help with sump pump...pics

[pyro]

I have a bi-level house that is pitched down to one side...We have a sump pump pit in the garage and a drain pit outside and somehow both are connected..Dont know how.., i bet thru a line...i want to improve the pit in the garage...it's kind small to fit a sump bowl container that sells home depot...I was wondering if instead i can put gravel on the bottom...and let the sump pump rest on top, instead on the dirt that is there....I think there is metal cylinder right now...is rusty and worn out...Maybe you can figure it out and tell me what's the best course of action...
The drain line is a hose and it goes thru the house and shoots to the backyard...I have to test this...I dont know how will the sump pump will pump the water to the backyard, in a straight line. is this possible? I mean is common sense that water runs downward and not upward or in a straight line....
thanks

also, i can make a custom made sump bowl but how should it look like?should it be perforated? i dont understand how both drain pits are connected. i dont see any incoming water line in the sump (garage) pit. The sump pit does get water, but not instantenously...As you can see from the pics, the drain pit outside is almost full after a rain day, but the garage pit is almost empty.. I have noticed it takes awhile to be filled, maybe a day.. Maybe it wasnt installed properly, it wouldnt surprise me in this house and it was hidden during home inspection

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y14...k/IMG_0827.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y14...k/IMG_0833.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y14...k/IMG_0835.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y14...k/IMG_0838.jpg
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y14...k/IMG_0839.jpg

[Bob NH]

Put stone or a couple of bricks in the bottom of the pit to support the pump.

Skip the premade container. If you need lining, lay some concrete bricks around the inside without mortar. Try to key them so they don't collapse inward. You might want to dig out that dirt a bit but I would leave it alone unless it collapses inward.

If you don't have water coming into the floor anywhere, then you are ok. If you have wet floors, then maybe you have a problem with getting enough infiltration to collect the water under the floor. That dirt looks pretty solid.

[pyro]

The inside pit is not getting full, something is blocking the incoming water... The outside drain is full and it will continue to rain 'til tomorrow..need to get this resolved asap...how are both pits connected? somewhere it is clogged but dont know where.

[Bob NH]

If we are going to help, we need a better description of the details.

Is there a difference in elevation between the water in the outside pit and the water in the inside pit? Is the water in the outside pit HIGHER than the floor of the garage where the sump pump is located?

How do you know that the pits are connected? They may be connected only by seepage through the ground.

The outside pit is a catch basin or inlet. You should not want that connected to the inside of your house unless it has an outlet that is LOWER than the sump in your garage. The outlet of the outside catch basin should have a pipe that drains it to a lower place somewhere, without the necessity of a pump.

Where is the water in your house? If the sump in the garage is at the lowest floor in the house, and it is collecting no significant water, then you shouldn't be getting water in your house. What are we missing?

The hose drain line should be discharging somewhere that is LOWER than the garage floor so the water will not come back into your house through or over the ground. A hose is pretty small for a sump pump. You usually want a pipe at least as large as the discharge of the sump pump.

[pyro]

Bob

The outside pit looks like a grate basin (look at the pic) and is at the lower pt of the house. The inside sump pit is at the higher pt. I think both are connected thru ground seepage; as i dont see any connecting pipes. They are 7ft apart. If you see at the first pic, previous owner have used a hose drain line to discharge the sump pit water into the backyard (big yard). Dont worry, the backyard is level, so no water will be coming back...The house is pitched down only to the left.. Unfortunately, that's all i know besides the assurance from previous owner that no flooding has occured..right, lol
i am getting a plumber's estimate pretty soon and hopefully it can ease my mind...

[Bob NH]

"The inside pit is not getting full, something is blocking the incoming water"

Have you considered the possibility that there isn't any ground water higher than the inside pit that will drain into it?

Take the grate off the outside pit and reach down into it to see if you can find an outlet pipe. The outlet pipe is probably plugged.

You still haven't said if there is any water getting into the house somewhere on a floor.