The longer answer: the five causes, in order of how often we see them

  1. The recycling loop (most common by far). Look at where your discharge pipe ends. If it's a short hose dumping within a few feet of the wall, the pump is watering its own pit. Burying the discharge line to a pop-up emitter well away from the house runs $300–$700 and typically cuts runtime dramatically overnight.
  2. Roof water feeding the pit. A typical KC roof sheds over 1,000 gallons per inch of rain. If downspouts drop that at the foundation, it ends up in your drain tile and your pit. Buried downspout extensions ($300–$700 per line) starve the pit at the source.
  3. Stuck or mis-set float switch. A float that hangs on the pit wall or its own cord will short-cycle the pump even in dry weather. Open the lid and watch a cycle — the float should ride freely.
  4. Failed check valve. When the check valve dies, every gallon pumped up the pipe falls straight back into the pit after the motor stops, and the pump immediately re-triggers. If you hear water rushing back down after each cycle, that's the valve.
  5. Genuinely high groundwater. If the pit refills fast with bone-dry weather, no roof water, and a good discharge, your lot may sit on a spring line or high water table — the pump really is doing necessary work. Then the job is making sure the pump is up to it: a cast iron unit ($1,500–$2,800) with a battery backup, because that pump can never be allowed to quit.

Why this matters beyond the noise: a pump recycling water can cycle thousands of extra times a season. Sump pumps die by overheating — the constant runner is the pump most likely to quit during the exact storm you need it. Fixing the water path first is cheaper than replacing pumps on a schedule.

The order to spend money: bury the discharge ($300–$700) → bury the downspouts ($300–$700/line) → then, and only if the pit still works hard, upgrade the pump ($1,500–$2,800). We quote it in that order on purpose — the free assessment tells you which step your house is on.

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