Failed percolation test
- Thread starter Surgery
- Start date
Steevo
Member
- Location
- Gloucestershire
Soak away crates always seemed quite an efficient (if rather expensive) method.
For a septic tank?
Yup
A tricel treatment unit if you have a stream or burn or ditch near by for an outlet, that’s what we had as our ground just wouldn’t let the water away, heavy rainfall area and unsuitable soil type.
Courier
Member
- Location
- M62 - M1 - M18 triangle
Wrong time of year - try again in June.
If you don’t have the luxury of time maybe a reedbed would satisfy ?
selfbuild.ie
If you don’t have the luxury of time maybe a reedbed would satisfy ?
DIY wastewater options - Selfbuild
So, you’ve designed your house and are looking at an off-the-shelf effluent treatment system to ensure that you keep your groundwater clean and local environment healthy. But is there a way to build your own treatment system? In a word, yes. The most common way to treat the wastewater that...
selfbuild.ie
- Location
- Near Beeston Castle
£2250 + VAT for a 6 person tank with pumped outlet
I think it was £1800 + VAT to fit it.
Can discharge straight into stream, land drain, ditch etc.
- Location
- Glen Clova, Angus, DD8 4RD
Just playing devil's advocate: Why would anyone want to game the system on this?
The owner of a cottage opposite us wanted to disconnect from the shared septic tank years ago. He played tricks to "prove" the infiltration test positive in his heavy clay garden and then installed a private septic tank draining to a weeper drain within the garden. Soon after he sold the house. The new owners spent a fortune on a new system because in winter their toilets backed up and they were having to empty the septic tank weekly. I believe they sued......
The owner of a cottage opposite us wanted to disconnect from the shared septic tank years ago. He played tricks to "prove" the infiltration test positive in his heavy clay garden and then installed a private septic tank draining to a weeper drain within the garden. Soon after he sold the house. The new owners spent a fortune on a new system because in winter their toilets backed up and they were having to empty the septic tank weekly. I believe they sued......
Lincs Lass
Member
- Location
- north lincs
Did all the ground works for a new build bit over 3 years ago ,,the perculation test for the soak away required a hole 1.5x1.5x 4.5 mtrs .
Hole dug perfectly dry ,pea gravel 100mm and then the plastic crates ,,on the morning of the building regs inspection there was 300mm of water in the hole and it hadnt rained ,,it had come up ,,the soil was heavy red clay and the ground water had risen over night ,,quickly surrounded the crates with more pea gravel to hide the water ,,inspector look in ,ticked the box and cleared of .
the hole would hold alot of water and never soak away so we stuck a pipe in the top of the crates into the nearest foul drain chamber ,,it never floods and if it does over top ,,the foul drains get flushed out .
Hole dug perfectly dry ,pea gravel 100mm and then the plastic crates ,,on the morning of the building regs inspection there was 300mm of water in the hole and it hadnt rained ,,it had come up ,,the soil was heavy red clay and the ground water had risen over night ,,quickly surrounded the crates with more pea gravel to hide the water ,,inspector look in ,ticked the box and cleared of .
the hole would hold alot of water and never soak away so we stuck a pipe in the top of the crates into the nearest foul drain chamber ,,it never floods and if it does over top ,,the foul drains get flushed out .
This ^ good post.
- Location
- Near Beeston Castle
I should also add that it requires an electrical supply. The compressor is 55W and the pump is 250W, and require a 6amp supply.
I was quoted just over £2k by an electrician who specced that it need a 10m2 armoured supply to give 32 amps. His reasoning was that it was 70 metres away so needed that size cable.
Dig deeper and tip 5 tons of sand in the hole ,
Courier
Member
- Location
- M62 - M1 - M18 triangle
Won’t affect water table height
90 % of UK land is unsuitable for a septic tank anywaysWon’t affect water table height
Courier
Member
- Location
- M62 - M1 - M18 triangle
Never seen a septic tank and soak away system which didn’t have a few hundred square metres of soft ground on the downward slope beyond ….
How much
Member
- Location
- North East
I regularly drive past a property where they seem to have built up an area to for the septic tank soak (evaporation field ) that could be an option.
We recently did a soak-away test on a site that failed in the area of the site we would like to put the septic tank "soakaway but got a good result in another area but its not a good location for the site layout, plus the storm water soak-away failed also, other than in one area again not in the right area ! so I need to consult with a drainage consulting engineer to design the drainage scheme for it to satisfy planning and building regs that I suspect may need some storage/attenuation and maybe a built up evaporation area that but that will be better long term than a powered sewage treatment system i think
We recently did a soak-away test on a site that failed in the area of the site we would like to put the septic tank "soakaway but got a good result in another area but its not a good location for the site layout, plus the storm water soak-away failed also, other than in one area again not in the right area ! so I need to consult with a drainage consulting engineer to design the drainage scheme for it to satisfy planning and building regs that I suspect may need some storage/attenuation and maybe a built up evaporation area that but that will be better long term than a powered sewage treatment system i think
- Location
- Near Beeston Castle
As far as powering a treatment plant goes you only need the compressor if you can site the tank so it can discharge via gravity.
If you can discharge via gravity ( just a normal 110 underground soil pipe) to a ditch or land drain etc the power requirement is 55Watts for the compressor. Not much electric at all.
It is not beyond solar and battery capabilities.
Worth considering as building a normal soakaway isn't cheap never mind a fancy one.
If you can discharge via gravity ( just a normal 110 underground soil pipe) to a ditch or land drain etc the power requirement is 55Watts for the compressor. Not much electric at all.
It is not beyond solar and battery capabilities.
Worth considering as building a normal soakaway isn't cheap never mind a fancy one.
Yeah - sewerage treatment plant is the obvious solution here.
Also, they shouldn't be soakaways, septic tanks must discharge to drainage fields. The ones with the ground built up allows the effluent more soil to percolate through and be eaten by bugs.
Was the test for a soakaway for surface water disposal?
Also, they shouldn't be soakaways, septic tanks must discharge to drainage fields. The ones with the ground built up allows the effluent more soil to percolate through and be eaten by bugs.
Was the test for a soakaway for surface water disposal?