"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message ...
About once a year, my parents get an inch of water in the cellar. Here is
the situation.

Cellar is (no surprise) below ground. We had five inches rain yesterday
(surprise). Ending up with one inch in the cellar.

Sump pump aparently died, so Dad went out to buy another one. Got the
"another" one plumbed in, and the drain to the street is clogged.

We ended up with the pump running through a flex hose, out to the street.

Questions: What is a good water level alarm, preferably battery power. So
that Dad will know that the sump is dead, preferably before the water is an
inch deep?

Second: How to keep a line from the cellar to the storm sewer clear. We
suspect it is very old cast iron, and tree roots are blocking it. What can
we pour into the drain to kill or slow or rot tree roots?

I'm sure there is a lot of wisdom out there in news group land, and I thank
you in advance.


The solution to your blocked sump pump line is to run a new one. With
a failing cast iron pipe with tree roots, that is the only viable
solution.