When it comes to sewage pumps, it can be tempting to try to spend as little as possible in order to offset the money you’ll spend on installation costs. But we’ve spent enough time in sewage pits and around septic tanks to regret every dollar we’ve ever tried to save by buying unreliable sewage pumps. To be frank, if you have a family or tenants who can’t tell the garbage can from the toilet, you need a grinder pump instead of a basic ejector pump. If, on the other hand, the people in your home or the people who rent your properties only use drains to flush human waste, then you’ll be able to get by with a regular sewage pump. In either case, you don’t want something you’ll find in your local big box store. There’s too much at stake.

Let’s say you want a sewage grinder pump. The Liberty Pumps PRG101A costs under a grand and will keep your sewage system from clogging no matter what’s thrown in it for a good 15-25 years. But if you’re sure you don’t need a grinder and just need to pass solids with reliability, you can save a lot of money. There’s the Zoeller M267, which is one of the most trusted ejectors out there, as well as the Liberty Pumps LE51A. Today we’re going to examine the LE51A’s little sibling, the Liberty Pumps LE41A Submersible Automatic Sewage Pump. To summarize our review, it’s not nearly as reliable as the LE51A due to faulty float switches, and we’d recommend getting that instead. That said, you can buy the LE41 here.

Key Features of the Liberty Pumps LE41A Sewage Ejector Pump (60 Second Summary)

The Liberty Pumps LE41A is an automatic submersible sewage ejector pump aimed at residential (household) applications. It’s not designed to be used in commercial (business) environments (unlike the LE51A). It includes a 4/10 horsepower electric motor, a 8,700 gallon per hour maximum flow rate, a 20 feet maximum pumping height, and Liberty Pumps’ 3 year warranty. It stands 13.8 inches high, is 7.5 inches wide, and 10.9 inches long. The LE41A weighs 40 pounds and has a motor housed in class 25 cast iron.

the LE41A features a polymer impeller that can handle 2 inch spherical solids. It includes an oil filled, thermally protected motor . The motor takes 115 volts single phase AC with a maximum amp draw of 12 amps and locked rotor amps at 22.5. Thermal overload protection kicks in at 221F. A 10-foot quick disconnect power cord comes with the LE41A by default; the LE41A-2 is identical in every way besides substituting a 25-foot power cord. The pump can handle liquids at up to 140F and includes an automatic mechanical wide angle float switch and piggyback plug. It includes a 2 inch FNPT discharge.

The maximum pumping speed of 8,700 GPH at zero feet scales down to 6,000 GPH at 10 feet with shutoff and max head occurring at 20 feet.

How Does the Liberty Pumps LE41A Compare to the Zoeller M267, Liberty Pumps LE51A, and PRG101A?

The LE41A is faster than the M267 (8,700 GPH vs 7,680 GPH) but slower than the LE51A (which tops out at 9,600 GPH). It has a lower max head than both (21.5 feet and 24 feet respectively). Warranty coverage is the same as both at 3 years, as is solids-passing capability at 2 inches. The LE41A is underpowered compared to both at 4/10 horsepower vs 1/2 horsepower and also has a significantly poorer reputation for long term reliability due to a poor float switch design; we’d expect a lifespan of 5-10 years for the LE41A vs up to 15 years for the LE41A and up to 20 years for the M267. Given the small price difference between the three pumps, we’d recommend the M267 or LE51A over the LE41A whenever possible.

Compared to the Liberty Pumps PRG101A, the sole advantages of the LE41A are pumping speed (8,700 GPH vs 2,760 GPH) and price. In every other category, the PRG101A is easily the superior sewage pump. As a grinder pump, it’s designed to handle all kinds of difficult solids (feminine hygiene products, towels, rags, wipes, and more) that would choke or clog the LE41A or any other sewage ejector pump, including the LE51A and M267. If you’re serious about keeping your sewage system running no matter what family members, tenants, or employees and customers flush down it, you don’t want an ejector pump–you need a grinder pump.

Our Short and Long Term Experiences Installing and Using the Liberty Pumps LE41A Ejector Pump

Installing the LE41A is pretty much the same as the process for any other sewage ejector pump–potentially more complex than a sump pump installation due to the location, but not impossible. If you hire a plumber, of course, it’ll be faster, though more expensive. If you’ve got experience with sewage pumps or know someone who does, you’ll be able to get through it; there aren’t any ugly surprises to be aware of. Just make sure you have all of your accessories and extras on hand before you start; you don’t want to stop in the middle of a project because you’ve broken a coupling and don’t have any spares and the hardware store is closed for the night. As usual with sewage jobs, it would be smart to buy and use a good wet / dry vacuum to keep things as clean as possible.

Once installed, we wish we could say you could expect decades of life from the LE41A, but we’ve seen or heard about enough failed pumps to have trouble trusting this model for longevity. The most common issue we seem to see is the float switch getting suck, whether in the on or in the off position; we’ve got guides for dealing with that below, but you’re not going to want to keep going into the pit to fix this every few years. We’d recommend just buying the LE51A instead if you want the same pump with better reliability. Alternatively, the most reliable ejector we’ve found is still the M267, while the most reliable sewage pumps overall won’t be ejectors but grinders, and the PRG101A is the best under a grand you’ll find.

Troubleshooting and Installation Tips to Get Your Liberty Pumps LE41A Working Sooner

When installing the LE41A, the main issues to watch out for are the pump itself not running once installed or its counter, the pump refusing to turn off.

If it doesn’t run, you’ve got one of four issues: poor power, poor liquid levels, a stuck switch, or a bad switch. For power, make sure you’ve got good voltage and that you don’t have a blown fuse. For liquids, make sure there’s enough in the pit to actually trigger the switch. For a stuck switch, make sure there’s nothing blocking the switch from moving through its full range of motion. And for a bad switch, you’ll simply have to pull it and replace it.

If the pump doesn’t turn off, your issues are much simpler: your switch will either be stuck in the open position due to being blocked by something in the pit, or the switch itself will be defective and need pulling.

Liberty Pumps LE41A Sewage Pump Pros, Cons, and Value Comparison

In conclusion, while the LE41A is one of the cheaper “serious” sump ejector pumps on the market, we can’t recommend it in good faith when it falls so close in price to the Zoeller M267 and Liberty Pumps LE51A, both of which are far superior sewage pumps in the $300 price range. Both of those pumps can be used in both residential and light commercial applications, while we’d be hesitant to use the LE41A in anything but single-family home setups. That said, if you’re looking for rock solid reliability and manage a home or business with a high risk of tough solids like sanitary wipes or feminine hygiene products being flushed down toilets and drains, you’d be better off bypassing the M267 and LE51A and upgrading to a dedicated sewage grinder pump like the PRG101A. The cost of doing so will be significantly cheaper than even one emergency plumber call and replacement ejector pump.

You can buy the Liberty Pumps LE41A here on Amazon or the LE41A-2 with a 25-foot cord here. You can buy the Liberty Pumps LE51A here. You can buy the Liberty Pumps PRG101A here.   You can buy the Zoeller M267 here. You can buy a good wet / dry vacuum here. You can buy a silent 2 inch  check valve here.

If you find our work at PumpThatSump helpful, you can support our relentless reviewing of every sump pump on the market by shopping via our Amazon link for whatever you need to make your house a home. Despite being self-employed, we promise not to spend it all on health insurance.

If you’re in the market for a sewage pump, you’re going to need to decide whether you want a sewage grinder pump or a sewage ejector pump, and if you’re going to buy the cheapest pump you can get away with or if you’re going to spend more to get better performance and long term liability. We’ve spent enough time in manholes and sewage pits to hopefully provide some convincing answers to these questions. To put it bluntly, a grinder pump is the better option if your family, tenants, or employees use your toilets as wastebaskets, while a regular sewage pump will work well if the people who use your drains only flush human waste down them. And it’s always worth spending more on a good sewage pump than on whatever you’ll find in your local box store.

If you want a good sewage grinder pump, go with the Liberty Pumps PRG101A and say goodbye to clogs for the next decade and a half. But if you don’t need a grinder and just want high reliability and the ability to pass solids, you’ve got several options to choose from. The Zoeller M267 is always a safe bet, but today we’re going to take a look at the Liberty Pumps LE51A Submersible Automatic Sewage Pump. It’s one of the best sewage ejector pumps on the market, and we’ll explain why below. You can buy it here.

Key Features of the Liberty Pumps LE51A Sewage Ejector Pump (60 Second Summary)

The Liberty Pumps LE51A is an automatic submersible sewage ejector pump for residential and light commercial applications. It features a  1/2 horsepower electric motor, a 9,600 gallon per hour maximum flow rate, a  24 foot maximum pumping height, and the standard 3 year Liberty Pumps warranty. It is 12 inches tall, 10.9 inches wide, 7.5 inches long, and weighs 43  pounds. The motor is housed in class 25 cast iron.

The LE51A’s thermoplastic impeller is  capable of passing 2 inch spherical solids. Its motor is oil-filled and thermally protected. It runs on 115 volts single phase AC and draws 12 amps at maximum load with rotors locked at 22.5 amps. Thermal overload occurs at 221F.  By default, the LE51A includes a 10-foot quick disconnect power cord; the LE51A-2 is an otherwise identical model that includes a 25-foot power cord. The maximum liquid temperature is 140F and the pump includes an automatic mechanical wide angle float switch with a piggyback plug. It uses a 2 inch FNPT discharge.

The maximum pumping speed of 9,600 GPH at zero feet drops to 7,140 GPH at 10 feet, 3,360 GPH at 20 feet, and shuts off at the max head of 24 feet.

How Does the Liberty Pumps LE51A Compare to the Zoeller M267, Liberty Pumps LE41A, and PRG101A?

Compared to the Zoeller M267, the LE51A is the faster ejector pump (9,600 GPH vs 7,680 GPH) as well as the pump with the larger max head (24 feet vs 21.5 feet). Warranty coverage of both pumps is the same. The LE51A is capable of handling hotter fluids (140F vs 130F) and has the option of a 10-foot or 25-foot power cord. Both are capable of passing 2 inch spherical solids and both are equipped with 1/2 horsepower motors. In our experience, the Zoeller has a greater reputation for long term reliability, and we’d expect an up to 20 year lifespan for the M267 vs an up to 15 year lifespan for the LE51A.

Compared to the Liberty Pumps LE41A, the LE51A is again the faster pump (9,600 GPH vs 8,700 GPH) as well as that with the greater max head (24 feet vs 20 feet). Both have the same warranty coverage, fluid temperature limits, and power configurations. Both are capable of passing 2 inch solids. However, in addition to being faster, the LE51A also has the stronger motor (1/2 hp vs 4/10 hp) and reputation for being significantly more reliable than the LE41A, to the point where we would not recommend the LE41A if it were at all possible to buy the LE51A.

Compared to the Liberty Pumps PRG101A, the LE51A will pump more quickly (9,600 GPH vs 2,760 GPH), but that and price are its only advantages. The PRG101A is simply a superior sewage pump. As a grinder pump, it’s not going to stop the first, second, or hundredth time a feminine hygiene product is flushed down a toilet. It won’t clog on diaper wipe after wipe, it won’t choke on towels and rags. It’s designed to handle things that shouldn’t be flushed down toilets but are. If that’s a priority, don’t try to save money with the LE51A. The PRG101A also comes with a far more powerful motor at 1 hp and more than twice the max head at 50 feet instead of 24 feet.

Our Short and Long Term Experiences Installing and Using the Liberty Pumps LE51A Ejector Pump

Installation is more complex than a typical sump pump installation, but not more complex than your everyday sewage pump setup. You’ll either want to hire a plumber, have a lot of experience in sewage pits and septic tanks, or have someone nearby who does. The main thing to keep in mind is that you’ll want to have all of your accessories (and extras) at hand before beginning the project, as there’s nothing worse than needing to stop in the middle of everything because you broke your only check valve and all the stores are closed until the following day, and you’d promised everyone running water that evening (we’ve seen it happen). We recommend buying (and using) a good wet / dry vacuum for the installation. Unlike yards of PVC, cement, couplings, and attachments, it’s not required, but it’s guaranteed to come in handy.

Once installed, you can expect somewhere between 7 and 15 years of reliability, although we’ve seen pumps last significantly longer and have unfortunately seen some give out long before they were due. If multiple decades of unstoppable reliability are a high priority, save your money and get a sewage grinder pump instead of a sewage ejector pump; by design, the PRG101A is going to be more resistant to break down than the LE51A.

Troubleshooting and Installation Tips to Get Your Liberty Pumps LE51A Working Sooner

The main issues you’re likely to run into with the LE51A at startup include the pump not running, the pump not turning off, and the pump running without pumping.

If it doesn’t run at all, you’re either dealing with a power issue (a blown fuse, poor voltage), a stuck switch (due to a physical obstruction), not enough liquid in the pit to activate the switch, or a defective switch.

If the pump doesn’t turn off, the switch is either stuck open due to a physical blockage or defective.

If the pump runs or hums but refuses to pump sewage, you’re either facing a blocked or clogged discharge, a backwards or closed check valve, a closed gate or ball valve, too much lift for the pump, or a jammed impeller or plugged volute casing.

All of these issues are readily fixable, but most will require you to open the pit and physically inspect the pump.

Liberty Pumps LE51A Sewage Pump Pros, Cons, and Value Comparison

In conclusion, if you need a fast, powerful, and reliable sump ejector pump, the Liberty Pumps LE51A should be on your short list. It has very few competitors in its price range, with the most serious one being the Zoeller M267. If you aren’t dealing with a residential or commercial environment where people are flushing trash down the drain, either of these pumps should be able to handle appropriate sewage for years to come. On the other hand, if you are managing a home or business where there’s a significant risk of things like feminine hygiene products or sanitary wipes ending up in toilets, or if you simply can’t afford to have any downtime in your sewage system, you’d do well to upgrade to a grinder like the PRG101A. In the end, the answer depends on your clientele, your budget, and your tolerance for risk.

You can buy the Liberty Pumps LE51A here on Amazon or the LE51A-2 with a 25-foot cord here. You can buy the Liberty Pumps PRG101A here.   You can buy the Zoeller M267 here. You can buy a good wet / dry vacuum here. You can buy a silent 2 inch  check valve here.

If you find our work at PumpThatSump helpful, you can support our relentless reviewing of every sump pump on the market by shopping via our Amazon link for whatever you need to make your house a home. Despite being self-employed, we promise not to spend it all on health insurance.