wiring a condensate pump

[87GN]

My current pump failed and overflowed. I got a new one but this one has two wires for a safety switch where the old one did not. I assume I need to hook these up into the 24 volt thermost circuit for it to work because after being plugged in and filled with water, the pump does not turn on. My stat is a Honeywell RTH2510 and has four wires: red, green, white yellow. Or, is this something I should leave to someone who knows what they are doing?

 

[Jim greengo]

I'd wire the red wire going out to the condensing unit for ac through those 2 wires.
Make sure to pull out the cardboard for the switch if its sticking out of pump.

 

[87GN]

Thanks. Already pulled the cardboard strip out. Red wire, got to the terminal board in the furnace or at the stat. My stat is literally on the wall separating the heater closet from the living room, so about 4 feet from the stat to where the wires inter the furnace.

 

[brewchief]

The safety switch wires on all the standard type pumps I've run across do not need to be hooked up for it to operate, some of the mini split pumps may have extra wires that need to be hooked up but the regular pumps don't care. Did you fill the pump completely? Most don't come on until they are almost full.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[87GN]

I'll be damned, didn't fill it enough. Now it works. The one I took out was hard wired and the green wire, although connected at the switch under the cover, was cut off at the other end of the conduit and not connected to anything. Now, do I really need the safety switch connected since the old unit didn't have one?

 

[Jim greengo]

Thanks. Already pulled the cardboard strip out. Red wire, got to the terminal board in the furnace or at the stat. My stat is literally on the wall separating the heater closet from the living room, so about 4 feet from the stat to where the wires inter the furnace.

Do it on the 2 conductor wire to/from the outside unit,not the furnace.
Unless of course you have a 90 plus furnace drain running into the pump.
That way you dont have to worry about causing furnace problems in winter if pump acts up.

 

[justinjoyal]

The safety switch will prevent a mess caused by a malfunction of the pump.

Wire it on the yellow (Y) wire in serie between the thermostat and wherever it goes first (condenser or junction board/box or whatever.)

If the pump fails, the A/C will shut off.

 

[yeldogt]

The switch on the pump is to interrupt the 24 signal -- this will turn off the AC should the pump fail. It's to avoid a flood of water -- typically above a ceiling ...etc.

They do not need to be used for the pump to work

 

[fitter30]

For added protection a water detector for a sump pump or condensate.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003UMOUA6/?tag=atomicindus08-20
Theres more switches on google.

 

[fitter30]

I agree wire in series with r wire.

 

[87GN]

Thanks for all the replies. So i use the red wire??? I'll take a trip to the orange store and buy a couple of feet of t-stat wire.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

The practice used to be to use the yellow wire to the condenser because it allowed the air handler to stay on, but shut off the cooling if the pump stopped. Now that there are condensing furnaces, you use the red wire so it shuts off the cooling or the heat.

Tommy

 

[4x4Petr]

Be cautious using the safety switch. It can prevent water damage which is good, but when used on the R wire it will shut off your furnace which could lead to frozen pipes if you were away in the winter. I suggest using the safety switch when water damage is unacceptable and your house is being monitored either by family, friends or an alarm system with a temperature alarm.

 

[justinjoyal]

If only a/c condensate goes into the pump killing the Y is alright.

 

[Milton Shaw]

When you switch the red, the thermostat is usually shows dead also and is a good hint at what the problem is. If just the Y wire then things would be working but you could have to troubleshoot a lot more of the system to finally see the pump full.

 

[justinjoyal]

When you switch the red, the thermostat is usually shows dead also and is a good hint at what the problem is. If just the Y wire then things would be working but you could have to troubleshoot a lot more of the system to finally see the pump full.

Well you wouldnt have A/C, people are usually quick to notice.

 

[87GN]

Thanks all. Since the old pump did not have a safety switch at all, for the time being, I'll leave the new one the same way.

 

[BillK]

The float switch on mine stuck this morning and it overflowed. It happens about every two years or so. We notice it pretty quickly because it is in the hall going to the garage. Doesnt hurt much.

I keep thinking about hooking the safety switch up but I have to weigh the pros and cons. Mainly during the winter if we go away for a week and the furnace stops running what will happen ? I think I would rather have some water on the floor than frozen pipes. So I leave it like it is

 

[Ohmthis]

^^^^^ Bill you can get a WiFi Tstat that can send you alerts. It can save a lot of headaches. Some aren’t too speedy and you can set/play with temps remotely too.