I’m getting serious about buying a home site in a city with several affordable lots. Unfortunately, most of them do not have city sewer, although they do have city water.
So they need a septic tank. I’ve heard all kinds of horror stories about septic tank problems, but I guess the people who are happy with them have no need to publicize it.
So I’m looking for realistic expectations here. I guess the worst case is I buy a lot that has an old, failed septic tank. For the Pacific Northwest area, about how much would it cost to remove the old one, and install a new one, top of the line? And if I did that, what yearly maintenance and costs would I incur, and how long before I would have to replace it?
Also interested in any tips on how to prolong its life, or experiences you’ve had, good or bad.
No, the yearly maintenance cost is not zero dollars. Every couple or every few years, you’ll need to have the septic tank emptied, at a cost of perhaps a hundred bucks.
You are supposed to have the tank pumped every 3 to 5 years. I had mine done 4.5 years ago and I think it was around $200 - $300. So, $60 to $100 a year isn’t bad.
The weeping tiles may fail (clog) after 25 to 35 years and the cost to replace the system is about $15,000 to $20,000 IIRC. My neighbourhood is about that age and I’ve only noticed one house that’s had the tank replaced and that was many years ago. He may not have been maintaining his properly.
current specifications and codes will lead to a longer lasting system. if you don’t put bad shit (water, piss and shit are good) into it and have it pumped as required (about 3 years) and clean your exit filter once or twice a year then it might last multigenerations.
Ive been in a house with a septic system for about 6 years now. We’ve gotten it pumped and/or cleaned yearly for a hundred bucks or so. Otherwise, we’ve ignored it.
The cost of maintenance is negligible. I installed one 12 years ago and have never even had it pumped out. I pour a powder down the toilet ( Rid X) once or twice a year. But I have ideal conditions for this kind of system. Usually only two people using a system installed for a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, house. I put in a bigger tank and drain field than was required by code.
If you are buying a city lot with an existing system, I agree with Sicks Ate
the drain field would most likely be the source of any problems. The tank can be easily pumped out but the drain field is more of a PIA and city lots generally offer only minimal placement options.
But, I would not let that prevent me from buying.
This may sound gross, but one way to save costs with a septic system is to have a closed top trash can for your toilet paper, and throw it out with trash pick-up, instead of flushing it. Also, not flushing pee every time helps too, but you will want to put the lid down between uses. Flush it every evening before you go to bed.
This can make the difference between having to get the tank sucked out every year, and every three years.
I don’t think so necessarily; not a GQ answer but I believe that the leach field itself is supposed to be more or less level. It just becomes a problem of which direction to run the field, which is (usually) supplied by a distribution box.
It is worth every penny of $100/yr to me to not have a can full of shitpaper sitting in by bathroom.
Yes, I realize this is SOP in many parts of the world. I’d bet you they wouldn’t do it if they didn’t have to, either.
Most of the lots I’m looking at have city water, but some don’t. How can it be safe to drink well water from a well adjacent to a leach field for a septic system?
Been living in our current place with a well and septic for the past 16 years. The system itself was probably installed 40 or more years ago, same tank and drainfield. A properly installed and maintained system will last decades.
Not that that one has always been treated properly - a former tenant had a 3 year old daughter that became obsessed for awhile with flushing things down the toilet, which necessitated an unplanned tank cleaning. Another former tenant flushed a whole bunch of little baggies down the toilet, which clogged things up considerably. Don’t know what was in the little baggies, we weren’t inclined to open them up and find out but I suspect illegal pharmaceuticals. Even so, despite dishtowels, socks, and drugs, the system is still fine even after all these years. A properly installed system is reasonably robust. If there’s a problem get it taken care of quickly.
Rid-X isn’t necessary if you have human beings supplying piss and shit, which contains everything your septic system needs. Don’t put anything down the drain that isn’t safe for septic systems - cleaning products will almost always mention if this is OK or not. No flushing medications (legal or not), you don’t want to kill off the bacteria doing the digesting.
Regular tank cleaning is needed, but as noted, it’s not wildly expensive. How often this is required depends on the size of your tank and how much use it gets. If you’re buying probably not a bad idea to pay for a honeydipper to come out and look things over, check the tank, and recommend how often to pump it out.
I placed my garden over the drainfield, which helps keep it green. The only hitch is that we have to be careful not to till all the way down to the drain tiles. It hasn’t been an issue, but it’s a good idea to know where your drainfield is so you can be careful regarding any need to dig or use power-tools like rototillers.
There are multiple types of systems and setup in use, and there is no one answer as to installation and maintenance costs. You local codes will restrict what you can do, but there are a few different types and sizes of tanks ranging from small fiberglass tanks to huge cement tanks; some can be buried deeper than others so the slope down to the tank becomes an issue as well as the surrounding soil you’re backfill it with. You can probably find a tank for under a thousand or spend several thousand . Don’t forget shipping and installation as most of these things don’t fit in the back of a pickup nor do you dig them in by hand.
There are also different types of systems; leaching fields have already been mentioned but you can also have a leaching mound or open discharge. In the city you probably won’t be allowed to have an open discharge or cesspool type system. The town may have a community septic field which you can hook your tank up to. That’s what I have in my small town. I need a submersible pump in my septic tank to pump the overflow water into the town septic field; this adds to the maintenance costs as I need a few hundred $ pump and it’s cycling on and off consuming power… I’ve also had to replace the pump a few times. On the other hand I don’t have to worry about the field (as much; it’s a shared cost).
As I noted, we have well and septic. The well is tested regularly. So far, it’s fine. A bit heavy on minerals, but the bacteria count is actually lower than the municipal water in neighboring cities.
We’re careful about what we pour down the drain. Safe-for-septic cleaning products, greywater, and bodily waste. Anything toxic we dispose of by taking to the local drop off for that.
Your leach field is designed for grey water and non-solid black water only. Not solids. That is why you need to pump the tank before the solids reach the field. The field is not not designed for chunkies (please do the math on your own). Your leach field works as long as it’s not clogged. Once it’s clogged, get your check book out and start writing at about $12,000 +.
What Rid-X claims to do is to take your chunkies and make them liquid enough so they will flow into your leach field and evaporate. What really happens is that the solids in your tank get slightly liquefied by the Rid-X, flow into your field in clog it. Then you’re screwed.
Have your tank pumped once every 18 months or so and it will just about work for decades and decades. Get cheap and us Rid-X, stand by.
I remember house hunting in 1989. I had to reject a couple homes that had standing water in the yard. That area was suspiciously bright green compared to the rest of the yard.
they have to be separated by a distance. they might be placed on opposite diagonals of the house. siting of the septic is done first to where it would work right and best. wells are drilled to below filtering layers.
