Pump hire makes sense when the water is a one-off: a flooded basement after a storm, a trench that fills overnight, a dam or pool to empty, an event that needs water moved. Hire companies keep submersible drainage and dewatering pumps, sludge and trash pumps, diesel driven pumps and wellpoint systems, with the hoses and fittings to go with them, and hire them out by the day, week or month. Send one request with what needs pumping and for how long, and we pass it to independent pump hire companies near you, who quote you directly.
What you can hire
- Submersible drainage pumps for clean or slightly dirty water: basements, pools, tanks. See drainage pumps.
- Dewatering pumps, often three phase, for excavations and pits.
- Sludge and trash pumps for muddy water with solids.
- Diesel driven pumps where there is no power on site, or to keep pumping through load-shedding.
- Wellpoint systems that lower the water table in sandy ground before digging, common at the coast. See dewatering pumps.
Suction hose, lay-flat delivery hose, floats and generators are usually hired with them.
Choosing the right pump to hire
Tell the hire company four things: how much water there is or how fast it comes in, how high it must be lifted and how far it must go, what is in it (clean water, mud, sand or sewage), and what power there is on site. A pump meant for clean water blocks quickly on mud, and a small pump pushing water up a long hose may deliver far less than you expect. A clean water drainage pump is not suitable for sewage, so ask for a pump rated for it, as covered on sewage pumps. The hire company usually suggests the pump, hose size and length from those answers.
Rates, delivery and what is included
Pumps are hired by the day, week or month, and on longer jobs a weekly or monthly rate often works out cheaper per day; ask for both. Check whether the quote includes:
- Delivery and collection, and how far they travel
- Hoses, fittings and a float switch
- Fuel for diesel pumps, or whether you refuel
- A deposit, damage cover and what counts as damage
- Setting up, and a callout if the pump stops
Floods, dams, pools and building sites
After a big storm, everybody wants a pump at once, so it helps to know who to call before the rainy season. To drain a pool or a dam, ask how long it will take and check with the municipality where the water may go. On building sites, a trench or foundation that keeps filling may need pumping for weeks, and sandy ground may call for wellpoints rather than a pump in the hole. If the same basement floods every year, buying may be cheaper than hiring again and again; see sump pumps for a permanent answer.
What to put in your request
- What needs pumping: basement, trench, dam, pool
- How much water, or how fast it comes in
- What is in it: clean, muddy, sandy or sewage
- Power on site, or a diesel pump needed
- How long you need it and where it goes
Pump Hire for homes, farms and businesses
- Homeowners: a drainage pump hired for a weekend to empty a flooded garage or a pool
- Smallholdings and plots: a diesel pump hired to move water from a dam with no power nearby
- Farms: a trash pump hired to empty a silted dam or a flooded pump room
- Complexes, estates and body corporates: pumps hired after a storm to clear flooded basements and storm water sumps
- Offices, shops, hotels and lodges: an office basement pumped out while the sump pump is being repaired
- Factories, plants and depots: temporary pumps hired during a plant shutdown or tank cleaning
- Mines and quarries: extra dewatering pumps hired for a pit during heavy summer rain
- Municipalities, schools and clinics: diesel pumps hired to clear flooded roads and underpasses
- Contractors and drillers: dewatering pumps and wellpoints hired for a trench or foundation on site
Frequently asked questions
Do you hire out pumps yourselves?
Is it cheaper to hire or buy a pump?
Can I hire a pump to drain my pool?
How quickly can a hire pump be delivered?
Pump Hire by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg