Septic Tank advice

fluffymuffy

manda1205 wrote: »

It just shocks me he can go over 10 years without emptying a tank.

perhaps you're thinking of a cess pit?

Once in ten years, fifteen years, or more is fine for a good system which does not have a lot of inorganic stuff through it and is looked after (no oil poured down the sink, only eco cleaners etc).

tonyh66

septic tanks must be emptied at regular intervals, the sludge builds up within the tank eventually filling it, not everything is digested, even the most efficient bio-digester tank needs emptying occasionally.

manda1205

fluffymuffy wrote: »

perhaps you're thinking of a cess pit?

Once in ten years, fifteen years, or more is fine for a good system which does not have a lot of inorganic stuff through it and is looked after (no oil poured down the sink, only eco cleaners etc).

I honestly have no idea what Im thinking of, lol. Where I live we have 4 houses running off one tank, it used to be a cess pit, but as I said environment agency said it was leaking our waste into the soak away, so landlord had to put in a new septic tank (around 6 or 7 years ago). When it was a cess pit it was emptied yearly, now its a septic tank its emptied yearly, sometimes twice a year. I know lots of people in the village, who all have septic tanks and they empty theirs either yearly or sometimes every 2 years.
I have just never heard of anyone going over 10 years thats all. Maybe we're all a bit "keen" in our village.

Leif

manda1205 wrote: »

I have just never heard of anyone going over 10 years thats all. Maybe we're all a bit "keen" in our village.

You may well need to pump it regularly, I don't know. The septic tank allows solids to settle and they are then digested. Fluids including products of digestion drain off.

There is a reference here to one not being emptied in 20 years, and another being done once in 150 years:

http://www.gardenbanter.co.uk/united-kingdom/167718-septic-tank-how-often-clean.html

I think it depends on the size and design.

Reliag

pollyzanna wrote: »

We recently moved into a new house which has a Septic Tank in the garden. The survey helpfully ( )says "Employ professional services to carry out inspection of septic tank"

Yes, I know I can do an internet search to find someone, but I'm a bit concerned that a company could turn up and say "Oh yes, you need a brand new system that will cost £3k thank you very much" (You may have guessed, I don't really have any idea!)

Therefore I'm asking if anyone has any recommendations of any Septic Tank inspectors in the Cheshire (Northwich) area? (Or companies to avoid?!)

Any other general septic tank advice also appreciated!

Thank you

We were in exactly the same position 5 years ago. There are a few companies to chose from - one man bands and national companies. Prices for emptying are normally very similar but I prefer the security of using a more established company so that I can be confident that the waste is being disposed of in both a legal and environmentally sound manner. We have had some very poor advice and some rather smelly experiences in the past... We now use a company called Cleansing Service Group - CSG. They have always been reliable, knowledgeable and more often than not the cheapest. Contact details: enquiries@csg.co.uk or call 0800 011 6600

notatvstar

I have a septic... it's a bit temperamental as the flow pipes to it clog easily - but that's not the tanks fault as such, and we have it emptied every year. It doesn't really need it but we do so as we want to make sure the drain field stays good for as long as possible. We rent, and the drain field has always been a bit slow, so we decided to get it done every year as a precaution. It works out cheaper than mains drainage and also a lot cheaper than having to completely dig another drain field.