septic tank replacement

[TonyK]

We have an old septic tank, ie. big concrete box in the ground, half settlement tank and half clinker.

The tank is well past is useby date and we've just discovered the original drains are failing etc. I'm looking at a £3K bill just to get the damn thing emptied due to its location.

Heres the plan... re-divert existing main drain 30m to a 4500l Klargester style onion from which the grey water runs through another drain to the original tank (once emptied).

The theory is I'll have a a proper Klargester doing the seperation and the original tank then "filters" the grey water even further and in theory never needs emptying again (hope/pray).

Sort of a double tank system with the Klargester emptied quarterly.

BTW , based on the FAQs 180L per day I need (180x70x300)+(180x8x300) = 3.9m L... since our water is metered I know we only used 1.5m L last year so I gues this is more accurate? Rain water runs off through land drains.

A BioDisc is out of the question. Have been quoted £40-50K. I can do this system for under £10K including the emptying!

Any thoughts, observations, obvious flaws?

Ta

[Peter Crosland]

I doubt you will get Environment Agency consent and building regulations approval to do it. A fully installed subterranean system cost me £7,000 last years including removal of the old system

Peter Crosland

[Blair Malcolm]

I have a Klargester and the over flow water is fed to a soakaway adjacent to it. Built my house 10 years ago and it has never been emptied as the bacteria is active and deals with all waste provided your wife does not empty strong chemical cleaners down the drain. Secondly my old house which had a brick chamber with a divider is at least

50 years old and again has never been emptied to my knowledge for 30 years. You could replace the original drains leading to the original tank at a fraction of the cost you are talking about What is wrong with the tank? A bit of cement repair work could transform it. Just a thought!! Blair

[Mark]

A septic tank is a *Tank* how is it not going to need emptying ?. if you install a Klargester you just need to provide a soakaway that the EA approve, Sometimes easier said then done ;-(

[Mark]

I cant believe I wrote that. It's a Sunday im off for a lie down. ;-(

if

at least that bit made sence

[TonyK]

This is what I reckon as well. I can see the EA saying no initially but in theory what I propose is improving what is there and they are already happy with. Instead of the Klargester going into land drains its going through a whole other system which is designed to deal with raw sewerage. So all in all its going to be better and safer than any single system. Bit unconventional admittadly but if they are happy with both systems individually then I shoud be able to convince them (I hope).

£5-£10K is what I expect it will cost all in. I've been quoted £750 inc VAT for a 1000 gal. Klargester so with pipework, dig, install etc should be reasonable.

[TonyK]

Yep but were talking about treating 1.5 million litres of water a year from the mains alone.

[Peter Crosland]

I should make it clear I was talking about a domestic plant serving a three bedroon bungalow. You should also remember that The EA will now only issue septic tank consents valid for ten years from the date of issue. This means after ten years they could force you to replace it with something less polluting. For that reason alone doing the job with a proper plant would be more sense long term. A properly functioning septic tank is recomended to be emptied every two years.

Peter Crosland

[The Natural Philosopher]

Odd, since my biodisc installed was 4.5k, and a quote to do it professionally by some company was about 5.5k.

Get a Klargester biodisc and install it, and use that, and only that.

Its more than good enough on its own.

[Rick]

Sir

You can get packaged sewage treatment units for less than 5K, including installation, if you do some of the work yourself.

First you get a consent to discharge from the Environment Agency, you can them empty onto the land / river with one of these things.

I got my unit from Angilan Polution Control. I got a digger in for 15 quid an hour including driver, and did all the plumbing bits myself.

Building regs check it out, so you have quality control as well.

You need an anual pump out, I pay 50 quid a go for mine, and the guy comes with a big go anywhere tractor. I pump out when the weather is dry in the summer.

Rick

[John Anderton]

I think it's twelve years, at least it was for me,(unless the official in question made a mistake, of course :-) )

Cheers,

John

[Ratty]

You have the best now, the modern equivalent is the Albion which consists of two parallel concrete rings which goes to soakaway.

1. What I would do I would re-do the spreader, empty the tank, and it will be as good as new. The reason the spreader has failed is because the tank has not been emptied regularly. Empting depends how thick is the crust in the primary tank 18" is max.
2. The alternative is a reed bed system. SepticTank to reed bed tank 1, to next reed bed, then to discharge to pond with fish or ditch or river. The Environ Agency (EA) love reed beds.

In my system I have permit to discharge to ditch or river, my system is for

10 people. I have Albion going into 2 small reed bed tanks then to pond overflow to open ditch. I scoop out the crust every 2 years as I need the grey water to feed the reeds. The fish in the pond love it, the water was checked, for the first year by EA, and they don't come any more. I built it all 7 years ago and its perfect. Permit is for life of system.

[John Anderton]

One thing to bear in mind though is that the rules changed about three or four years ago and the EA are now substantially tougher about things so what was fine seven years ago may not be acceptable today :-(

Cheers,

John

[Mike]

That explains it. We looked at putting a reed bed in and got a straightforward "NO!"

[Ratty]

Was that from the EA, or building regulations.

I got permission from the EA first, they visited my site we discussed what I proposed to install, they gave approval. I them went to put plans into planning and I was told that they did not like reed beds. I paid my money and asked them for a refusal as I have EA permission and I would go to appeal. The planning officer said he did not like my method of dealing as the way I did this he could not make a decision. I would now start again with the EA and not planning.

I use

a Dr Rick Hudson as consultant and I get what I want.

If you want advice consult him and you will get what you want.

[.]

In article , TonyK writes

That sounds horrendous, where the hell is it? we had one at the bottom of the garden next to a river which was too far from the road to empty, we always used a local farmer to empty ours and he just drove in the field the other side of the river with his sludgebuster and emptied it across the river, cost about £70 IIRC.

[Tony Hogarty]

And I bet he declared the £70 to the Inland Revenue - not.

[Peter Crosland]

Thanks for that John. I could well be wrong. The point is still valid in that it is for a relatively short time. My guess is that all septic tanks will have to be replaced with less polluting systems within the next fifteen years

Peter Crosland

[Rick]

I would guess he would, because the local sewage works would have a record of him giving them part of the 70 quid to empty his tank .....

Rick

[Peter Crosland]

Planning permission for a reed bed is a quite separate issue from EA consent.

Peter Crosland