Caroline E

Thanks everyone, that’s really reassuring. All this talk of kWh got me checking and then changing my current tariff! Probably just saved what the pump will cost to run!

Hi @PeterW, sadly I don’t think that’s an option. The ground is very boggy with ponding and a smell when disturbed. Although it’s in our deeds to have one there, it’s not in the neighbours and they would object to anything else going there. I just don’t think I could cope with a fight and falling out with neighbours. I’m happy to drain to the ditch, just a little concerned over running costs of pump station. The company who took a look think the integrated pump won’t be powerful enough, but I’m waiting on confirmation from them.

Hi again everyone. We have made slight progress over the holidays in that we have found a ditch with reasonable flow starting in the woods just south of the field with our failed soakaway. It is about 80-90 metres away however (on pretty horizontal ground) and we’ve been advised that a pump station would likely be required therefore. I wondered if anyone here (@ProDave)has experience with pump stations? I’m keen to get a rough idea of the running costs involved. Thanks in advance:)

Thanks @Temp that sounds similar, there is a ditch on the other side further down, so it makes sense there would have been something similar here. It runs towards the burn that I know 3 or 4 new builds already drain into (they are closer). We don’t have space for a proper soakaway but the water would need pumping up a slight incline to the top of our drive (about 20 metres away from where the waste pipe exits the house and the treatment plant will likely go) and then under the road. We could put this under a small patch of ground where we have our chickens and maybe use a rumble drain for 10 metres or so to act as a partial soakaway. It’s good to have some ideas to discuss when we next get someone out in the new year:)

Quick question, can a treatment plant discharge to an existing land drain? We have an old (clay?) one just opposite running along the side of the road, right outside the house. I know Where it is because it is currently blocked so other neighbours have it exposed for repairs.

Hi @PeterW, this was my first thought. The only slight issue is here is that means going up a slight incline, so not sure if this means a bigger pump/high running costs? But is is only about 120 metres away and looks to have a good flow rate. We’re also not sure who owns the verge (it’s a private rd) as apparently it was sold recently but no one knows who too! But if folk here think this isn’t an unreasonable distance and that pumping up a slight hill is feasible that’s great to hear:)

Thanks @ProDave the only catch with that one is it’s in a gorge about 50ft or more deep. There is a drainage ditch at T junction at the end of the rd that I presume drains to this, so we could aim for that. That’s not too far then in people’s opinion?

Oh, also wondering what treatment plants people recommend? The company we’re thinking of going with suggested either a Klargester Biotec or condor. Any thoughts?

Thanks @ProDave, just checked OS maps and it only has the same watercourses as google. Hopefully one of these will work if no others. How far is too far I wonder? I’ve attached a screenshot showing our location and the soakaway in red. Looks like it’s time to go for a wander this week:)

Thanks @joe90, as I understand it treatment plants are only required if draining to water, although we’re happy to upgrade regardless. @ProDave, that’s good to hear. As we have no land of our own and the spot in our deeds in no good, draining to a watercourse/ditch seems the only option. There is a burn but it’s about 300 meters away and down a big ravine. I’m hoping there might be a smaller watercourse or ditch in the woods though. There isn’t really a footpath there and I didn’t want to go wandering around without the owners, but I don’t hear from soon I might just do that!

Hi everyone, I’ve been reading a few threads on here in search of potential solutions and thought it might be wise to post my issue in the hope that someone may have some advice. We moved house about 8 months ago (Angus, Scotland), to a rural barn conversion with a few other properties around. We have a septic tank and foolishly didn’t have a tank inspection before buying. We just checked it was registered with SEPA and that soakaway which is in a neighboring field is in the deeds. Well it turns out the soakaway is ruined - the field’s owners alerted that something didn’t right about a month ago. We had the tank emptied and have a collapsed baffle. At first we thought we were looking at replacing the tank and soakaway which would be bad enough, but it turns out there are further issues. Our deeds only specify the corner of field where our current soakaway is located, and this is far too saturated to reuse (we’ve been advised that even a mound would be likely to fail), and the field’s owners won’t permit us to use another part of the field. Sadly our own garden is too small to fit a soakaway, especially as it is bounded by a road, so taking of the distance it has to be from the house and boundaries leaves about only a meter wide! So we are looking into a couple of options; 1: to upgrade to a sewage treatment plant and drain to a ditch. The catch being the closest ditch is about 150 meters away and would involve pumping up a slight incline. The other is 250 meters, mostly down a slight slope, but there is a rise of trees in the way too. The neighbours who own the soakaway field also own the woods beyond and are happy for us to drain to a ditch there, but we don’t actually know of any (they’re not on google maps). Hopefully over the holidays we can meet with them to see if they know of any, and assess how feasible it is. They have also mentioned the possibility of creating new drainage ditches. 2: there is another neighbour behind us (who we share a driveway with) who owns another couple of fields. We are thinking we could offer to add them to our treatment plant (it would still be the same size) for free if it means placing the soakaway in their field. The soakaway would need to be larger of course, but it beats having having a house with no sewage which is becoming a serious concern! Luckily, there are no issues in the house yet and water is still draining away (I’ve watched it through the inspection hole after a bath!), but we’ve been told it’s only a matter of time until things back up. So I’m after any advice! I was wondering if anyone has experience of draining to a ditch that is a similar distance away and/or maybe needs pumping uphill. Does it work, what we’re the install costs, what are the running costs, what happens if the pump fails? Has anyone gone through the process of getting approval from SEPA to drain to a any hints? Also, does anyone share a treatment plant/nothing I would be aware of? We are also open to any other creative solutions, as ultimately we need to figure something out! Many thanks in advance to anyone who can help:)