Idiot's guide to cess pits/ soak aways needed!

bryanb

Also try to avoid cooking fat going down the drain. It slows the action of a septic tank.

ladybug73

hi many thanks for the reply's i know all about the "cesspit" the way you get it going the chemicals not to use, just dont know the legal side if things ie, the distance it needs to be from property ect, but thanks anyway:)

Gloomendoom

Have look at this leaflet.

As far as I am aware, the same rules apply in Wales. It would probably be best to seek advice from your local council before doing anything.

ormus

A cesspool is a sealed underground tank with an inlet pipe but no outlet, which is connected
to a property by a series of drainage pipes.
The cesspool stores sewage and other wastewater
until the time of disposal.

Cesspools must be watertight to prevent the leakage of foul water or the ingress of groundwater.
Older cesspools will be constructed from brick, while modern ones are made of fibreglass.
They should be sited so that there is no risk of pollution to groundwater, particularly to potable water supplies, and should be at least 15 metres away from any inhabited building, and not less than 10 metres away from any watercourse.

Cesspools must be emptied frequently, so to alleviate such problems as overflowing. It is an offence for any person other than a competent contractor to pump out, or otherwise attempt to empty out the contents of a cesspool.



PS,

Under the provisions of the Public Health Act 1936, it is an offence to allow a cesspool to overflow or leak. If this happens the owner is liable to prosecution by the local authority.

In addition, if pollution of a watercourse takes place, the Environment Agency, which is responsible for ensuring the quality of rivers is monitored and maintained, may take legal action under the Water Resources Act 1991.
The penalty for allowing a polluting discharge is up to £20,000 and/or three months imprisonment.
Consent for a cesspool is not required from the Environment Agency.

ormus

An average household will produce some 124,000 litres of waste each year.
This is equivalent to emptying an 18,000 litre cesspool, approximately seven times a year.

18000 litres is the common size of a modern cesspool, as this is the max size of a road tanker transport.

drday

ladybug73 wrote: »

hi many thanks for the reply's i know all about the "cesspit" the way you get it going the chemicals not to use, just dont know the legal side if things ie, the distance it needs to be from property ect, but thanks anyway:)

Hey Ladybug,
Cesspit installation is covered by Building Regulations (Part H, Drainage & Waste Disposal), which says that a cesspit should be no less than 7m from any habitable parts of a building.
The only other guideline with regard to distance is that it should be no more than 30m away from any vehicle access. Basically just so that it can be emptied easily - but I'm guessing that's probably part of the reason why you want to move it out of the 'woods' anyway!

From a legal point of view Building Regulations would need to be involved with the moving of an existing cesspit or installation of a new one in order to check that what you are planning conforms to the regulations, so you'd need to get in touch with your local council, or anyone doing the work for you would have to organise this for you.