A city boy. We decided we could buy a huge house upstate (NY) for the dough we were paying a condo. So we did. Got an even larger house with land, because it needed some work. Been here for two years.
After another freeze and thaw, we’ve developed a sink hole over the cesspool holding tank. Which was good, because no one knew where the damn thing was.
Bad thing, we have a hole full of stinky water looking at us…thank god it’s still cold…!
The tank is not overflowing, and “water” is well below the intake and outtake pipes. There’s no backup or smell into the celler or the toilet in the house.
We have no idea, when the tank was or if it was even serviced. The house is over 150 years old.
Question, can we just replace the cover? What materials would we use?
I would have it pumped out and inspected. If the tank is sound, there is probably no reason why you couldn’t just replace the cover. Is it a concrete tank BTW? Or metal, or what? The guy who pumps it out, or the people at the county building department, can probably tell you where to get a new cover. Now would also be a good time to consider the condition of your drain field.
Keeping in mind that I am NOT an expert. I just know a little more about septic systems than the average bear.
I hope you are talking about the septic tank and not a true cesspool. The tank should have an erosion resistant cover (typically concrete). If it was not done before you moved in, you should probably have it pumped out. The service guy can then sell you (or recommend a supplier for) the tank lid.
If it truly is a cesspool, you might want to consider borrowing the $5,000 to install a septic system. Safer* and more ecologically friendly. (This would also let you choose the time and place to install it rather than having the county come through, discover your lack of a septic field, and order you to install one immediately.)
Cesspools have a tendency to leach into the groundwater–usually making a beeline for the well.
One different scary thought: Where is your well? If it is outside, are you sure that the supply pipe has not sprung a leak and you are looking at the sinkhole cause by erosion around the leak rather than the top of the septic tank or cesspool?
Back in the day, we had a septic tank collapse when a tractor rolled over it. We dug it up, pumped it out ourselves, covered it with… you know those doors on the back of a delivery truck? The ones that roll up? We had one of those laying around, and we covered it with that, buried it, and planted some grass seed on the top.
If it truly is a cesspool, you might want to consider borrowing the $5,000 to install a septic system. Safer* and more ecologically friendly. (This would also let you choose the time and place to install it rather than having the county come through, discover your lack of a septic field, and order you to install one immediately.)
Cesspools have a tendency to leach into the groundwater–usually making a beeline for the well.
No, it’s a cesspool. The house is over a hundred years old and the town pretty much lets homeowners “grandfather” this sort of thing. The deal is that ‘if’ it fails you have to upgrade…but in this town a wink is as good as nudge.
There’s no well, all the town is on “City” water, but depending on how much land you have you didn’t have to sign up for city waste. Which the generations of previous owners never did. We have an acre of land which is huge, considering we live in town.
It’s looks like it’s metal, but there’s so much crap (no pun intented) I can’t be sure…I poked it with a shovel and it sounded metal. It looks like the previous owners, god knows which one, went cheapo on the cover.
The septic system isn’t an opinion unless it’s necessary, as we’re doing a beeline back to the city as soon as we flip this. I’d rather toss the 5 grand into curb appeal.