Septic tanks are covered under the other structures section of your homeowners insurance policy. This is the section of your policy that covers items on your property that aren’t attached to your home, including as a gazebo, shed, detached garage, fence, in-ground pool, and, in many cases, your septic tank.
Other structures coverage is usually included in house insurance policies as a percentage of your dwelling insurance. So, if your home (i.e., your dwelling) is insured for $400,000, you should have roughly $40,000 in additional structures coverage in your home insurance policy.
Only if your septic tank was destroyed by a risk listed in your insurance will your other structures coverage kick in to pay for repairs or a complete replacement. Your policy will usually cover the cost of replacing the top of your tank if it is damaged in a fire.
Examining your insurance policy will help you determine which situations apply if your septic system is damaged or destroyed. If you have a named perils insurance, you will either see a list of specified covered hazards or a list of specific exclusions (if you have an open perils policy). Review our guide to insurance dangers for more information on where you’re covered.
You should also be aware that using your house insurance for coverage of other structures entails paying your deductible.
How often does a septic tank need replacing?
A septic tank’s lifespan is determined by a variety of factors, including ground conditions and how well it is maintained. GRP, PE, and concrete tanks have a typical lifespan of more than 30 years.
- Steel septic tanks have a 15 to 20-year life expectancy. These should not be utilized for new installations, but they are nevertheless occasionally seen in older rural homes.
- Tanks made of plastic (PE) or fiberglass (GRP) have a lifespan of 20 to 30 years.
- Concrete tanks have a 30- to 40-year life expectancy (sometimes longer, depending on conditions).
Do Home warranties cover septic systems?
Septic coverage is usually available as an add-on option with most home warranty programs. Septic tank pumping is not included in most companies’ septic coverage, however some will offer it as an add-on. You can add septic system coverage to your home warranty for a few extra dollars per month after you’ve purchased your home warranty. A home warranty can cover more than just your septic system; it can also cover your home’s most vital appliances and systems.
Are septic tanks still legal?
If you own land that is not connected to the mains drainage system, it is critical that you stay up to date on the latest septic tank rules. The Environment Agency has issued new rules in an attempt to combat water pollution, giving you until January 1, 2020 to update or replace your septic system.
Are you breaking the law?
Septic tanks that discharge into surface water (streams, rivers, ditches, surface water drains, etc.) must be replaced by January 1, 2020. Septic tanks must be replaced by a comprehensive sewage treatment facility, which can cost thousands of pounds, according to the Environment Agency’s Septic Tank General Binding Rules. However, this is nothing compared to the potential penalties of £100,000 if the work is not completed!
Septic Tanks Explained…
A septic tank settles the solids in wastewater and then discharges the liquid septic waste to the ground via a drainage field that has been properly built and constructed . There is no Ezy drain, tunnel, soakaway crate, or soakaway pit on this list. These are not allowed to be used for wastewater dispersal.
Surface water drains, rivers, canals, ditches, streams, or any other sort of waterway are prohibited for septic tanks. If the septic tank empties into a drainage field, it must be located at least a set distance from a water course, thus we recommend that you speak with a local waste drainage specialist about this.
(A Drainage Field, also known as an infiltration system, is a network of pipelines with holes in trenches that allow sewage to seep into the ground for further treatment.)
If your septic tank discharges to surface water (river, stream, ditch, etc.) under the new laws, you must upgrade or replace your septic tank treatment system to a full sewage treatment plant by 2020, or when you sell a property prior to that date.
- Replaced by sewage treatment units that meet all BS EN 12566-3 requirements, or
- The discharge to the waterway was obstructed and rerouted to a drain field, which was designed and built in accordance with British Standard BS6297 2007.
Selling Your Property & Septic Tank Regulations 2020
Because these laws have not been publicly communicated, the majority of homeowners with an ancient septic tank system are unaware of them. Many estate agents have recently experienced difficulties with sales as more and more solicitors become aware of this new requirement, and homeowners find themselves unable to sell their home until the work is completed. This is the homeowners’ duty and must be completed prior to completion at their own expense.
While on paper, it is acceptable for a septic tank to discharge into a field, there are regulations regarding how close it should be to a stream, river, or ditch. Before putting your house on the market, have your septic tank inspected by a reputable contractor to ensure it is in good working order.
Even if your system meets the septic tank rules 2020, you should have your tank emptied and inspected before putting your house on the market, since the lawyers will almost certainly inquire about when it was last empty. I can’t deny that I’ve never understood why some sellers act amused when buyers request that their septic tank be emptied before they take ownership…. I believe this is a realistic and fair request!
What will ruin a septic system?
Cat litter is extremely destructive to plumbing, and flushing it can cause a terrible clog. Because clay, unlike garbage, does not break down, placing cat litter through your pipes or, more crucially, in your septic tank, might cause difficulties. It simply builds up in your tank, causing problems.
The best option is to keep the litter away from your pipes and throw it away.
Neglecting to Pump Your Tank Regularly
You’ll also ruin your septic tank if you don’t have it pumped on a regular basis. One downside of a septic system over a city water connection is this. Tanks can only retain so much waste and must be emptied every 3 to 5 years, or more frequently if your system is used frequently.
If you don’t drain your tank, it will eventually back up and overflow into your home through your plumbing fixtures. Nobody wants to be a part of that shambles!
The remedy is to have your tank emptied on a regular basis and to search for signs of slow or clogged drains, a soggy drain field in your yard, or a foul stench indoors.
Planting Trees and Shrubs on Your Drain Field
Trees in the yard are popular among homeowners. It provides some privacy, and a beautiful lawn with well-kept trees and bushes adds curb appeal to any property, especially an older or historic one. However, planting them right on top of your septic system (also known as the drain field) might lead to serious and costly issues down the road.
Once those tall trees and bushes begin to dip their roots deeper and deeper into the soil, their restricting roots can infiltrate a drain field. Tree roots are surprisingly resilient, and they can even break straight through piping. When this happens, they can grow right into your drain pipes, obstructing the flow of wastewater.
The moral of the story is to know exactly where your drain field and septic tank are and to avoid planting huge trees in that location.
Washer Lint Overload
Washing your clothes may not appear to put a strain on your septic system, but when you wash a lot of synthetic clothing, the lint and fibers in the unclean wash water end up in your septic system.
The helpful bacteria and enzymes that work so hard to break down solids are unable to digest synthetic fibers, and the system becomes overburdened, requiring costly repairs.
Installing a lint filter on your washer drain is one option. A nice tutorial on how to install one can be found on Family Handyman.
Installing a Garbage Disposal
Installing a garbage disposal in your home is not suggested if you have a septic system with a tank. Despite the fact that the food is ground into little particles, all of the food in your tank settles to the bottom, causing solids to accumulate quicker than the bacteria can break them down.
How does sewage ejector pump work?
We get a lot of calls about submersible sewage pumps in our sales department at Septic Solutions. The great majority of customers in need of a sewage handling pump assume that they require a sewage grinder pump as well. This is a common misunderstanding that leads many people to believe that all sewage treatment pumps are grinder pumps. This is far from the case. In the domestic and light commercial / industrial parts of the business, sewage handling pumps are divided into two types: sewage ejector pumps and sewage grinder pumps.
In order to throw additional light on the topic of sewage ejector pumps vs. sewage grinder pumps, we’ll go over the proper applications for each device in this post.
SEWAGE EJECTOR PUMPS (4/10 HP – 2 HP)
Sewage ejector pumps are submerged solids handling pumps with a large volume and low pressure. Grinding blades are not used in sewage ejector pumps. They employ a spinning pump that draws raw sewage in through the bottom of the pump and forces it out the outlet and into the discharge pipe under pressure. Pumps for sewage ejectors are typically built to handle solids up to 2″ in diameter.
A Sewage Ejector pump is most commonly used to transport raw sewage from a home to a septic tank or gravity flow sewer main. These devices typically have a 2″ discharge and range in power from 4/10 HP to 2 HP. Pumps for sewage ejectors can handle large amounts of sewage (up to 220 Gallons Per Minute). These pumps are designed for short pumping lengths (under 750 feet) and can withstand nearly 75 feet of head pressure.
The pump in a basement floor pit meant to evacuate sewage from a basement bathroom up to the main level is an example of a sewage ejector pump. Another example is using an ejector pump to drive waste back to the main house’s septic tank when adding living space or a bathroom to an outbuilding, garage, or shed.
A sewage ejector pump must always be used instead of a sewage grinder pump when pumping to a septic tank or septic system.
SEWAGE GRINDER PUMPS (2 HP and larger)
Sewage Grinder Pumps are submerged solids handling pumps with a high pressure and low volume. Cutting blades in sewage grinder pumps crush raw sewage into a slurry before passing it through the discharge pipe. Sewage Grinder Pumps are designed to handle the same materials as Sewage Ejector Pumps, but they can handle tougher solids.
When pumping from a home to a pressurized city sewer main, sewage grinder pumps are most typically employed. Because a pressurized sewer main is under pressure from another sewage pump, liquids must be pumped into it with a pump that can overcome that pressure. Sewage Grinder Pumps can achieve this because they can pump fluids at over 60 PSI. Pumps for sewage grinders typically have a 1-1/4″ discharge and range in horsepower from 2 to 10. They can only pump little amounts of sewage (30 gallons per minute or less), but they can push it over great distances (thousands of feet) and handle head pressures of up to 130 psi.
When pumping sewage from a home to a septic tank, a Sewage Grinder Pump is not suggested. The sewage is ground into such a fine slurry that the solids never separate from the liquid in the septic tank and are transferred on to the secondary system. Your subsurface leaching field will fast be ruined as a result of this.
In order to function properly, 2.0 HP Sewage Grinder pumps require a minimum of 20 to 30 feet of head pressure. A Sewage Grinder pump will quickly burn out if used in a low head environment (very little vertical lift, short horizontal run). The majority of manufacturers rely on that small amount of head pressure to keep the electric motor’s RPMs low. When there isn’t enough head pressure, the motors spin faster, drawing more current and becoming hotter, causing them to fail far sooner than they should.
WHICH PUMP SHOULD I USE?
Only utilize a sewage grinder pump if one of the following scenarios applies to your situation:
To summarize, not all sewage treatment pumps are grinder pumps, and a sewage grinder pump is not always required to pump raw sewage. In most circumstances, a sewage ejector pump is the far superior choice. There are some situations in which you could utilize either type.
THE EXCEPTION TO THE RULE
The 1.0 HP Liberty ProVore Domestic Grinder and the 1.0 HP Myers VRS Residential Grinder pumps are specialist devices designed to replace residential sewage ejector pumps ranging from 4/10 to 1.0 HP. These machines have no minimum head requirement and have the same cutting action as bigger commercial grinder pumps, but with a smaller 1.0 HP motor. While this will pump sewage from a residence to a public sewer, we do not recommend using it to pump to a septic tank because it still grinds the sewage into a slurry.
Is planning permission required for a replacement septic tank?
You’ll need planning clearance from a local authority to install a septic tank, whether it’s at your home or at a business location.
Planning permission must be acquired from your local government, and there are a number of restrictions and procedures that must be fulfilled.
Can you sell a house with a septic tank?
If you’re looking to buy or sell a home with a septic tank, you should be aware of the restrictions that apply. Discharging sewage into ground or surface waters without first obtaining an environmental permit is illegal. Most home sewage emissions, however, will be exempt if specific conditions are met.
The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Laws 2016 (“the Regulations”), which came into force on 1 January 2017 and consolidated previous regulations, are the current law.
The General Binding Rules for modest sewage discharges (“the General Binding Rules”) are particularly mentioned in the Regulations.
On January 1, 2015, the General Binding Rules were first implemented. The General Binding Rules are made up of the Regulations’ conditions and the technical requirements stated by the Environmental Agency in operator instruction.
The operator is the person in charge of the septic tank or sewage treatment facility (“the system”). This could be the system’s owner, someone who utilizes it (for example, a neighboring landowner), or someone else who has agreed to be accountable for the system’s maintenance in writing (e.g. a tenant).
The General Binding Rules were created to make the control of modest sewage discharges more straightforward.
There is no legal necessity to register septic tanks or small sewage treatment plants, and there is no legal requirement to preserve maintenance records (although this is advisable).
- Using a septic tank or a small sewage treatment plant, you can discharge up to 2 cubic metres per day to the ground (e.g. back garden). The Environment Agency has made a calculator available to help homeowners calculate their daily discharge.
- Surface water (e.g., a river or stream) can be discharged up to 5 cubic metres per day, but only a modest sewage treatment system, not a septic tank, can be used. By January 1, 2020, all historic septic tanks that discharge to surface water must be replaced or updated. If you sell the property before this date, you’ll have to replace or upgrade the system.
- The system must be installed in accordance with the applicable British Standard in effect at the time of installation, and it must be operated according to the manufacturer’s specifications.
- Maintenance must be performed by a qualified individual, and waste sludge must be safely disposed of by a qualified individual.
- The system will require both planning authorization and building regulations approval;
- are not permitted if any part of the building served by the system is within 30 meters of a public sewer or if the discharge might be made to the dirty sewer; and
- If the discharge occurs in or near designated sensitive areas, a permit will be required.
- Owners of a cesspit do not required to follow the General Binding Rules or apply for an environmental permit because it is a sealed tank.
- A registered trash carrier must, however, maintain and empty the cesspit on a regular basis.
- When a property is sold, the operator must notify the buyer in writing that a modest sewage discharge is taking place, as well as a description of the waste water system and its upkeep requirements.
- If you have a septic tank that empties into surface water, the sale will necessitate the replacement or upgrade of the system.
- Buyers should ensure that any system they purchase is in good functioning order and does not pollute the environment.
- The cost of hiring a surveyor to assess the system, as well as ongoing maintenance checks, could be significant.
- If a septic tank needs to be modified or replaced, or if it does not qualify for an exemption under the Regulations, there may be additional charges.
- If the system is on someone else’s land, it’s critical to figure out where it’s located and make sure the relevant rights and obligations are in place.
If a small sewage discharge does not comply with the General Binding Rules, the Environment Agency will normally endeavor to help remedy the problem by providing advice and support. If this does not work, additional enforcement action may be taken.
This notice only applies to properties in England because buildings in Wales have different rules.
Can I sell my house with an old septic tank?
If you’re selling a home with an aseptic tank, be upfront with potential buyers about the tank’s presence and provide a full description of the system.
In fact, you are required by law to notify a buyer of the presence of a septic tank in writing.
You should gather all documentation related to the system, as well as any documents outlining changes, repairs, or maintenance that have been performed since it was installed, before selling your home.
Is Dawn dish soap safe for septic systems?
Surfactants are substances that have the ability to lower the surface tension of the liquid in which they are dissolved. Dawn dish soap ads are one of the most well-known. The cleaner’s capacity to spread oil and grease is advantageous for cleaning because it aids in breaking it up. These are dangerous for septic systems because, if used in excess, they can seep into the environment without being appropriately treated. So, what’s the other option? Surfactants manufactured from plant oils, known as natural or oleochemical surfactants, produce fewer suds. These are a better option because they are safer.
How do you know if your septic is full?
Your septic tank is an important part of your property, and it should be inspected on a regular basis for symptoms that it needs to be emptied.
If you see these warning signals, it’s likely that your septic system is in need of repair. It’s not always as obvious as a septic tank that’s overflowing! Here are some of the most common symptoms that your septic tank is full:
Your Drains Are Taking Forever
Is it taking longer than normal for your drains to move when you flush the toilet (slow drainage)? Or do you find it tough to flush? If this occurs in all of your toilets and sinks in your home, rather than just one, it is most certainly more than a clog.
Standing Water Over Your Septic Tank
Is there standing water on top of your septic tank? The presence of pooling water indicates that your septic tank needs to be pumped. Because there is nowhere else for the excess water to go, it collects in your yard.
The health of your lawn is a similar issue to keep an eye on. If water is accumulating around your septic tank, you may notice that the grass around it appears to be particularly healthy. Maybe you’ve observed a lot of weeds or flowers growing in the area. This is because to the extra water and nutrients that your lawn receives in this location. This can happen before the water starts to pool.
You Hear Gurgling Water
The sound of gurgling water could indicate a backup on the way. If you hear gurgling water coming from your pipes, it’s possible that your tank is filling up and needs to be emptied.
You Have A Sewage Backup
Backing up sewage is every homeowner’s worst nightmare. It’s because your tank hasn’t been emptied that you have a sewage backup.
When your waste water is unable to flow away from your home, this occurs. If wastewater enters your home, it can enter through toilets, sinks, and even your shower.
Blockages are the source of sewage backups. Septic tanks can become clogged as a result of too much food waste. Blockages can be caused by cooking grease, meat fats, oils, or other things accumulating at the bottom of the tank. Septic blockages can also be caused by flushing the improper materials down the toilet, such as feminine hygiene products or cat litter.
During routine septic maintenance, we can detect blockages. During septic tank cleaning, we may eliminate any build-up.