out of the air per day, so there's got to be some kind of cost effective way to make use of it.
@@tonyj7205 You got me curious so I did some research. I found one article. It says it can be used for flushing toilets "if filtered and disinfected first. That precaution is necessary, he says, because toilet water can spray like an aerosol, which could expose people to Legionella bacteria. The same risk applies when HVAC condensate is used in lawn sprinklers, although this hazard is not associated with drip irrigation." www.watertechonline.com/benefits-harvesting-hvac-condensate/
i just bought a fixer upper with the ac in the hallway closet...i've never used a condensate pump before but, how would the pump pump the condensation out if i sit in the closet next to the air handler....are they capable of pumping up into the attic to catch pvc pipe that will cross over the attic down a wall and exit out of a hole i will drill to allow the pvc to exit the house near the compressor....simply....are condensate pumps capable of pumping about 10' up into an attic.
Hey, Pete. The discharge pressure or “lift” of pumps can vary. But you can research the model you buy. But most of them can push against gravity 15-20 feet, so shouldn’t have any trouble reaching that pipe.
Should any water be left in the 10mm clear discharge hose after pump drains? I'm only pumping water 5 meters over a gradual height of 5 feet. Pump on basement floor up to main waste pipe so not moving it very far. Pump seems to work perfectly but not sure if any water should be in discharge line? It's a little giant vcma-20s emptying the dehumidifier. Thanks
You don't have to install it. It shuts off the furnace if the pump fails. It keeps you from having possible water spillage/damage, but also your furnace will then be shut off.
@@fixitFlip I hooked up the pump and took cover off to test pump and it worked fine. While its hooked up to furnace the water is not draining, what's wrong?
jeremy cummings its possible that the pvc drain line coming out of your unit is clogged. Comes from the drain pan inside of unit to the pump. You can hook a shop vac to the pvc to see if it's clogged. Not sure I read your Problem right
@Michael Medeiros Yep, you can do that every so often. I have a video about cleaning it if you are interested. ruclips.net/video/MkDKEQWOs5M/видео.html
My condensate pump is leaking. I watched the video but what I don't understand why I have both PVC pipe going into the pump and a copper pipe. Would you tell what you think this means? Thank-you. I have a picture if you want to see it.
Does anybody know, on average, how long those pumps last? I’ve had mine for two years and it’s working fine but I just want to know what to expect as far as life expectancy of the pump
So im a young guy (23) and when I bought my house the furnace and central AC unit are quite old. I will be updating them soon, saving for it. Last year all summer the condensation from the central AC just dripped into a bin and I just emptied the bin every day or two. someone quoted me $500 to install a condensation pump for it but I think I'd rather do it myself Currently there is metal piping coming out of the side of the furnace. I assume this is the drain line for the condensation however I'm not 100% I just know water drips out of it. Do you recommend I remove this metal piping and replace it with PVC, or leave the metal piping and just attach the PVC to it to drain into the pump? I'm not comfortable doing the electricity part myself. I ask bc I notice the piping on yours there's a jut off near the bottom of the furnace with the PVC and then more PVC going up. On my furnace this metal piping juts out (substantially) and is towards the top of the furnace.
If it is truly metal (and not copper or something like that) then the best fix would be to replace it with PVC. Just because metal will rust. Having said that, you don't HAVE to do that right now. You could just attach PVC to get you down into your pump. Then just hope the metal pipe never gets rusty enough that you have to replace it. Yes, I would assume that is your condensation draining. Do it yourself! Save a lot of money!
Thank you for this, there's a tray under my pump which looks exactly like this one but lately it appears to be filling the tray more often then usual. Any trouble shoot tips you can give?
@@genesisgenesis4739 There could be some mold or mildew built up in the pump, causing it to clog. Definitely shouldn't be leaking out anywhere onto a tray.
when the guy installed my pump he ran the water line thru the wall to outside. Like Fix it FLip the guy kinked the hose where it made a 90 degree turn at my outside wall. The kink, coupled with the 10 degree weather froze the line outside and the pump kept running and running. I started adding anti-freeze to the unit but my neighbor said the water line should NOT empty outside the house. I thought for sure this video would answer my question as to where the water gets exhausted to but, sadly, Fix it Flip told me everything but that. He never showed the terminus of the water tube.
Condensate pumps can pump water to a lot of different places. Mine pumps into my sump pump reservoir, which the sump pump then pumps out of the house through pvc
Question my pump the new one has both cables of the same color yellow same goes to my AC unit does affect if i connect them mixed or the wrong way like something like damage my unit? I'm not all that good with this
I had the same problem. Left it off and came here to find out. I figure I'll go back down there and try it one way and wait for the AC unit to come on. And if it doesn't work I'll try the other way.
Feels like you need to keep adding water until water is discharging outside. Sort of priming the drain line. Also unclear where you connected the safety switch leads
It looks like they get almost identical reviews on Amazon, both very good, so you probably can't go wrong either way. The only difference I'm seeing is the Little Giant pump is about $6 cheaper. Hope that helps.
Went into the basement today to see a mini river because my condensate pump failed luckily these are on sale at menards rn and I get a employee discount so it's only like $40
@@fixitFlip I have a question: I have an A/C and the following issue: The condensate leaves the A/C through a plastic tube that drains into a bucket (inside the building). It is however not a very pleasant sight, takes space and I don't want to empty the bucket repeatedly. So I decided to let the condensate drain out of the building but this isn't possible because there is some height the water would have to be able to get up to. If I understand correctly, the condensate pump would be able to pump the condensate up (up to a certain height). Do I understand correctly that the transparent tube (the one leaving the condensate pump) could just be connected to another (thicker, larger in diameter) plastic tube that could be put into a hole that communicates with the outside? Not sure if I made my case clear, my question is how/is it possible to let the condensate drain to the outside via using a condensate pump (that compensates for the height)? Thank you very much in advance 🙂
@@xDomglmao Yes, you could have the AC drain into a condensate pump, which then pumps it out of the building. The "lift" of the pump I have linked under this video is 15-20 feet. In other words, that's how high it could lift it to get it out of the building.
Whoever installed my furnace ran the pvc pipe to the bottom of the condensate pump. Guess what they are fixing today? Water backed up into condenser. On top of that they tell me how they run the pvc pipe to the bottom all the time. Yet can’t tell me why it happened or won’t say I am correct. In fact they told me there is no way water can get backed up the pvc pipe. They said it could be a clog in pipe I asked them to show me the clog then and I get attitude. I said the clog is from you running it too close to the bottom of the pump.
Make sure that the pvc drain from coil is just past the opening on the pump no more than 1/4inch if the discharge pvc is to fitted to far in the pump than it will block the whole line due the float in the bowl of the pump not filling up enough to kick on.. thus bacing the pvc pipe up thus making it over flow... this is a very common problem and will burn the pump and destroy the furnace due to water.
DO NOT tie water lines to electrical conduit ! Pump shouls Not be mounted on the floor in case of flood. Mount Pump at least 12" above the floor as high as practical.
You feel right. It is 22 years old. Past it's life expectancy. I have replaced one too many parts on it. The next part that goes I am getting a new furnace.
"I got it off of amazon and it gets really good reviews" Have you ever noticed that almost everything on amazon has 4.5 star reviews? That's because most reviews are fake. I saw a product that has 25% 1 star reviews and it still have a 4.5 star overall rating. Fake reviews!
I agree with you. Lots of fake reviews. And companies even pay people to take down bad reviews. But I can tell you now after 4 years (since that's how long ago I made that video) that it has worked great.
Is there any reason why water would spray out from under the output hose besides it not being clamped on tight enough? I've tried cranking the seal as tight as i can make it but water still leaks out.
Only reason I can think of is the hose is stretched out and/or not clamped tighter enough. You could replace the hose and the check valve pretty easily.
Nice video. It's refreshing to watch a how to video without all the trash. Straight to the point and easy to understand... thank you SO MUCH.
No problem and thank you for the kind words. That’s exactly what I was shooting for!
Thank you for this easy to follow video. I ordered the pump and replaced it. My new pump did come with the electrical wires that you mentioned and I am not confident to hook them up so will leave them for now. Funny, I filled the box and waited to hear the pump kick on. Waited, waited....then I remembered - the little cardboard slip! Pulled it out and wa-la. So funny. It's the little things, right. onward. Have a great Monday.
Ha ha, yep. Gotta get that little slip pulled out! With the wires, you can just put some wire nuts on the ends and leave them hanging. Glad you got it figured out!
@@fixitFlip thank you for following up with me. ⭐️
@@maryspinoso852 No problem!
You just wire your ac line to it that is normally plugged into your control board. Then the other lead you wire back to the same port on control board. It basically acts as an interrupt to ac if the pump stops working.
@@fixitFlip So what if ur old pump has the wires & the new one don't
Just bought one of these to replace one from July of 1984! They made them good back then apparently! LOL Thanks for this very helpful video.
No problem. And they DEFINITELY made it better back in the day. Especially when it comes to appliances!
1:42 Happened to me when trying to clean the condensate pump. Both drain pipes for the furnace and AC coil are damn near to the ground
SMH, bad install.
I replaced mine today and just want to add that anyone whose pump is hard wired inside your furnace, make sure your main power to your furnace is shut off before you start disconnecting your old pump. Most furnaces have a disconnect switch, but if yours is older, you may need to flip the breaker.
Yep, good reminder
Super helpful and made me confident enough to try. Got it done in about 10 min. Thanks!
Awesome, that's what I like to hear! Always feels good to get a project done yourself.
Right to the point....no fluff... nice job!
Thanks, that’s what I try to do.
Thanks a lot Flip!!! I bought the same pump from Amazon and this really cleared up how to connect it. I really appreciate that you shared your experience. Best wishes to you Buddy!
Awesome, Anthony. That's what I like to hear. Glad I could help!
Very helpful, thanks for taking to time to film and edit this together!
No problem, glad I could help.
My old pump does not have the safety switch. But the new one has. Should I leave those two wires without connecting to the furnace? Can I just add the wire nuts on the ends and leave them hanging? Great video. Thanks a lot :)
No problem. You can attach them (there are diagrams on the web) if you want the added security of preventing a overflow or you can just put the wire nuts on.
Ugh, I did the install before watching a video and I forgot to take out the cardboard tab. When I went downstairs, my floor was flooded, but thankfully it all went down the drain. When I was looking at what caused the leak, I pulled the tab and the water shot up 10 feet in the air because I removed the pvc. It was an interesting experience for me lol.
Oh no, ha ha. That story got a little chuckle out of me. I bet that's one you won't forget. Glad you got it figured out now, though.,
aww man, just got out of the shower after being in my crawl space installing this with a dehumidifier...
time to crawl back down there and remove the tab lol
edit: tab was there still but no flooding
@@Cstegg Good to hear it didn't flood!
Lolol I thought mine was broken and then I pulled out that little tab lol😊
Thanks for assisting - Now the wife calls me Mr. Fix-It...
Ha ha, there you go, Mr. Fix-It!
I had to go outside, attach a leftover piece of vinyl tubing to the discharge copper line and suck out the air in the line in order to "prime" the pump. Otherwise the column of water only went 4-5ft up from the pump and stopped, and box overflowed. Make sure you check proper pump function with bottles of water several times to ensure proper functioning before you turn your AC back on - otherwise you could end up with alot of water in your basement if your new pump isn't working properly. Replaced a crusty 30yr old Hartell with a Little Giant in May 2022 - let's see if this one goes 30 yrs!
Great tip!
Scott your pump should not have over flowed .At the output of the pump were your tube connect there is a check valve blocking the back flow .
Do you have to connect the safety switch wires? My old little giant pump failed after 13 years and improper maintenance and it didn't have the safety switch option.
You do not HAVE to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off. You can just put wire nuts on the ends of the wires if you don't want to hook it up.
Quick question. Unplugging the Condensate Pump. Then plugging it back in later, won't mess up anything, right?
That should not mess anything up. But I would switch your furnace off as well while the pump is off. So it doesn't keep draining into it and flood. Unless its just gonna be a little while, then its no big deal.
@@fixitFlip Thanks!!
@@ramonf3481 No problem.
I am using this for my dehumidifier in the basement. Do I need to hook up those 2 black wires to anything or will it run fine without that?
It can run just fine without those. Those are wires from the safety switch. You can just put a wire nut on the end of each one.
Excellent. I kept wondering what the two black wires were for. Ours are dangling...i guess the safety switch not connected.
Correct. Just means there is no safety switch wired in. You can just put a wire nut on the end of each wire.
I had same question.. thanks. There’s something about a couple unused wires dangling to nowhere that makes this feel like my handiwork.
my unit does not have a pumo.. is this because its in the attic so it used gravity to flow water out? not sure if this is a stupid question. Is a condensate pump always required?
Not a stupid question. Not all homes have condensate pumps. If your furnace is in the attic than you probably just have a gravity fed drain, so you don't need one!
@@fixitFlip thank you so much. Appreciate the quick reply and your videos
Right on. No problem. 👍🏻
I have the same problem with my PVC pipes. Do I have to cut the pipes or will they just pop out?
They should pop out if you can lower the pump down. Mine was sitting on the ground so I didn't have much wiggle room.
Great vid! re the safety switch wiring, are you saying to just cut the red wire coming from the thermostat and connect one end of thecut red wire to one of the leads from the pump. and connect the other end of the cut red wire to the other lead from the pump?
You're not actually "cutting" the red wire. Just breaking the circuit. So the red wire goes from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. (edit) Reading back what you wrote again that does make sense how you explained it. Just make sure power is off!!
@@fixitFlip I am confused! I thought cut off or split the Red wire that goes to the t-stat then connect with wire nuts the 2 ends of the condensate pump safety switch together with the t-stat red wire!
@@martineucza486 From t-stat to the pump, then back to furnace. There are some diagrams on the web that might help.
Installation is great and all but where does the 3/8 inch hose go? Does it go exit the exterior of the house and where is the exit for the discharge tube
It can be different in any house. Mine runs into a sump pump basin, where it is then pumped out of the house by the sump pump.
Good video!
Curious where the discharge tube terminates? Laundry tub?
Thank you! The discharge tube runs up and over a wall into a back room into a sump pump that the previous owner had installed by a water proofing company. The sump pump pumps it up out of the house.
I have no sump pump available for discharge. Any reason why I couldn’t discharge into a laundry tub?
@@kyhamoge Nope, no reason at all.
I appreciate your reply!
Thank you
@@kyhamoge You're welcome!
were will you connect the 2 black wires from the pump
there is brown wire with black and white wires inside coming from the furnce which is which is to connect
Just break the circuit of the red wire. It should go from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. There are some diagrams on the web that would help.
can you do the same for a window AC unit?
You can put a drain hose and adapter on the drain hole of a window unit. Normally they drain outside so you wouldn't need to pump it anywhere.
do you have to wire the safety switch or can you bypass it? and if you bypass it do you just put marrets on the wires? thanks
You do not have to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off. And yes, just put wire nuts on the ends of the wires.
The old one you took off you said the pipe was too long and that's why you had to take it apart. My question is of the pipe is going that far down am I wrong to think it would be past the water line in the pump acting as a p-trap now? Shouldn't terminate just above the water line?
Yes the pipe was going down too far for me to have room to take the pump off. It still functioned properly but was making really loud noises and on it's last legs. The pipe should just barely go into the pump.
Hey my man my new pump doesn't have the safety switch wires,,,But my old pump does basically backwards of urs what am I supposed to do with the wires on the old pump,,,,Or do you think that I should send it back and get the pump with the safety wires PLEASE 🙏 I NEED SOME HELP!!!
Was your new pump supposed to come with them? If you want to hook them up, then I would send it back. If you didn't plan on hooking them up then I wouldn't worry about it. You do not HAVE to wire the safety switch. It is a backup for if the pump stops working the furnace will shut off.
Excellent video and thanks Flip. Installed in less than 10 minutes and I even got lucky with not having to drill new holes. How often does that happen!
Awesome, I love it when it works out like that!
had one of these setup for my standing air conditioner. there's still some excess water left in the water line that doesn't get pumped all the way out like the rest of the water does. is that a problem to be worried about?
great in depth video man really explained a lot especially with the wires because i was confused if i needed to use it in my situation.
Shouldn't be the end of the world as long as there are no clogs in the line and most of the water is getting pumped out of the tank! Just don't want an overflow.
Hi the intake pipe of the furnance freezes in winter wil this pump.prevent that feom hapenning?
It won't totally prevent it. It depends on how the pipes are positioned outside. This guy has a pretty good DIY fix.
rodhomerepair.blogspot.com/2010/01/furnace-intake-clogged-by-ice-crystals.html
This is a great video. Question. I want to connect this to a portable A/C. I need it to pump the water up to the window height. If not, my other option is to drain it into a bucket every once in a while. I’m trying to avoid my A/C condensation from overflowing. Thanks!
Yes, they sell condensate pumps that are made just for portable AC units!
@@fixitFlip thanks you so much.
@@jayelleart No problem.
how do you know where the condensation tube goes? Mine disappears somewhere in the ceiling
It has to either go outside or into some type of sump pump tank, which then pumps it out of the house.
@@fixitFlip i mean the tube coming from my condensation pump. It goes into the ceiling, no idea where it goes.
@@achilleze It's gotta come back down somewhere. These things can only pump water so high. There is no drain hose or drain pipe coming down in an adjacent room on the other side of a wall?
If you connect the furnace wire to the pump and the safety switch activates, will it also turn off the condensing unit, or do you need to hook up the air conditioner wire to it as well?
How far does the drainpipe from the unit into the pump go???? The instructions do not say how far ..
About an inch or so is fine. You don't want it going too far down.
@@fixitFlip Thank You for the reply.
@@stevethomas211 No problem.
Can you use a Little Giant in place of a Beckett pump? Do they all hook up the same way? This is probably a dumb question but I have never replaced one of these before. Thank you!
Sure that shouldn't be a problem! They hook up very similar!
If the pump is working properly, should the water discharge tube be empty of water? I’m not sure if my little giant is working or not. I’m getting a warning of “condensate pan overflow” and the discharge tube is full of water. Plus I don’t hear the little giant pumping at all. Would be nice if it had a light to indicate if it was on or not. Any suggestions and thanks!
I would say you'rs is malfunctioning. It sounds like maybe the motor went out on it. It should be moving the water through the tube. One way you can do a test is just take a bottle of water or pitcher and pour water into the top hole. It should kick on pretty quickly after it starts to fill up. If it doesn't kick on, there you go.
Regardless their will be water in the clear discharge line thats why the check valve is thier.. the pump is designed to only push water not air if it pushes air it will burn up.
Any chance you have a plug between the furnace and the condensate pump? Was a U or V trap (like under our sink) installed? I had one with my system and a sludge ball formed. The catch Pan I'm the furnace filled up, overflowed onto the floor. i blew air through the pvc pipe and unclogged the sludge ball. water drained well afterwards.
When the drain tubing goes up and to to outside.....how do you unclog or replace that? I have a new pump but it seems the hose isn’t draining the water up and to the outside very quickly/ the pump will actually overflow
Just follow the tubing all the way to where it goes, then detach it from both ends and replace as I do in the video. I would test that pump. Pour some water into and see if it kicks on pretty quickly. Or the link could be kinked somewhere.
Get a air compressor and take the line off the clear discharge line and shoot compressed air into the line
@@kyleperry1701 Good tip.
Fix it Flip followed the tubing and that was the culprit! Replaced tubing and all’s been fine! Thank you!
@@TH-mx8kz Awesome, glad to hear!
Installing mine this weekend, the little giant instructions say yellow to yellow for the safety switch tho, dows that make sense? Thanks for the video!
Just break the circuit of the red wire. It should go from the thermostat to the pump, then a return wire from the pump to the furnace. There are some diagrams on the web that would help.
I was looking for where the check valve is and you answered my question. Good job
Awesome, glad I could help.
Thanks for the video. Getting ready to replace this pump.
Awesome. Good luck with the job.
Hello! Had a question, I am using this same pump but for a dehumidifying unit in my basement, do I need to do anything with those two leads with the safety switch?
I would just put wire nuts on the ends.
In my video about this kind of pump, I answered some of this question: ruclips.net/video/Pu1Zt1xkCPs/видео.html
What do you do with those wires if you want to skip that step?
Just put a wire nut on the end of each of them and tuck them away.
very nice job! Question what does that pvc pipe that goes up from the hole in condensation pump? I know water is pushed into the unit from the furnace. Is the other end of pvc open just for air?
Thank you. The other PVC pipe is a drain from the whole house humidifier. You can drain multiple things into the unit.
@@fixitFlip cool. I checked mine I have three pipes going in. Furnace and two from air conditioning
The Little Giant instructions are clear that a hose clamp SHOULD be used to secure the 3/8" ID discharge hose to the pump's check valve hose barb. It is not presented as an option. Especially if you are pumping up some height with the discharge hose, there can be quite a bit of pressure at the check valve's hose barb, and it can actually pop off quite easily, and then you will have possibly a lot of water draining back onto the floor. Best to use that hose clamp as recommended; WHY Little Giant does not just include one with the pump is a mystery.
Yes my hose seems to be leaking and I bought a new pump thinking it was the pump and it appears to be the hose so a clamp is in order.
Great video, thanks. I am going to use to pump out condensate from a dehumidifier in a vacation home. I think it would be good to wire the safety switch to turn off the dehumidifier if the pump fails. I take it that is possible. Can you give me some idea how that is done?
I have never done that personally, sorry.
Very helpful. Thank you for sharing.
No problem. Glad I could help.
Did you have to switch it from "NO mode" to "NC mode" for the wires you hooked up? I see that in the Little Giant's instructions, but not clear when it's needed 🤔
Fix it flip what does go into the water pump orifice the primary or secondary condenser line?
Mine just has one main condensate drain that was running into the old pump.
What’s the head height on this new pump
20 feet
Just replaced mine. Had a crack in the bottom. Thanks!
No problem. Glad u got it replaced. 👍🏻
Just curious, could you have the condensate pump dump into a toilet? Just wondered since these usually dump down a drain, could it save money/water?
I have never heard of anybody doing that before. Most people run them into a washing machine drain, a sump pump, or outside.
I thought maybe for people who live alone, if they shut off the main supply and had this flowing into the tank, they could save some money. I was hoping to find a video on it but apparently I'm the first to think of it.
I know that air conditioning condensate can amplify Legionella and other airborne bacteria so it is probably why nobody does that. It can be used or certain things if it is treated a certain way but normally should just be disputed of.
That makes sense. I'll have to look into the water treatments available. I live in a very humid part of the country and I read an air conditioner can pull as much as 20 gallons of water out of the air per day, so there's got to be some kind of cost effective way to make use of it.
@@tonyj7205 You got me curious so I did some research. I found one article. It says it can be used for flushing toilets "if filtered and disinfected first. That precaution is necessary, he says, because toilet water can spray like an aerosol, which could expose people to Legionella bacteria. The same risk applies when HVAC condensate is used in lawn sprinklers, although this hazard is not associated with drip irrigation."
www.watertechonline.com/benefits-harvesting-hvac-condensate/
is there anyway to bypass the alarm wiring? I want mine to work on a portable AC unit but it will not run sadly
i just bought a fixer upper with the ac in the hallway closet...i've never used a condensate pump before but, how would the pump pump the condensation out if i sit in the closet next to the air handler....are they capable of pumping up into the attic to catch pvc pipe that will cross over the attic down a wall and exit out of a hole i will drill to allow the pvc to exit the house near the compressor....simply....are condensate pumps capable of pumping about 10' up into an attic.
Hey, Pete. The discharge pressure or “lift” of pumps can vary. But you can research the model you buy. But most of them can push against gravity 15-20 feet, so shouldn’t have any trouble reaching that pipe.
@@fixitFlip thank you very much for responding!
@@pete2814 No poblem.
Should any water be left in the 10mm clear discharge hose after pump drains? I'm only pumping water 5 meters over a gradual height of 5 feet. Pump on basement floor up to main waste pipe so not moving it very far. Pump seems to work perfectly but not sure if any water should be in discharge line? It's a little giant vcma-20s emptying the dehumidifier. Thanks
Are there any sags in the hose?
Can you do this without installing the safety switch? I cant get anyone to come for a week.
You don't have to install it. It shuts off the furnace if the pump fails. It keeps you from having possible water spillage/damage, but also your furnace will then be shut off.
@@fixitFlip I hooked up the pump and took cover off to test pump and it worked fine. While its hooked up to furnace the water is not draining, what's wrong?
@@jeremycummings7249 My guess is the wiring is not done correctly. There are diagrams out there on the internet if you search.
jeremy cummings its possible that the pvc drain line coming out of your unit is clogged. Comes from the drain pan inside of unit to the pump. You can hook a shop vac to the pvc to see if it's clogged. Not sure I read your Problem right
@@mikewright7236 Thanks, Mike!
What product would you use to prevent mold build up ?
You can take it apart and clean with a brush, soap, and hot water, or some people will run a water/bleach mixture through it occasionally.
@Michael Medeiros Yep, you can do that every so often. I have a video about cleaning it if you are interested.
ruclips.net/video/MkDKEQWOs5M/видео.html
My condensate pump is leaking. I watched the video but what I don't understand why I have both PVC pipe going into the pump and a copper pipe. Would you tell what you think this means? Thank-you. I have a picture if you want to see it.
That just means you have two different things draining into the pump.
What are the two black wires connected to?
Thanks, my answer is in your video
That video made the difference..
Glad I could help.
Does anybody know, on average, how long those pumps last? I’ve had mine for two years and it’s working fine but I just want to know what to expect as far as life expectancy of the pump
JoseELBurro they last a while. They Have a product you can put in the drain so it doesn't clog
I would say about 8-10 years but that is approximate. My system is 20 years old and mine failed before and I am about to replace one again.
I JUST CHANGED MY MOMS AND SHE HAD HERS FOR OVER 10 YEARS LOL :)
The one I replaced was dated 2014. Made it 6 or 7 years b4 it started to fail.
So im a young guy (23) and when I bought my house the furnace and central AC unit are quite old. I will be updating them soon, saving for it. Last year all summer the condensation from the central AC just dripped into a bin and I just emptied the bin every day or two. someone quoted me $500 to install a condensation pump for it but I think I'd rather do it myself Currently there is metal piping coming out of the side of the furnace. I assume this is the drain line for the condensation however I'm not 100% I just know water drips out of it. Do you recommend I remove this metal piping and replace it with PVC, or leave the metal piping and just attach the PVC to it to drain into the pump? I'm not comfortable doing the electricity part myself. I ask bc I notice the piping on yours there's a jut off near the bottom of the furnace with the PVC and then more PVC going up. On my furnace this metal piping juts out (substantially) and is towards the top of the furnace.
If it is truly metal (and not copper or something like that) then the best fix would be to replace it with PVC. Just because metal will rust. Having said that, you don't HAVE to do that right now. You could just attach PVC to get you down into your pump. Then just hope the metal pipe never gets rusty enough that you have to replace it. Yes, I would assume that is your condensation draining. Do it yourself! Save a lot of money!
@@fixitFlip great answer, FLip!
@@werecanadian2 Thanks!
Where is the water being drained into?
Into the reservoir of my sump pump. Then that pumps it out of the house.
Thanks! This was very helpful!
No problem, glad I could help!
Thank you for this, there's a tray under my pump which looks exactly like this one but lately it appears to be filling the tray more often then usual. Any trouble shoot tips you can give?
@@genesisgenesis4739 There could be some mold or mildew built up in the pump, causing it to clog. Definitely shouldn't be leaking out anywhere onto a tray.
when the guy installed my pump he ran the water line thru the wall to outside. Like Fix it FLip the guy kinked the hose where it made a 90 degree turn at my outside wall. The kink, coupled with the 10 degree weather froze the line outside and the pump kept running and running. I started adding anti-freeze to the unit but my neighbor said the water line should NOT empty outside the house. I thought for sure this video would answer my question as to where the water gets exhausted to but, sadly, Fix it Flip told me everything but that. He never showed the terminus of the water tube.
Condensate pumps can pump water to a lot of different places. Mine pumps into my sump pump reservoir, which the sump pump then pumps out of the house through pvc
Run it to wherever you can drain water (sump, laundry tub, wherever your washing machine drains to etc).
Question my pump the new one has both cables of the same color yellow same goes to my AC unit does affect if i connect them mixed or the wrong way like something like damage my unit? I'm not all that good with this
I had the same problem. Left it off and came here to find out. I figure I'll go back down there and try it one way and wait for the AC unit to come on. And if it doesn't work I'll try the other way.
What if you don't have a furnace?
Cool video, new subscriber now
Thanks, Shawn!
Great video. Thank you!!!! Do you have to hook up the safety switch for the pump to work?
No, you do not. You can just keep them separate and tape them or put a wire not on them. They are just an extra feature.
Very nice!
Thank you!
Also, is it a 1/30 or 1/50hp? Thanks again!
The one I installed is the 1/30 hp. If you click the amazon link below the video it will give you all the specs on it!
Thanks for the video
No problem.
Great vid. Thanks
Thanks and no problem.
I followed your steps and lastly put the water in it, but the pump never turned on? Any suggestions?
Did you pull out the little cardboard piece? How much water did you pour in? Ever start working?
Feels like you need to keep adding water until water is discharging outside. Sort of priming the drain line. Also unclear where you connected the safety switch leads
My pumps into a sump pump, which then pumps it out of the house.
I change mine but soon make noise what’s wrong
Coming from the pump/motor?
Got a like from me... 1 away from 100. Good video Flip
Thank you!
Can someone please tell me about the leads show me how to do these.
Thanks for the vid! Would you say this is the best condensate pump? My HVAC guy recommended the
Nextgen VCMX-20ULS, but I wasn't sure? Thanks.
It looks like they get almost identical reviews on Amazon, both very good, so you probably can't go wrong either way. The only difference I'm seeing is the Little Giant pump is about $6 cheaper. Hope that helps.
Fix it Flip Thanks for the reply.
@@DaCake2 No problem. Good luck.
Went into the basement today to see a mini river because my condensate pump failed luckily these are on sale at menards rn and I get a employee discount so it's only like $40
Geesh sorry to hear that. Glad you caught it when you did. Good luck replacing it, shouldn't be too hard.
@@fixitFlip na took 10 mins to replace it took longer to drive to the store and back
@@Wisconsin.pikachu Awesome, glad to hear it.
Very helpful!
Thanks!
super helpful!
Glad I could help!
@@fixitFlip I have a question:
I have an A/C and the following issue: The condensate leaves the A/C through a plastic tube that drains into a bucket (inside the building). It is however not a very pleasant sight, takes space and I don't want to empty the bucket repeatedly. So I decided to let the condensate drain out of the building but this isn't possible because there is some height the water would have to be able to get up to. If I understand correctly, the condensate pump would be able to pump the condensate up (up to a certain height). Do I understand correctly that the transparent tube (the one leaving the condensate pump) could just be connected to another (thicker, larger in diameter) plastic tube that could be put into a hole that communicates with the outside?
Not sure if I made my case clear, my question is how/is it possible to let the condensate drain to the outside via using a condensate pump (that compensates for the height)?
Thank you very much in advance 🙂
@@xDomglmao Yes, you could have the AC drain into a condensate pump, which then pumps it out of the building. The "lift" of the pump I have linked under this video is 15-20 feet. In other words, that's how high it could lift it to get it out of the building.
@@fixitFlip Thank you so much! Really really helped. Earned a sub :-)
@@xDomglmao No problem and thanks for the sub!
My lower level uses 1 diveritech pump for the dehumidifier and another one for the heat pump
Gotcha.
Ugh. Mine isn't reacting at all no matter how much water I pour in
Either the float is stuck because it needs a good cleaning or it could be time for a new pump.
@Fix it Flip its a new pump. I think it was just the angle it was it. It's working now
@@nikopetropoulos3026 Ok, good to hear.
IT IS GOOD BUT I DID NOT SHOW HOW TO CONNECT THE GROUND CABLE
WHERE DOES THE PVC PIPE GO :) MINE WAS IN THE BACK BUT YOU PUT YOURS IN THE FRONT TWO :(
It can run down into any one of those holes! They are interchangeable. You just put a cap on the ones you aren't using.
Whoever installed my furnace ran the pvc pipe to the bottom of the condensate pump. Guess what they are fixing today? Water backed up into condenser. On top of that they tell me how they run the pvc pipe to the bottom all the time. Yet can’t tell me why it happened or won’t say I am correct. In fact they told me there is no way water can get backed up the pvc pipe. They said it could be a clog in pipe I asked them to show me the clog then and I get attitude. I said the clog is from you running it too close to the bottom of the pump.
Absolutely. Should not be run all the way to the ground. Have to leave some room!
@@fixitFlip I just replaced mine, it said to cut the pipe at an angle so it would drain properly.
Make sure that the pvc drain from coil is just past the opening on the pump no more than 1/4inch if the discharge pvc is to fitted to far in the pump than it will block the whole line due the float in the bowl of the pump not filling up enough to kick on.. thus bacing the pvc pipe up thus making it over flow... this is a very common problem and will burn the pump and destroy the furnace due to water.
Perfect!
Thank you!
How about showing the initial installation of the Pump, instead of a replacement pump?
It will shut off the ac call.
I use n even newer one
👍🏻
DO NOT tie water lines to electrical conduit ! Pump shouls Not be mounted on the floor in case of flood. Mount Pump at least 12" above the floor as high as practical.
I feel like your furnace is getting old
You feel right. It is 22 years old. Past it's life expectancy. I have replaced one too many parts on it. The next part that goes I am getting a new furnace.
"I got it off of amazon and it gets really good reviews"
Have you ever noticed that almost everything on amazon has 4.5 star reviews? That's because most reviews are fake. I saw a product that has 25% 1 star reviews and it still have a 4.5 star overall rating. Fake reviews!
I agree with you. Lots of fake reviews. And companies even pay people to take down bad reviews. But I can tell you now after 4 years (since that's how long ago I made that video) that it has worked great.
Worthless. Video stops playing around 1:24
Just checked it. Seems to be working fine. Not sure what you have going on.
Looks like that's your personal problem...video works for everyone else
Video is fine and you could be nicer!
Is there any reason why water would spray out from under the output hose besides it not being clamped on tight enough? I've tried cranking the seal as tight as i can make it but water still leaks out.
Only reason I can think of is the hose is stretched out and/or not clamped tighter enough. You could replace the hose and the check valve pretty easily.