- Our own directly employed Dublin plumbers and electricians
5.0 from 140 Google reviews- Insurance claims handled for you, start to finish, at no extra cost
Why does my water pump keep coming on by itself?
You hear it at 3am: the pump kicks in for a few seconds with nobody using water. It’s one of the most common calls we get, and it’s almost always one of four things.
- Usually something letting water by
- A cycling pump wears out fast
- We replace pumps rather than repair them
Pump running non-stop?
Tell us the make if you can see it and whether it runs every few minutes or constantly.
01 556 3050Booster pumps, shower pumps, expansion vessels and pressure switches.
The four usual causes
In order of how often we find them.
A dripping toilet
A fill valve that doesn’t fully shut lets a trickle into the pan. The pump tops it up every few minutes.
Ring 01 556 3050A tap not quite closed
Or a dripping tap, a weeping shower valve, or an outside tap. Any small draw starts the pump.
Ring 01 556 3050Flat expansion vessel
The vessel cushions the pressure. When its air charge goes, the pump starts and stops with every drop.
Ring 01 556 3050A leak somewhere
The one you can’t see: under a floor, in a ceiling, or a pipe in the attic. Worth finding fast.
Ring 01 556 3050How to find what’s doing it
Check the toilets
Look into the pan just after the cistern has filled. A thin ripple of water running down the back means the fill valve or the flush valve is letting by. A few drops of food colouring in the cistern shows it up: if the colour reaches the pan without flushing, that’s your culprit. Our toilet guide explains the fix.
Check every tap
Go round every tap, shower and outside tap. A single drip is enough on some systems.
Listen
With everything off, if the pump still runs and you can hear water moving, there is a leak. Look for damp patches on ceilings, floors near the cylinder and the hot press, and the attic.
The expansion vessel
If the pump short-cycles, on and off quickly every time you use a tap, the vessel’s air charge has probably gone. We test it and recharge or replace it; a lot of pumps get replaced that only needed a vessel.
When it’s the pump itself
A pump that hums, trips the electrics, runs without stopping or has seized needs replacing. We replace pumps rather than repair them: Grundfos no longer supplies parts for its older models, so a repair rarely lasts. More on our booster pump replacement page.
Not an emergency? Same team, same van.
General plumbing, same plumbers
The same team does the non-urgent work. Send a list of jobs with photos and you get a written price back within the hour during office hours.
- Bathrooms, showers, taps, toilets and sinks fitted or replaced
- Cylinders, immersions, booster pumps and pressurised systems
- Outside taps, washing machine and dishwasher plumbing, radiator moves
- Landlord and letting-agent maintenance with a report and photos on every job
- Water softeners and drinking water filters through EcoFilter Ireland, our water filtration division
Electrical, in the same van
Our own electricians work alongside the plumbers, so a job that needs both trades is one visit and one phone number.
- Fault finding: tripping circuits, dead sockets, immersion and shower circuits
- Sockets, switches and lighting added or moved
- Smart heating controls and thermostats
- Emergency lighting for landlords and commercial premises
Burst pipe? We handle the insurance claim too.
A burst pipe or a leak through a ceiling usually means an insurance claim, and that is the part most people dread. We work with PCLA, independent loss assessors, who take the claim from the first phone call to the settlement on your behalf, at no extra cost to you. We stop the water and make the repair; they deal with the insurer.
Every emergency callout comes with a written report and photos of what we found and what we did, which is exactly what the insurer asks for.
5.0From 140 Google reviewsWhat customers say on Google
5.0Called for someone to come out to take a look at a leak under my sink that was pouring on to the floor. Nice chap arrived within 90 minutes and fixed the problem quickly. We will be using CPS in future for any plumbing issues we have.
Life savers. Burst pipe behind our integrated dishwasher. We couldn’t switch the water off from the point of entry – didn’t realise it was being fed from the attic storage. Very fast call out. Thank you.
I have used CPS for both plumbing and electrical work at my place, and they have been outstanding every single time. They were quick at responding, sincere and quality of their work is excellent. I wish I could give them more than 5 stars.
Questions we get asked
Is it bad if my pump keeps cycling?
Can I turn the pump off?
Do you repair pumps?
Can you come out now?
Other jobs we do
Same plumbers and electricians, same number. Ring 01 556 3050 for any of them.
Areas we cover
Area pages for the parts of Dublin, Kildare and Meath we’re in most. Not listed? We still cover it, ring us.
Pump driving you mad?
Ring 01 556 3050. We find what’s making it run, and replace the pump only if it actually needs it.