In the UK, it is estimated that 4% of homes are not connected to mains sewers. With 24 million homes in total, this equates to 960,000 homes that have a septic tank, treatment plant or cesspit. If you own a house and are not connected to a mains sewer, this section is for you.
If your home has a septic tank, then you need to ensure it is meeting current legislation and discharging to a correctly constructed drainage field.
Many people with septic tanks believe that waste is fully digested and the tank does not need to be emptied. This is incorrect. A septic tank should be emptied once a year.
Septic tanks should normally be almost odourless, however certain conditions can cause a tank to smell, therefore you must adjust your behaviour slightly to help avoid smell and odour. In this section we have articles and guides to aid home owners to resolve these smell issues with simple steps, like our guide to what not to put into a septic tank.
Living with a sewage treatment plant installed at your property is a little different to being on mains sewage, consequently, it means making some slight changes to the way you live. Whilst a treatment plant is a modern way to treat your wastewater, it is important that you help the system operate efficiently. An efficient system will not pollute the environment. Therefore, you should consider having the system emptied and serviced once a year by a professional. You should also ensure that you are doing your best to help the friendly bacteria in the system by not disposing of and food or chemicals into the drains.
A Cesspit is simply a holding tank, therefore it does not discharge in to the environment. Because there is no discharge, you are not governed by any environmental regulations.