Sump Pump Replacement and Battery Backup in Indianapolis and Hendricks County

We replace, repair and back up sump pumps across Central Indiana, checking the pit, float, check valve and discharge line rather than the pump alone, so a homeowner told the whole system has to go finds out what actually failed.


The alarm does not wait for morning. Our phone is answered at any hour by someone on our crew.

How Sump Pumps Protect Your Basement

A sump pump sits in a sump pit located in the lowest part of your basement or crawl space. When groundwater rises during storms or snowmelt, the pump automatically removes the water and directs it safely away from your home.

Homes across Plainfield and nearby areas along the White Lick Creek corridor or near low-lying drainage areas often rely on sump pumps to prevent water from entering basements during heavy rain events.

A properly installed sump system includes:

  • A sump pit pump
  • Float switch or electronic sensor
  • Check valve and discharge line
  • Exterior drainage outlet

When any of these components fail, the system may not protect your basement when you need it most.

Black icon of a battery charging, represented by a solid rectangle containing a lightning bolt.

What a Battery Backup Actually Buys You in a Storm

The storms that put the most water under a Central Indiana foundation are the same storms that knock the power out. A primary pump with no electricity is a piece of metal sitting in a rising pit, and that pairing is the entire argument for a backup system.


A charged backup battery typically delivers several hours of intermittent pumping, and considerably longer if the water is coming in slowly rather than pouring. That window is usually the difference between a dry basement and a claim.


Here is what the equipment does while you are asleep or away:

  • The backup pump switches itself on when the primary pump loses power, fails outright, or cannot keep up with the inflow.
  • The alarm sounds at the pit when the water rises past the level it should reach, which is your warning before anything reaches the floor.
  • A monitored system can send the alert to your phone, which matters most when the house is empty during a spring storm.
  • The battery is trickle-charged between events and generally needs replacing every three to five years, and we test it when we are out for anything else.


There is a second kind of backup worth knowing about. A water-powered backup uses municipal water pressure instead of a battery, so it runs indefinitely and never needs charging, but it consumes city water while it pumps and it only works on homes with adequate pressure and no well. On city water, it is a real option. On a well, a battery system is the answer. When your power goes out mid-storm and the pit is filling, that is an emergency plumbing call, and we answer it.

A black icon of a faucet dripping a single drop of water.

Signs Your Sump Pump May Be Failing

Sump pumps don’t last forever. Many units begin to fail after 7–10 years, especially if they run frequently during rainy seasons.

Common warning signs include:

  • Sump pump running nonstop
  • Loud grinding or rattling noises
  • Sump pump alarm sounding
  • Water collecting in the sump pit without pumping
  • Frequent cycling on and off

If your sump pump is showing these symptoms, it may be time for sump pump repair or sump pump replacement.

A white "X" symbol inside a solid black circle.

When a Sump Pump Is Worth Repairing, and When It Is Not

Plenty of pumps that get quoted for replacement do not need replacing. The failure is often a part sitting next to the pump, not the pump itself, and we would rather fix that part and tell you the truth about the rest.


These are the repairs worth making:

  • A stuck or broken float switch, which is the single most common reason a pump runs constantly or refuses to start at all.
  • A clogged intake screen packed with silt, gravel or the debris that washes into an uncovered pit.
  • A blocked or frozen discharge line, or an exterior outlet buried under mulch, ice or a collapsed grade.
  • A missing or failed check valve, which lets the pumped water fall straight back into the pit and makes a healthy pump cycle over and over.


Replacement is the honest call in a narrower set of cases. A motor that has seized or lost its bearings cannot be rebuilt economically. A pump past seven to ten years is at the end of its service life whether or not it has failed yet. A unit that has been short-cycling through an entire wet season has already worn out the parts you cannot see. And a pump undersized for the water your drain tile is actually delivering will keep failing no matter how many times it is repaired.


One more thing we check before quoting either: whether the water in the basement is groundwater at all. A weeping supply line or a cracked drain line puts water on a floor in a way that looks exactly like a pump problem, and it is a completely different repair. If that is what we find, we say so and handle the leak repair instead.

A black rounded square positioned in the first quadrant of a two-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system.

Choosing the Right Size Sump Pump

Another common question homeowners ask is: “What size sump pump do I need for my basement?”

Sump pump sizing depends on several factors, including:

  • Basement size and depth
  • Water table conditions in your area
  • Sump pit size
  • Drain tile configuration
  • Stormwater volume during heavy rains

Homes near areas like Hummel Park or neighborhoods along the US-40 and I-70 commuter corridors often experience different groundwater conditions than homes in other parts of Central Indiana. Installing the right-size pump ensures dependable performance without excessive noise or short cycling.

How to Test Your Sump Pump Before the Next Storm

The best time to find out a pump has quit is a dry Saturday, not a Tuesday night in April. These checks take about ten minutes and we walk homeowners through them at the end of every install.

Pour water into the pit

Fill a five-gallon bucket and pour it slowly into the sump pit until the float rises. The pump should switch on by itself, clear the pit, and shut off without hunting. Do this two or three times a year and always before spring.

Walk out to the discharge outlet

Find where the line exits the house and look at it. Ice in winter, mulch and leaves in fall, a collapsed grade any time of year, all of it backs water up into a line that has nowhere to send it.

Listen to the cycle

You know what your pump normally sounds like. Grinding, rattling, a hum with no water moving, or a cycle that starts and stops every few seconds are all changes worth a call before they become a failure.

Check the backup battery

Unplug the primary pump and pour water in again. The backup should take over. If it does not, the battery is due, and that is a small item compared to what it protects.

Anything that does not behave the way it should here is worth a look. Call us and we will tell you over the phone whether it can wait.

Sump Pump Replacement Cost in Indianapolis and Central Indiana

A sump pump replacement is priced by the pump you need and the condition of everything it connects to. We quote it flat-rate, covering the pump, the labor, the fittings and the haul-away in one number, and you approve that number before anyone starts working.

Three bands cover most Central Indiana basements:


  • A straight swap of a primary pump into an existing pit with a sound discharge line is the least expensive job on this page and the most common one we do.
  • Adding a battery backup system raises the total meaningfully, because you are buying a second pump, a battery, a charger and the piping to tie it into the existing discharge.
  • A replacement that also means pit work, a new discharge run or a rebuilt outlet sits at the top of the range, since the plumbing around the pump is a larger job than the pump.

What moves a job from one band toward the next:


  • Pit condition. A pit that is too shallow, too narrow or has no liner has to be corrected before a new pump will run right.
  • The discharge line. Replacing a cracked, undersized or improperly pitched run, or extending the outlet far enough from the foundation, adds material and labor.
  • The check valve. A missing one gets added. A failed one gets replaced. Either way it belongs in the quote and not in a surprise later.
  • A failed drain tile connection. When the tile feeding the pit has separated or silted in, the pump is not the problem and the fix is real work.
  • Sizing up. Homes where the old pump was never big enough for the inflow need more horsepower, and sometimes a larger discharge, to stop the short cycling.

We price all of it before we start, so nothing gets added once the old pump is out of the pit. Licensed, insured and background-checked plumbers do the work, in marked trucks, and we have been quoting this way since 2008. If the timing is bad, financing is available.

We Know How Water Moves Under Central Indiana Basements

Aqua Pro Plumbing is family owned and run out of Plainfield, and we have been keeping Central Indiana basements dry since 2008. A failing pump is an urgent problem, and working out of Plainfield puts our crew close to Hendricks County driveways rather than dispatching from across the metro.


The ground behaves differently from one part of the metro to the next, and it changes what a house needs:


  • Plainfield homes along the White Lick Creek corridor and the low-lying drainage that feeds it sit close enough to the water table that the pump runs often, and sizing matters more than usual.
  • Neighborhoods around Hummel Park and the properties along the US-40 and I-70 corridors see groundwater conditions that differ street to street.
  • Avon and Brownsburg subdivisions built on tight clay shed rainfall toward foundations faster than the drain tile was designed to carry it.
  • Older Indianapolis west side housing stock often has basements that were finished decades after the original drainage went in, which is where a pump and a backup are doing work the house was never built to do.
  • Rural properties across Morgan and Boone counties add well systems and long discharge runs to the picture.


Because we are in these basements every week, we are not guessing at your water table. We size to what your pit is actually taking on.

Alarm Sounding at 2 A.M.? You Get a Plumber, Not a Message

A sump pump failure during a storm turns into a flooded basement fast, and the hours it happens in are rarely convenient. Call us and a member of our team picks up, day, night, weekend or holiday. There is no answering service and no call center between you and a plumber.


  • The phone is answered live by our own crew at any hour.
  • Licensed, insured and background-checked plumbers arrive in marked trucks and uniforms.
  • Flat-rate pricing, approved by you before work begins.
  • Family owned and operated from Plainfield since 2008.


If the alarm is going off or water is rising in the pit right now, that is an emergency plumbing call. Do not wait to see how high it gets.

A black icon of a service truck featuring a wrench symbol on its side.

What Central Indiana Homeowners Say After the Storm

Storm calls answered overnight, failing pumps swapped out before the next round of rain, backup systems that carried a basement through an outage. More of what our neighbors say is on our reviews page.

A pair of large, black quotation marks.
Frequently Asked Questions

Sump Pump Questions Central Indiana Homeowners Ask

  • How much does it cost to replace a sump pump in Indianapolis?

    The cost depends on the pump size, the condition of the pit and discharge line, and whether a battery backup is going in at the same time. A straight swap into a sound existing pit is the least expensive version, and pit work, a new discharge run or a rebuilt outlet moves it up. Aqua Pro Plumbing quotes the whole job flat-rate, and you approve the number before any work starts.

  • My sump pump alarm is going off. What should I do?

    Check that the pump is plugged in and that the breaker has not tripped, then look in the pit to see whether the float is stuck against the wall or tangled. If the pump still is not moving water and the level is rising, call a plumber immediately rather than waiting. Aqua Pro Plumbing answers the phone around the clock at (317) 837-0888 with a live member of the team.

  • Who installs battery backup sump pumps in Hendricks County?

    Aqua Pro Plumbing installs battery backup sump pump systems throughout Hendricks County, including Plainfield, Avon, Brownsburg, Danville and Clayton, along with Indianapolis and the surrounding counties. We are a family-owned shop based in Plainfield and have been doing this work since 2008. Every plumber on the crew is licensed, insured and background-checked.

  • How long does a sump pump last in Indiana?

    Most sump pumps last seven to ten years in Central Indiana, and heavy-cycling pumps in high water table areas land at the shorter end of that. Wet springs and a pump that runs several times an hour wear the motor and switch faster than the calendar suggests. Once a pump passes seven years, testing it before each spring is worth the ten minutes.

  • Can I replace a sump pump myself, or do I need a plumber?

    Swapping a pump looks simple, and the parts that cause repeat failures are the ones easy to get wrong: check valve orientation, discharge line sizing and pitch, float clearance inside the pit, and matching pump capacity to the water the drain tile actually delivers. A pump installed with any of those off will keep cycling or keep failing. Having a licensed plumber size and set it means the system is tested under load before anyone leaves.

  • Why is my sump pump running nonstop?

    Continuous running usually points to a float switch stuck in the on position, a failed check valve letting the discharged water fall back into the pit, or groundwater arriving faster than the pump was sized to handle. Occasionally it means the drain tile has opened a new path to the pit. Each of those is a different fix, which is why the whole system gets inspected rather than just the pump.