FPS17-66 Vertical Float Switch

I was on the verge of ordering a new $145 sump pump to replace my Harbor Freight pump that has been working like a charm for the last 1.5 years. All because that HF pump uses a tethered switch that is constantly getting hung up and stuck on the sump basin that it sits in. No matter what I tried, I couldn't seem to make the tethered float switch work reliably. So after a few minutes of browsing Amazon, I came across this little gem. I was a little skeptical at first about how this would mount to my pump and whether it would be sturdy enough to do the job. But for $39.99, I decided to take the gamble and I ordered it. Today it was delivered, and like a kid at Christmas, I ran out back to get it installed as quickly as I could. Installation was simple and straightforward, and I had it done within 10 minutes, which included putting in a new see-through check valve I had also ordered. When I put the pump back down into the basin, it went to work right away and began cycling the pump on and off as the water trickled in from my french drain system due to the rain we've had this week. All signs are good at this point, and I couldn't be happier. Time will tell whether the switch holds up, but it seems to be doing its job much better than my tethered switch ever did, and I saved over $100 in the process.

Works great, but on my older the flo-tech pump the cutout on the mount this includes is backwards so it will not fit unless modified. Nothing a little bending and drilling couldn't fix. Also the arm was said to be adjustable by trimming it to pre-determined lengths (the instruction sheet even showed this) however mine came with the arm already cut to the shortest length so there was only one possible setting. Since I had to mod the bracket anyway I just set the height to work with the short setting.

This is a great product at a fair price. It arrived sooner than anticipated and easily installed in under ten minutes, including a swap of the old mounting bracket to the new switch. It restored the performance of my 10 year-old 1/2 HP Flotec Ironmate to perfectly. Flotec is now made by Sta-Rite Industries and they doesn't stand behind their lifetime warranty when it comes to these switches. You might get one replacement switch from them. After that they give you a run around and try and make you buy a new pump for hundreds of dollars from the original seller. Sta-Rite is a low integrity manufacturer. Their customer focus, warranty service and satisfaction are horrific; being motivated only by profit and greed. They tried to charge me more than $20 over the Parts20 price for the same replacement switch and shipping. Consumers beware of Flotec products manufactured by Sta-Rite Industries. Buy the identical parts for less from a customer driven company, Parts20.

Purchased from Amazon in April 2016. It worked fine for 13 months. I pulled it out of the catch basin and cleaned it as well as possible, but it still does not trigger on when the water raises. The float raises, but the switch doesn't turn on unless you push the float all the way down to "reset" it. Then it triggers on, but fails to reset itself, so it’s pretty much worthless. I think most people expect something like this to last longer than 13 months. I just ordered a Superior 92010 Vertical Float Switch to try something different.

After doing some research about floats for pumps we decided to try this one to replace the side ways float we had. Since replacing the float we no longer have water overflowing in our basement. Consistently, this float causes the pump to turn on and make it work. I am so happy we are no longer constantly cleaning up water over flow in our basement. Our ejector pump had a pump that was sideways and went up and down. When the drum filled with water the pump was suppose to be pushed up and turn on the pump. Unfortunately, the float was not consistent. It would get stuck on the side of the drum or for whatever reason it would just not initiate the pump to start. We kept thinking that the pump was at fault and wound up replacing the pump. The new pump had the same type of float and was not consistent. We switched to this vertical float and yay! no more problems. The vertical float is the way to go for pumps. There is little chance of it getting stuck on the wall in the basin. Since the float goes up and down, whenever water reaches it, the float sends tells the pump to turn on and get rid of the water. It is so nice not to have to worry about the basement constantly flooding! Would definitely recommend this type of float.

I've used these for almost a decade. They work well, but tend to fail after roughly two years. I have them in my ejector pit, sump and the secondary (back up) pump in my sump. I've had them fail in the on position leaving the sump pump running dry as well as off.

I bought one of these to replace an intermittently failing switch on my sump pump. The switch arrives in pieces and there are instructions that tell you how to assemble it, but they're not very good. I lucked out because the failing switch was identical to this replacement switch, so I could see all the parts already assembled. Notes: (1) The plastic rod on my new switch was shorter than the rod on the failed switch. I would prefer a longer rod that could be trimmed to a shorter length. (2) There is a plastic pin (item 2 on the instructions) that is used to keep the rod from falling out of the switch housing. Step (2) of the instructions shows where it goes. The pin is a one-time fastener so be sure you have everything the way you want it before you shove it all the way through the hole. I read one reviewer who said that his switch was defective because the rod fell out of the switch housing. Well, yes, it will fall out if you fail to use the retaining pin. (3) The rod fits into the switch housing only one way to actuate the switch. If you install it backward, the switch may not operate. You will know easily if the rod is actuating the switch because you'll hear the switch moving from stop to stop in the housing. I'll edit this review if the switch doesn't last. Total time to effect this repair was 45 minutes and that included all the time to bring my tools into the house, clean up afterwards, and return the tools to their usual place.

I don't know if I was missing a part or something, but the only complaint I had about the unit was that there was no pin to keep the float shaft from separately completely from the top. I used a wire twist tie (bread tie would have work) and that has worked just fine. I used it to turn on a pump for my above ground pool so that if the water level gets too high from the rain, then it will pump out the excess. It gave me good control over when it would begin pumping. Basically, when the shaft is completely up, it completes a magnetic circuit that turns on the outlet. You adjust the float on the shaft to determine when you want it to activate. Simple to setup and adjust. Its been working great for a month or so now.