Decommissioning an old brick septic tank - DIY or not?

[jumbletons]

Hi all, 

To DIY or not to DIY? Shared septic tank (brick, from 1960s, not huge)  is being closed and decommissioned. Professional websites say not to DIY it, in case of leakage/collapse, but a lot of people seem to DIY it. I'm a part owner of the tank, but it isn't on my property....should I care how it's done??

 

Personally I'd prefer to have a document to add to my property records that shows the septic tank was appropriately decommissioned (because I'm a part owner, even if it's not on my property) - if nothing else it may stave off issues if/when I sell my property because solicitors want EVERY document! The costs have been estimated based on man hours for moving rubble/soil to the site from where a new STP is currently being installed, and we've all agreed to pay our fair share of this cost - it would be fairly simply to just get one of the guys doing the new STP installation to fill the septic tank in, and we all get a copy of the invoice for our records. Other owners, including the person whose property the tank is on, think we should just DIY it and don't need a professional or proof of professional decommissioning. I suspect this is a cost-cutting thing for my neighbour, as it means my £ share goes towards the neighbour's labour/time rather than the installer (fair enough, not the best job in the world!). If we DIY it I may offer to move my proportion of rubble and contribute to the decommissioning with labour rather than money 😆 But my main concern is protecting myself and my property from practical/legal issues further down the line. 

 

So, to DIY or not to DIY?

[ProDave]

I see nothing wrong with DIY but you MUST have it pumped out first so you are filling an empty tank.  So the replacement treatment plant will have to be installed an in use first, so if planning to refill with the excavations from that, you will have to store that somewhere.

[nod]

Sorry read it all

But I’m installing a TP for a neighbor on Saturday and decommissioning there’s which is on my land 

It’s 3 meter square I’ll get the farmer to suck it out Then fill two thirds with clay Compact with the digger Put a layer of hardcore in the 300 mil of topsoil Then grass over 

[dpmiller]

2 hours ago, nod said:

I’ll get the farmer to suck it out

and then do what with it exactly?

[nod]

1 minute ago, dpmiller said:

and then do what with it exactly?

Straight on a field or mixed in with his silage Not that I’d do this 

[dpmiller]

Just now, nod said:

Straight on a field or mixed in with his silage Not that I’d do this 

too much hassle to do it the legal way I guess. Do you guys not get one free pump out each year from the water board?

[nod]

10 minutes ago, dpmiller said:

too much hassle to do it the legal way I guess. Do you guys not get one free pump out each year from the water board?

Only empty mine every five years 

[Roger440]

1 hour ago, dpmiller said:

too much hassle to do it the legal way I guess. Do you guys not get one free pump out each year from the water board?

 

You have to be joking surely?

 

If not, no we dont!

[ProDave]

We have to pay for a proper pump out, but on the other hand we don't pay any other waste water charges.

[dpmiller]

8 hours ago, Roger440 said:

You have to be joking surely?

no, not at all.

NI's water infrastructure might be crumbling, but us private plant owners get a free on-demand pumpout.

 

https://www.niwater.com/need-our-help/arrange-septic-tank-emptying

[saveasteading]

13 hours ago, jumbletons said:

I'd prefer to have a document to add to my property records that shows the septic tank was appropriately decommissioned

I wouldn't. There used to be a drainage tank, now there isn't. I can't see why that needs to be formal, esp on someone else's land.

Pump out, dig out, fill in using layers and compact.

Edited Wednesday at 06:45 by saveasteading

[jumbletons]

12 minutes ago, saveasteading said:

I wouldn't. There used to be a drainage tank, now there isn't. I can't see why that needs to be formal, esp on someone else's land.

Is it an ancient brick thing or a GF tank?

Great, thank you. It’s just an ancient brick thing. They’ve implied their installer is doing it so I’ll await the invoice, but otherwise they can let me know if they’re doing it with DIY labour, then I’ll maybe contribute with labour instead. 
(although they had it emptied yesterday and I’m pretty sure their new STP isn’t in use yet, so it won’t be completely empty 🤔I’ve asked them to clarify their timings/methods)

Edited Wednesday at 06:49 by jumbletons

[crooksey]

At the risk of being marked as "contaminated land" in the future. You are best getting it emptied and jetted,  once this is done, if there are no connections to it, fill with soil/hardcore whatever.

 

[saveasteading]

At the very worst, it will all be consumed by bugs over the centuries to come. No worse than many an old campsite where toilet contents were buried.

 

Does it even need to be destroyed? Cover off, drag in the top few courses of brick, infill. Then the fact of its existence is there if anyone tries to build there in the distant future.

Of course the pipes in and out and the soakaway will remain, or are there intentions for these?

 

[jumbletons]

There are pipes leading into and out of it that will be capped off and no longer in use

[Fallowfields]

15 hours ago, jumbletons said:

Hi all, 

To DIY or not to DIY? Shared septic tank (brick, from 1960s, not huge)  is being closed and decommissioned. Professional websites say not to DIY it, in case of leakage/collapse, but a lot of people seem to DIY it. I'm a part owner of the tank, but it isn't on my property....should I care how it's done??

 

Personally I'd prefer to have a document to add to my property records that shows the septic tank was appropriately decommissioned (because I'm a part owner, even if it's not on my property) - if nothing else it may stave off issues if/when I sell my property because solicitors want EVERY document! The costs have been estimated based on man hours for moving rubble/soil to the site from where a new STP is currently being installed, and we've all agreed to pay our fair share of this cost - it would be fairly simply to just get one of the guys doing the new STP installation to fill the septic tank in, and we all get a copy of the invoice for our records. Other owners, including the person whose property the tank is on, think we should just DIY it and don't need a professional or proof of professional decommissioning. I suspect this is a cost-cutting thing for my neighbour, as it means my £ share goes towards the neighbour's labour/time rather than the installer (fair enough, not the best job in the world!). If we DIY it I may offer to move my proportion of rubble and contribute to the decommissioning with labour rather than money 😆 But my main concern is protecting myself and my property from practical/legal issues further down the line. 

 

So, to DIY or not to DIY?

Will anyone know it was even there. we did ours ourself. We had it properly cleaned and threw all rubble, soil, sand and stone, packed it down with tractor bucket, pulled soil over and plan to put more soil on top before seeding for grass.

[jumbletons]

56 minutes ago, Fallowfields said:

Will anyone know it was even there. we did ours ourself. We had it properly cleaned and threw all rubble, soil, sand and stone, packed it down with tractor bucket, pulled soil over and plan to put more soil on top before seeding for grass.

Good question, it’s in a small yard so not somewhere that can be planted over but it’s not really my problem what it looks like as it’s not my property, only really if there’s a safety/liability issue and the answer seems to be ‘not really’, so the owner of the property it’s on can do things however they see fit. 

[jumbletons]

Building Control person rang about my STP installation and I asked her if she knew of any procedures that needed following, and she said 'no', just to ask for an invoice for the decommissioning and leave the 'how' to the property owner on which the tank resides.  

[Roger440]

10 hours ago, saveasteading said:

At the very worst, it will all be consumed by bugs over the centuries to come. No worse than many an old campsite where toilet contents were buried.

 

Dies it even need to be destroyed? Cover off, drag in the top few courses of brick, infill. Then the fact of its existence is there if anyone tries to build there in the distant future.

Of course the pipes in and out and the soakaway will remain, or are there intentions for these?

 

 

This is what i did. 

 

broke it up as far down as i could reasonalby achieve, filled and then for good measure capped it with a bit of concrete.

[flanagaj]

I too need to decommission one on our plot shortly.  All the literature states "You need an expert" Yawn.  I have had the tank emptied, but I am now wondering whether I should have also had it jetted, or whether it's a case of just cracking on.

[saveasteading]

7 minutes ago, flanagaj said:

should have also had it jetted, 

No. Nature will clean it.

 

[flanagaj]

I have a load of chunky rubble, from a huge concrete slab that was broken up.  I suspect that you want to use hardcore or something like 20mm gravel that won't settle over time?