Digging up Septic Cover

[SteveH_CT]

Hi Guys - Do any of you have an idea as to how deep I should have to dig to expose the cover of my septic tank? I'm wondering if this is a shovel job or a FEL job?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[ronjhall]

SteveH_CT

My cover is about 12" below the surface. If you know where the cover is. There will be a lot less digging. I wouldn't use a a FEL or any other powered tool to open my septic tank.

 

[Taylortractornut]

Take halfinch rod and sharpen the end of it thn weld a t handle to it to make a probing rod. You can find ll your septic tank things that way. I install and remove tanks alot. THe loader will work if you start on the narrow est parallel edge mainly the front and bac. That lets the tank suport the extra weigh of the machine and usually the bucket hangs over enough to you can scoop across the front then across the rear and not have to center the tank.
I lost the hpin in my industrial hoe's bucket and had to use the loader to expose one. If you had a backhoe you could weld a strap across the bucket teeth to make the edge smooth for exposing the tank top.

 

[surfran]

As far as depth goes, if you know where your outlet from your house is, that should give you a good idea of depth. Most today in NY at least are around 12"-18" down, but my sisters place is below basement floor level, so they are about 7' deep and had to put collars on several years ago. Today you can't put one it that way in NY (at least that is what I understand).

As for uncovering mine this fall, I used my BX1800 with toothbar (built TB just for this occasion, at least that was the encouragement I needed).

Anyhow, I just kept scraping small layers off the length of mine until I got down to the top then finished with a shovel.

Of course mine is about 12" down and I know exactly where it was as I had dug it up for pumping about 3 years ago as well.

I have a concrete tank, so I was not concerned about the weight of my BX (about 1500-1600 lbs with me and weight box).

I never gave weight on the tank a consideration as I drive BX over it every week mowing (of course that is side to side direction). My tank is about 4-5" thick if memory serves, so that should be sturdy enough shouldn't it?

I do know that the last time I did it using my rototiller to loosen dirt/rocks and then hand shoveled and it wasn't fun at all, not to mention it took me several hours.

This time it took about 20 minutes and I had it all uncovered including my incoming 10' of cast iron line (which is why I was digging up to replace)

I wouldn't do this on the old steel tank we had at our cottage though! We replaced that 2 years ago and it was getting quite thin!! Made me cringe thinking about how many times I ran my fathers JD 425 over it mowing over the years!

Good luck,

 

[PineRidge]

Once you find the cleanout tops an easy way to remember where they are for the next go around is to drive a couple of short pieces of rebar into the ground so that they are just below grade level. Any inexpensive metal detector can find the rebar beyond that point. I picked one up at Harbor Freight for less than 20 bucks. If you ever have to locate those lids in the dead of winter like I did you'll be glad you marked them ahead of time. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[DaveNH]

Right on!

Mark it - Documentation.

I wrote on my cellar wall, near the exit pipe.
"Septic Tank cover is 9 feet straight out from dryer vent."

It's a nice reminder for me and the next guy who owns this house
will have an easier time finding it.

 

[SteveH_CT]

Thanks Guys - all great advice. I think I'll try verifying that where I think the tank is actually is right - than I'm going to mark it out as advised. I really appreciate the advice. My wife to be is amazed how fast I get answers here. This is a great site with a lot of incredible info.

Take Care,

 

[Will_C]

I'll second (or third) the advice about documenting the cover. I have my cover on a riser that comes just below grade level. It isn'y covered with soil, and I have a whiskey barrel planter on top for safety and decoration. (it must weigh 300lbs or so filled.)
Will

 

[Junkman]

There is no way to tell how deep it is until you locate it and uncover it for the first time. I have a chart that I keep with pictures of various projects that are buried in and around the house that helps every time you need to find something that is buried either in the ground or the walls. I take measurements from two points that I know won't change, such as the two corners of the house and have those measurements intersect over what I am looking to keep an exact location of. My septic tank is xx feet from the left corner and xxx feet from the right corner. Using two 100' tapes, you just cross those two measurements over each other and the septic cover is directly below. This is the most accurate method.. If you take say 50' from the drier vent, you can be off by a couple of feet if your measurement is not exactly a 90 degree angle... if it were an 85 degree angle, then you will be digging in the wrong place and won't know it until you dig down the distance to where the tank is supposed to be. A planter over the top is a good marker, as long as someone doesn't move it. This happened to me at one home. The previous owner had marked it with a bunch of bricks and planted some flowers in the middle. Trouble is that at some time in the past, someone moved the planter bricks and when I had some top soil delivered, the truck broke through the top and fell into the septic tank. For that reason, now I have exact measurements for all buried items recorded.

 

[RalphVa]

Mine in La was only about 4-6" deep. Think the one here it about that, too. In dry weather, I can see its outline because the grass above it gets browner quicker.

I made a video just after we had all our underground utility lines marked from the street and asked covered where the septic tank is located. Keep the video in a fire-proof box.

Mine in La fell in while we had the house on the market. Fun. It was metal. Don't know why they put in a metal septic tank in such a wet climate, or anywhere. Put a new concrete one. No problem driving over that one.

Ralph