Estimated cost for replacing private sewage treatment plant

[MM]

Good idea, but what seems sensible to you or me, it doesn't necessarily follow that the council, health & safety, the Environment Agency, or other bodies would see it the same way. You must know that councils up and down the land tear buildings down if they haven't received the proper planning permission. I don't know whether such bodies have become more flexible in recent years as I, thank God, have never had to deal with them. But, let's face it, such bodies do attract a certain number of pettifogging officials who relish the chance to be bloody-minded.

From a practical POV the land area available should provide plenty of space for your suggestion (new unit, then fill in old hole). The land area outwith the PSTP is currently grassed over.

MM

[MM]

No, of course not. But without provision for sewage disposal meeting the required standards, no one in their right mind is going to contemplate a purchase. Therefore, the properties are unsaleable and consequently worthless -- until said provision has been replaced.

MM

[alan_m]

A reed bed system is not exactly more modern just an adopted trendy green system which is probably OK for a dwelling where in the old days the majority of waste 'water' was as a result of the owner carrying water into the house in a bucket from a well or nearby stream. Add an ample supply of mains water and a ton of chemicals to sanitise the loo, to degrease cooking and table ware, to make you smell nice in the bath/shower or the odd gallon or two of contaminated water from DIY brush cleaning etc. and perhaps the green solution no longer works.

Essex Wildlife has has a visitors centre on the banks of Hanningfield Reservoir

A few years ago when I visited it they claimed to have a working reed bed system. I did wonder at the time if it was failing to work or they got a deluge of rain water where the untreated sewage would end up.

mailto: news {at} admac {dot] myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

[Huge]

Except when it does. And you shouldn't be putting "a ton of chemicals to sanitise the loo, to degrease cooking and table ware, to make you smell nice in the bath/shower or the odd gallon or two of contaminated water from DIY brush cleaning" into any private treatment system.

[damduck-egg]

There speaks a Man who never had daughters.

G.Harman

[MM]

Daughters -- and a bill to replace a sewage treatment plant because people WILL insist on flushing tampons, wet wipes, cooking fat, and other prohibited materials. We're are not even allowed to pour milk down the sink, as it apparently upsets the bacterial balance in the tanks. And raw bleach is an absolute no-no.

Perhaps parents with daughters and a PSTP should start docking their pocket money now, to pay for the repairs later.

MM

[tim...]

try telling that to a succession of "tenants"

tim

[The Natural Philosopher]

Or a biodisc sewage plant

I put EVERYTHING into mine and it took it all, and kept of digesting.

The only thing thaqt fixed it was a toad making a winter nest in the outflow pipe, which flooded it and wrecked the motor

[Huge]

Quite so. But the point stands.

[Huge]

Quite so.

Nonsense.

Perfectly OK in small quantities.

[Huge]

Ahh, yes. You need to give them skin in the game. A £1K PSTP deposit would be a good start.

[MM]

Not nearly enough.

MM

[Nightjar]

On the odd occasion when I have had dealings with the Environment Agency, their inspectors have been fairly flexible about solutions, provided that the solution suggested achieves the final result they want.

[Huge]

Get an adult to explain to you what "a good start" means, would you?

[The Natural Philosopher]

[tim...]

and very probably, now illegal

tim

[Tim Lamb]

In message , tim... writes

There should have been a *sinking* fund set up to cater for long term expenses. Often found in flats. Commonhold?

[Robin]

AFAIK there's no legal limit to the deposit a landlord can require. It's more a matter of how much potential tenants are willing to pay. And of proving who did what, when.

Indeed. But I wonder how many of the 40 households would have screamed and screamed if asked to pay more for something that might never happen in their time in the houses. Saving for a rainy day is not exactly a British habit these days.

[MM]

Well, that's some good news at least. Thanks.

Actually, I thought of something associated with the problem: Just suppose the sewage unit fails completely, are there *temporary* portable units available? When my heating oil tank failed in 2015 my heating engineer pumped the 1000 litres into an IBC temporarily until the new bunded tank was installed.

MM

[MM]

We've had all these warm words before. For too many years residents have moaned about the increase in the annual service charge, which has only gone up by 10% in ten years. We should have been paying much more. The new chairman calculated that if every resident had paid just £13.91 a month since the inception of the estate, the sinking fund would now contain the £100,000 needed to replace the PSTP.

The "good start" was always just pie-in-the-sky.

MM