Bought our house earlier this year and it had a sump pump in it and the line has frozen up. The line goes out the basement and up a set of stairs and then connects to the drain for our gutters where it is taken to the road. The line going up the stairs has frozen near the bottom and I'm wondering if the heated wire would keep it flowing or if there is a better option? Also should I just empty the pit by hand till I get it taken care of?

Replacing a submersible pump seems pretty straightforward if one has the proper tools. I had to have my pump lowered 100 feet because the water level has been low causing cavitation. The cost was $700. It took 2 guys about 35 minutes to complete plus I estimate about $200-$250 in materials (100' of 12/2, 100' poly pipe, 1 barbed fitting, 2 splice kits and 4 hose clamps). The guys had 2 tools essential to doing the job easily and safely. One was a pair of vice grips with a special jaw that fit around the 1¼" poly pipe to hold it in place. The other was a pulley block that clamps onto the side of the well casing and allows them to pull the pipe horizontally without scraping it against the well casing. They also has a T handled puller for the pitless adapter but I can make that with parts from Home Depot. Does anyone know what these other 2 tools are called and where they may be purchased? I tried Googling to no avail. Joe