Any septic system pros out there?

[Tractor Seabee]

A friend of mine used to do tank pumping. He said he needed at least a 6-8" opening to get his stiff pumper hose into the tank. The hose has to go all the way to the bottom. For an adequate inspection procedure a manhole size opening is required. He said on older tanks in order to do the certified inspection sometimes they had to remove to whole tank lid if constructed prior to the requirement for manholes. Your MD codes must be different than out here in the peoples states on the west coast. Out here the ordinances require pumping and inspection every 3 years whether they need it or not. That is heavily ignored but catches up when you sell your property as a pump-out and inspection is required as part of the seller disclosure process. If you have an original certification for a 2 bedroom house and you have bootlegged another BR or two; then a new permit and complete new installation compliant with current use and codes all at the sellers cost. Oh for the good ole days when your house was your castle.

Ron

 

[ultrarunner]

I pulled the septic permit for my home and it says 3-4 bedroom home.

No one had every seen a permit like this with bedrooms being 3 or 4.

Called the installer from back in 1977 and said that is just how we did it back then in Thurston County.

I would have 5 bedrooms except one of the "Bedrooms" has windows that do not open and was told it had to remain this way for it not to count as a bedroom... if that makes sense?

Best I can tell is should alterations be needed... I'm looking at a full blown mini sewage treatment plant with pumps and oversite... and I can't even guess what this would entail...

I've been having it pumped every 24 months and so far so good.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

I pulled the septic permit for my home and it says 3-4 bedroom home.

No one had every seen a permit like this with bedrooms being 3 or 4.

Called the installer from back in 1977 and said that is just how we did it back then in Thurston County.

I would have 5 bedrooms except one of the "Bedrooms" has windows that do not open and was told it had to remain this way for it not to count as a bedroom... if that makes sense?

Best I can tell is should alterations be needed... I'm looking at a full blown mini sewage treatment plant with pumps and oversite... and I can't even guess what this would entail...

I've been having it pumped every 24 months and so far so good.

Ultra,
I think most of the counties around Puget Sound have about the same ordinances and codes which are all based on the Uniform or International Codes for sanitary systems. We are so progressive out here that a lot of the country is still in a catch-up mode with us. I swear WA is trying to outdo CA.

Ron

 

[Claytonfarms]

We are building a new house and the updated codes, 2013 codes require pumps, valves, lots of stuff I do not want to deal with. The county let us get the permit early in2012 since the property is all woods and the nitrogen will help the trees.

We had the same bedroom ordeal. Actually the septic is rated for 3 -4 bedrooms or upto 8 people. My wife and I are going to live there with guests occasionally, no kids. Our system is most likely over sized but I do not want problems.

By the way I talked to the tank supplier when I purchased the risers. He told me that they cast the tanks with manholes and not 6" holes so that an inspection can be done. Seems that it is hard to pump the tank with the suction hose down a 9' long pipe! Who would have thought.

 

[bcp]

Why septic pumps? Gravity doesn't work all the time? Pumps always work?

Bruce

 

[ultrarunner]

Ultra,
I think most of the counties around Puget Sound have about the same ordinances and codes which are all based on the Uniform or International Codes for sanitary systems. We are so progressive out here that a lot of the country is still in a catch-up mode with us. I swear WA is trying to outdo CA.

Ron

I'm thinking you are not too far off and it came as a surprise how similar Washington and California are.

The one thing I really liked was I-747 which limited assessment increases... and then it was struck down.

I swear about half the people I meet in Washington have ties to California and a lot of those with Southern California.

In the nearly 10 years since I bought... the changes have been huge... ever increasing buffer zones, run off ordinances, prohibitions on livestock near critical areas... etc., plus up zoning... when I bought the I could have built 3 homes and now it is limited to the one I have...

Still a very beautiful part of the country that suits me just fine and having great born and bred Washington neighbors is wonderful!

 

[ultrarunner]

Why septic pumps? Gravity doesn't work all the time? Pumps always work?

Bruce

I know very little... my understanding is the new designs have holding tanks, sand mounds, dosing pumps, aerators and power backup in some cases plus monitoring that requires an ongoing contract with a certified company to assure year round verification and compliance... last I checked... new simple gravity systems were just about extinct and some of these installs were pushing 50k plus the contract.

I asked about sewer service because it exists in places... best I can understand is with the up zoning for less density... public sewer service will never happen.

 

[JamesHW]

From an article in the Baltimore Sun from a little over a week ago (bolded part mine):

A grandfathering policy was established by MDE allowing any property owner who obtains a septic system construction permit for new construction or additions prior to the effective date of Jan. 1, 2013 to be exempt from the requirement to install the BAT component, according to the county health department. In addition to receiving the on-site sewage disposal system permit by Dec. 28, the system itself must be installed within one-year of the date the permit is issued.

It would seem the rush did not apply since you got your permit on time.

Always interested in septic systems as I have a 60 year old tank serving my old farmhouse in Upstate NY which I need to dig up to inspect (and likely need at least a revamp of the leech field) as well as planning for a system for the second house we want to build. Our situation is very different as the property is very sandy, pretty much as deep as you dig.

 

[Dutch445]

clayton i do not understand the reason for the outlet pipe being tied into the
concrete manhole cover. the cover is just that, a manhole cover used for
future inspection/pumping. it looks like an attempt to use the upper portion as
a vent?
wouldn't there be an outlet on the side of the tank that then heads to the d box?
and i have not seen vents at that side of a tank. i have seen "t"s on the inlet pipe
between the house and tank that vented up above ground, but never past the tank.

i think i'd get a new manhole cover, or a riser with elevated cover and outlet the tank
out of it's normal outlet hole with a straight piece of pipe and be done with it.

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

Why septic pumps? Gravity doesn't work all the time? Pumps always work?

Bruce

newest technology that are considered more environmentally friendly embraced in a lot of the new regulations we see in Northern US states and Canada require the use of a pressure dosing system (not a gravity fed system) so pumps are required PLUS high micron filters to keep solids out of the field, plastic field chambers, etc...

Total material cost (tank, pump, piping, chambers, filter, fittings, cement, etc...) runs an installer where I am about $3,600 for a 4 bedroom home that meets all the new reg's.