Sump pump replacement in Remington.

Remington sits about 276 feet above sea level on the Rappahannock; the NOAA weather station ten miles north near Warrenton stands roughly 225 feet higher. The County’s plan for the town says the soils here were laid down when the area was a shallow lake, hold water stubbornly, and are part of why Remington floods. Water that sinks into ground like that drains out of it slowly, so a basement pump here can keep cycling for days after the sky clears.

Then there’s the river. The National Weather Service’s gauge at Remington calls 15 feet a flood, when Tin Pot Run Road and Sumerduck Road go under. At 20 feet a few homes south of town take water, and at 25 feet it reaches parts of downtown near the railroad tracks. In June 2018 the river crested at 23.3 feet, its highest since 1996, with water in a couple of homes and numerous roads closed. It topped flood stage again in January 2024 and in May 2025.

When the Rappahannock or Tinpot Run is standing in the yard, no sump pump empties it. What the pump handles is the slower water: groundwater rising under the slab through a wet week, and the melt after a big snow. In January 2016 the station near Warrenton logged 20.5 inches in one day and had 25 inches on the ground three days later. It also averages about 98 nights a year at or below freezing, and a discharge line that runs shallow across the yard can ice up right when the melt arrives.

The storms that bring the water also bring down lines. In June 2012 thunderstorm winds estimated near 76 mph damaged six to twelve homes off Justin Court, in April 2017 part of a roof came off on East Main Street, and in March 2018 a windstorm brought trees and wires down across the county. A pump without power isn’t running, which is the case for a battery backup here. After the river crests or a big storm passes, call us and we’ll look at the pump, the pit and where the water is going.