cast iron sump pump for basement

Top 5 pump track mistakes

Improper planning and design.

If you’re someone like Eric Carter, you can take a skid steer loader, a 6-pack and an idea, and you make a great track the first try. The rest of us … we’re better off with some planning. The better you think through all of the project requirements, the smarter your design will be.

While you’re at it, it would be very smart to use proven sizes, spacing, shapes and radii. Math is free!

Excessive scope.

Bigger is not better.

1) You have to be able to execute whatever you plan to build.

2) The entire track has to be ridden a lot. The sections that don’t get ridden tend to fall apart.

Nowadays I push hard to make tracks simpler and smaller.

Failing to measure.

Assuming you have a dialed design, whomever builds the track has to measure — and measure again. If you follow the specs, they ride great. If not, well, they suck.

In every line of work, only 1% of the people are top-1% performers. Ownerhship of a skid steer loader does not make someone an expert track builder.

Poor materials.

A lot of places, especially cash-poor towns, use whatever dirt they can find. Sometimes it’s fine. Sometimes it’s not. If you have poor material, the build will be a lot harder, and you’ll need way more maintenance.

Do not skimp on material! If you do, you’ll likely have to pay more later. If you can afford a paved surface, pave it.

No maintenance.

The more dialed the build, the less maintenance you need. But tracks do need maintenance.

I’ve seen lots of people and groups promise to take care of tracks, but very few actually do. Before you start this project, make sure someone is responsible for track maintenance.

The good news: When tracks are built well, they are AWESOME.

Plan thrice.

Measure twice.

Build once.

Ride infinitely.