Effluent or sprinkler pump replacement — symptoms, lifespan, cost in Texas.
State rules are the floor. Figures here are TCEQ minimums under 30 TAC Chapter 285. Your county can be stricter and around here most are — check your county before you rely on a number.
Effluent and sprinkler pumps are wearing parts. **Expect somewhere in the range of 7 to 15 years**, with a third to a half horsepower being normal for a residential system.
Symptoms: the system alarms, spray stops or weakens, or effluent backs up in the pump tank. A pump that runs but moves nothing is usually a different problem — a blockage or a check valve, not the pump.
Budget $700 to $1,300 for a replacement. That covers the pump and the labour to get it in and tested. You will find lower numbers advertised; they generally do not reflect a properly sized pump installed and verified in a permitted system.
Reviewed August 2026. Links go to the sources this answer was checked against.
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