The basement in my NY area house flooded last week- first time in 10 years this has happened. My entire street had issues, and others who have been there for 20+ yrs. also said its the first time (the water table was too high due to massive rains and the water came up from underneath).

Before I go and purchase new carpet, I was thinking I should look at putting a sump pump in as a safety measure. Is this something where a plumber just digs down into the foundation and installs the pump, with a pipe running outside? How effective are sump pumps in preventing such an issue from occurring (ie due to a high water table)? Lastly, is it worth it going after a pump that has a battery backup?