Septic Tank Charge Protest in Galway

Clareboy

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

Intensive Care Bear

What a load of ****

Gordon

Not sure I believe it, I'm a bit septical about it.

Gophur

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside ........

No they haven't!

Clareboy wrote: »

.......poisoned our ground water ........

No they haven't!

Clareboy wrote: »

........ If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? ......

If you ask (not that it seems you would be interested in a reply), it's because of this tax that's being imposed. Call it what you like, it's a tax.

Clareboy wrote: »

........ someone who can afford to build a one off house ..........

WTF is that about? Arte you insinuating they are more expensive than urban dwellings?

Sounds like you are talking out of the wrong end!

amacca

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

how about they inspect the ones that people have complained about

or the ones that are seeping/leaking or are an environmental hazard and enforce remedial work at the owners expense on these + charge the inspection fee if they are truly found to be a dangerous/ environmental hazard


not every one..........not ones that have caused zero problems in decades and were built according to regulation

how about they fcuk right off trying to invent new ways of soaking money out of peoples pockets and cloaking them with euphimistic titles

syklops

one off house builders have destroyed our countryside

The defence against the above is the planning department, but unfortunately, they got a bit wrapped up in themselves and started caring more about window sizes and the distance from the stairs to the kitchen rather than whether the house was in a suitable location, not on a flood plain etc.

johnr1

boring troll is boring........and not too bright it appears

Liam Byrne

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

Another pathetic hobbyhorse, agenda-driven, ill-thought-out rant.

What does "afford to build a one-off house" even mean ?

As for "nothing to hide" - that's tabloid-level bull****; they're not objecting to the inspections, they're objecting to yet another stealth tax.

Since rural houses don't have - or expect - taxpayer-funded sewerage and have to pay for their own installation and emptying and maintenance, the inspection should be free, and let them sue the bollox out of anyone found to be polluting in order to pay the inspectors.

Chuck Stone

The whole thing stinks.

TeddyTedson

Should this really be in the Dublin forum?

Daisy M

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

I know of a housing estate where the sewage regularly over flows and it is a total health hazzard complete botch job by the builder. But of course you wouldnt be interested in that as its not one off housing.

Kevin Duffy

Some pun about how this stinks. I can't be arsed to construct one myself.

hondasam

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

What has being able to afford to build a house got to do with it? It's another way to get money out of us.

Inspection for what exactly? have you any idea how much it costs to empty these septic tanks?

Kev.OC

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

Destroyed our countryside how exactly? I live in the country, and the two houses that went up beside me over the last few years have had no effect on our groundwater. What exactly do you mean "nothing to hide"? Hypothetically speaking, if I'm building a septic tank, it has to be on my property, quite possibly under my lawn. So why would I build a sub-standard septic tank?

Over the last 23 years there have never had any problems what-so-ever with the septic tank at home. But now some bright spark, who probably wouldn't know a septic tank if he fell into it, has decided that all the septic tanks in the country are fatally flawed and need inspection. And if this inspector deems that for whatever reason someone's septic tank isn't up to scratch they could have to fork out anything between €700 and €15,000 to fix it.

Now, I don't know about you, but I don't have several grand floating around the place to upgrade a perfectly operational septic tank. To the best of my knowledge, that's what all the objections are over.

amacca

Kevin Duffy wrote: »

Some pun about how this stinks. I can't be arsed to construct one myself.

this whole country is going down the sh1tter...in excremental steps....and it stinks to high heaven?

AnonoBoy

Septic Tank?

Sceptic **** more like.

Am I right guys?

Huh?

Who's with me?

Sceptic ****. Geddit?

My name is URL

Dunno why, but when I read the OP i got the image of some wagon selling one-off-houses, 2 for 50 yoyo's at a fruit stall in Dublin.

starbelgrade

amacca wrote: »

how about they inspect the ones that people have complained about

or the ones that are seeping/leaking or are an environmental hazard and enforce remedial work at the owners expense on these + charge the inspection fee if they are truly found to be a dangerous/ environmental hazard


not every one..........not ones that have caused zero problems in decades and were built according to regulation

how about they fcuk right off trying to invent new ways of soaking money out of peoples pockets and cloaking them with euphimistic titles

The problem with septic tanks & other waste water treatment systems is that if they aren't designed to suit the ground conditions, aren't properly installed and aren't properly maintained, then there are a myriad of problems that they can cause, beyond what would normally be considered by the owners as a problem, such as leaking.

The other problem is that a lot of the septic tanks weren't actually built to any regulation as there was none in place at the time - some septic tanks are no more than a hole in the ground filled with stones.

Others that were built after regulations were brought in, in 1991 are substandard, simply because the regulations themselves were substandard. There was also no obligation on the owners to ensure they were maintained.

Later regulations were introduced with little or no onus to comply & only the last few years have seen a proper code of practice introduced and implemented in terms of planning by the local authorities.

The problem with poor waste water treatment for rural housing and indeed rural towns & villages should not be underestimated and it's high time that some system of inspection was brought in and that owners were forced to upgrade poorly designed systems & to ensure that they are maintained.

It's shit, but someone has to deal with it.

galwayrush

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

Yawn.......
No, they are protesting because the inspection will probably lead to replacing their tanks , which will be costly.
I got mine tested by an engineer, it's working perfectly, so absolutelyno pollution here.
But he informed me that this new inspection will probably fail it for no reason...

amacca

Kev.OC wrote: »

Destroyed our countryside how exactly? I live in the country, and the two houses that went up beside me over the last few years have had no effect on our groundwater. What exactly do you mean "nothing to hide"? Hypothetically speaking, if I'm building a septic tank, it has to be on my property, quite possibly under my lawn. So why would I build a sub-standard septic tank?

Over the last 23 years there have never had any problems what-so-ever with the septic tank at home. But now some bright spark, who probably wouldn't know a septic tank if he fell into it, has decided that all the septic tanks in the country are fatally flawed and need inspection. And if this inspector deems that for whatever reason someone's septic tank isn't up to scratch they could have to fork out anything between €700 and €15,000 to fix it.

Now, I don't know about you, but I don't have several grand floating around the place to upgrade a perfectly operational septic tank. To the best of my knowledge, that's what all the objections are over.

I also object to paying €50 to some clipboard wielding tosspot ......in fact I think he should have to pay me a toll to enter my property which I will no doubt be forced to pay €100 for the privilege of owning

I'm setting up my toll booth now........mutherfcukers!

thomur

Kev.OC wrote: »

Destroyed our countryside how exactly? I live in the country, and the two houses that went up beside me over the last few years have had no effect on our groundwater. What exactly do you mean "nothing to hide"? Hypothetically speaking, if I'm building a septic tank, it has to be on my property, quite possibly under my lawn. So why would I build a sub-standard septic tank?

Over the last 23 years there have never had any problems what-so-ever with the septic tank at home. But now some bright spark, who probably wouldn't know a septic tank if he fell into it, has decided that all the septic tanks in the country are fatally flawed and need inspection. And if this inspector deems that for whatever reason someone's septic tank isn't up to scratch they could have to fork out anything between €700 and €15,000 to fix it.

Now, I don't know about you, but I don't have several grand floating around the place to upgrade a perfectly operational septic tank. To the best of my knowledge, that's what all the objections are over.

Its EU legislation not some bright spark. For once in this country lets be proactive and eliminate a possible problem before it happens. I have a septic tank and would like to know if I am contaminating my own ground

amacca

starbelgrade wrote: »

The problem with septic tanks & other waste water treatment systems is that if they aren't designed to suit the ground conditions, aren't properly installed and aren't properly maintained, then there are a myriad of problems that they can cause, beyond what would normally be considered by the owners as a problem, such as leaking.

such as?

if they don't leak and have not leaked in decades and are not likely to leak...then what other problems are there......would the majority of problems not be down to pollutants leaking into the local environment?

gases escaping posing a health risk.......would there not be a fairly pungent odour

starbelgrade wrote: »

It's shit, but someone has to deal with it.

nice

starbelgrade

galwayrush wrote: »

Yawn.......
No, they are protesting because the inspection will probably lead to replacing their tanks , which will be costly.
I got mine tested by an engineer, it's working perfectly, so absolutelyno pollution here.
But he informed me that this new inspection will probably fail it for no reason...

There's a big difference between a working septic tank & percolation area and a properly designed one and the only way of telling the difference properly is to send off soil samples to a lab for analysis.

An inspection of the tank tells you nothing other than how well your tank is working. Your engineer should really know that.

overshoot

Clareboy wrote: »

What's this septic tank charge protest in Galway all about? The one off house builders have destroyed our countryside and poisoned our ground water and now they are resisting septic tank inspections. If they have nothing to hide, then what is their problem? Are they actually suggesting that someone who can afford to build a one off house cannot afford €50 for a tank inspection.

1, the population of ireland used to be 8million, even with more per house i think you will find there used to be a lot more houses in rural ireland
2, planning restrictions mean you must come from the area, work or provide a service located in that area if you want to build, isnt the idea to get people out of cars?
3, a septic tank is one of the most efficent methods for clensing waste but cost the builder thousands to install which a city dweller doesnt have to pay. the type is decided by a ground test which also must be paid for
4, the percolation area is on their land if something is wrong the owner will notice fairly fast and it would be in their own interest to fix it, if a neighbour is affected they can go to the council/epa for a quick legally enforceable remedy
5, the fee is to register the tank. the council has every planning in history and therefore an exsiting list of tanks...(and knows where its sewer pipes cover)
6, ireland is getting fined like hell on waste treatment because the town supplies are not being fully treated (if at all). so i think you will find it is the urban dweller poisining our water:rolleyes:

amacca wrote: »

gases escaping posing a health risk.......would there not be a fairly pungent odour

a working tank has no oder.

the issue i see here is from a wider construction point of view although i dont really see it brought up. to date all construction is locked into the regulations of the time of construction. for example a set of stairs may be more than 16 risers long, untouched in a renovation it is fine, but if it is worked on a landing would have to be put in place so there is no more than 16 at a time. these tanks are going to be judged on modern standards ignoring the traditional system, then should everything else. should all the georgian houses in dublin have to meet modern insulation standards are the extra cost of heating them causes pollution?

Kev.OC

amacca wrote: »

I also object to paying €50 to some clipboard wielding tosspot ......in fact I think he should have to pay me a toll to enter my property which I will no doubt be forced to pay €100 for the privilege of owning

I'm setting up my toll booth now........mutherfcukers!

Set your toll booth up close to your septic tank, with a trap door over the tank. If they refuse to pay, make sure they at least do a thorough inspection...

amacca

galwayrush wrote: »

Yawn.......
No, they are protesting because the inspection will probably lead to replacing their tanks , which will be costly.
I got mine tested by an engineer, it's working perfectly, so absolutelyno pollution here.
But he informed me that this new inspection will probably fail it for no reason...

would it be wise to get an inspection like this carried out so you could have some ground to stand on if they did require tens of thousands spent on a retrofit?

starbelgrade

amacca wrote: »

such as?

if they don't leak and have not leaked in decades and are not likely to leak...then what other problems are there......would the majority of problems not be down to pollutants leaking into the local environment?

gases escaping posing a health risk.......would there not be a fairly pungent odour



nice

A septic tank is simply a chamber for holding / filtering waste water. To ensure that waste water is disposed of safely into the environment, it needs to pass through a filtration system & percolation area that negates any harmful effects.

With a lot of septic tanks that were built years ago, this process doesn't happen as it should or never happens at all & you end up with either the owner polluting their own ground water - albeit inadvertently - or by having their tanks emptied, then the waste water spread or dumped on other lands by a third party without any proper filtration.

amacca

overshoot wrote: »

1, the population of ireland used to be 8million, even with more per house i think you will find there used to be a lot more houses in rural ireland

now where in blue blazes did all that sh1t go?

overshoot wrote: »

5, the fee is to register the tank. the council has every planning in history and therefore an exsiting list of tanks...(and knows where its sewer pipes cover)

this is what amuses me with a lot of this nonsense......govenrment departments continually asking you details they should already fcukin know...or do already know

overshoot wrote: »

ireland is getting fined like hell on waste treatment because the town supplies are not being fully treated (if at all). so i think you will find it is the urban dweller poisining our water:rolleyes:

shhhh...you're making sense, that's not allowed

Daisy M

starbelgrade wrote: »

A septic tank is simply a chamber for holding / filtering waste water. To ensure that waste water is disposed of safely into the environment, it needs to pass through a filtration system & percolation area that negates any harmful effects.

With a lot of septic tanks that were built years ago, this process doesn't happen as it should or never happens at all & you end up with either the owner polluting their own ground water - albeit inadvertently - or by having their tanks emptied, then the waste water spread or dumped on other lands by a third party without any proper filtration.

With regards to the emptying of septic tank waste on land, I have seen this done. Just wondering how this compares to the slurry spread from a slatted house? Would it not be comparable and if so ok to do at certain times of the year?

galwayrush

starbelgrade wrote: »

There's a big difference between a working septic tank & percolation area and a properly designed one and the only way of telling the difference properly is to send off soil samples to a lab for analysis.

An inspection of the tank tells you nothing other than how well your tank is working. Your engineer should really know that.

He did test the soil. My soil was a little low on the PH scale for the area, a little research found out that the guy who was farming it before hand used too much lime on the land .

starbelgrade

overshoot wrote: »

5, the fee is to register the tank. the council has every planning in history and therefore an exsiting list of tanks...(and knows where its sewer pipes cover)

The local authorities have a list of houses that have applied for permission to build septic tanks, but that list would exclude any houses built pre 1965 and the list doesn't guarantee that the septic tanks were built to any particular standard, that they are maintained or even that they were built at all.

In that sense, the list is fairly useless.

johnr1

OP, I suggest you log out, then login again as Dildo2 or whatever your called so you can thank your own posts and write more sh1te arguments supporting your point of view....

Well it's worked for you recently anyway.....

galwayrush

amacca wrote: »

would it be wise to get an inspection like this carried out so you could have some ground to stand on if they did require tens of thousands spent on a retrofit?

That's why i got it done.:cool:

ilovesleep

galwayrush wrote: »

Yawn.......
No, they are protesting because the inspection will probably lead to replacing their tanks , which will be costly.
I got mine tested by an engineer, it's working perfectly, so absolutelyno pollution here.
But he informed me that this new inspection will probably fail it for no reason...

Just like the NCT really!

Galwayrush, did it cost much to get your tank inspected from the engineer?

I'm not all that sure what kind of a septic tank we have at home but the house was built in the 80s and the area is covered with concreate. It now has weeds growing over it :-)
(and no i will not be deweeding the place for their visit)

amacca

starbelgrade wrote: »

A septic tank is simply a chamber for holding / filtering waste water. To ensure that waste water is disposed of safely into the environment, it needs to pass through a filtration system & percolation area that negates any harmful effects.

With a lot of septic tanks that were built years ago, this process doesn't happen as it should or never happens at all & you end up with either the owner polluting their own ground water - albeit inadvertently - or by having their tanks emptied, then the waste water spread or dumped on other lands by a third party without any proper filtration.

what tests would be required to see if your tank was working properly?

if it does come to it...I would rather have an independent assessment I could depend on than trust some govt sponsored tax collector/rapist

would you know what depth would soil samples have to be taken at etc

starbelgrade

Daisy M wrote: »

With regards to the emptying of septic tank waste on land, I have seen this done. Just wondering how this compares to the slurry spread from a slatted house? Would it not be comparable and if so ok to do at certain times of the year?

I'm not an agricultural expert by any means, but from what I know, slurry spreading - if done correctly - is done in accordance with guidelines to ensure that there's a proper balance of Nitrogen & Phosphorous (or something to that effect)... essentially, it can be done with no harm to the environment, much the same way that human waste can be treated with no negative effects.

Daisy M

johnr1 wrote: »

OP, I suggest you log out, then login again as Dildo2 or whatever your called so you can thank your own posts and write more sh1te arguments supporting your point of view....

Well it's worked for you recently anyway.....

Ah just imagine if he gets a new laptop for christmas, then he will be using the two accounts simultaneously and really wrecking our heads!

galwayrush

ilovesleep wrote: »

Just like the NCT really!

Galwayrush, did it cost much to get your tank inspected from the engineer?

I'm not all that sure what kind of a septic tank we have at home but the house was built in the 80s and the area is covered with concreate. It now has weeds growing over it :-)
(and no i will not be deweeding the place for their visit)

Cost me 100 euro in total.

starbelgrade

amacca wrote: »

what tests would be required to see if your tank was working properly?

if it does come to it...I would rather have an independent assessment I could depend on than trust some govt sponsored tax collector/rapist

would you know what depth would soil samples have to be taken at etc

Again, I'm not an expert on it, but I would imagine that if this inspection process is brought into place, then those doing the assessments will need to be FETAC qualified & trained in the The EPA's Code of Practice for Waste Water Treatment Systems for Rural Housing.

I can see it being run in a similar model to the BER system - only hopefully this system will only be open to recognised professionals such as engineers & not every Tom, Dick & Harry who once worked in the building trade.

overshoot

starbelgrade wrote: »

The local authorities have a list of houses that have applied for permission to build septic tanks, but that list would exclude any houses built pre 1965 and the list doesn't guarantee that the septic tanks were built to any particular standard, that they are maintained or even that they were built at all.

In that sense, the list is fairly useless.

thus why they have option number 2, where their sewer pipes cover! there is no doubt what houses require tanks and what dont, they can simply draw a map for an inspector, covered by us, not covered. its a registration fee, not an inspection fee, they know what areas can be inspected and what cant.
the required standard is also why i went back and edited the piece as to why i believe this actually has wider implications for construction in general. if the regulation can change for one area, it can change for any i would assume. maybe its not relevant but how would the op feel if he had to register his house for an insulation test? or register it to check his own sewer connection. it sounds stupid i know but in the end lower standard insulated houses also cause pollution as they need more energy to heat.

johnr1

I think flutterinbantams opinion is needed in this thread ;-)








sadly, he went to the great septic tank in the sky recently..

galwayrush

starbelgrade wrote: »

I'm not an agricultural expert by any means, but from what I know, slurry spreading - if done correctly - is done in accordance with guidelines to ensure that there's a proper balance of Nitrogen & Phosphorous (or something to that effect)... essentially, it can be done with no harm to the environment, much the same way that human waste can be treated with no negative effects.

I wish some of the farmers in my area would follow suit. Some of them spread it almost all the year round. I believe in The Netherlands for eg, it's done twice a year by regulation, taking wind / weather conditions into consideration.
Some of the grass looks burnt after obviously too much slurry being spread.I have heard of some farmers having to invest to introduce replacement earthworms on their land.This is a much more serious pollution problem that any one off housing causes.

Daisy M

starbelgrade wrote: »

Again, I'm not an expert on it, but I would imagine that if this inspection process is brought into place, then those doing the assessments will need to be FETAC qualified & trained in the The EPA's Code of Practice for Waste Water Treatment Systems for Rural Housing.

I can see it being run in a similar model to the BER system - only hopefully this system will only be open to recognised professionals such as engineers & not every Tom, Dick & Harry who once worked in the building trade.

Personally I think this is an exercise in job creation more than anything. I am not opposed to it but hope it is done fairly, I would find it hard to understand if we were told our soil was been contaminated by our septic tank given that everything down that end of the garden grows so fast much faster than any other part of the garden.

As regards treating slurry I know it is meant to be done but I dont know if it is, however farmers have been using slurry as a natural fertilizer for generations and it appeared to work very well.

what about the millions of sheep and cattle pissing and ****ting all over the place wherever and whenever they please!

starbelgrade

galwayrush wrote: »

I wish some of the farmers in my area would follow suit. Some of them spread it almost all the year round. I believe in The Netherlands for eg, it's done twice a year by regulation, taking wind / weather conditions into consideration.
Some of the grass looks burnt after obviously too much slurry being spread.I have heard of some farmers having to invest to introduce replacement earthworms on their land.This is a much more serious pollution problem that any one off housing causes.

In my opinion, anerobic treatment systems are the way forward - they treat wastewater better than any system.. the water is completely safe to the environment & the sludge or solid waste can be used as really good fertilizer.

In Singapore, they are even more advanced at it & can treat waste water to the point that it becomes potable.

cassi

Seriously OP, there already is another thread in which you're very active in your rantings and ravings about one-off housing. Did you really need to create another??

galwayrush

Deleted User wrote: »

what about the millions of sheep and cattle pissing and ****ting all over the place wherever and whenever they please!

More **** inspectors needed perhaps....:D

dilbert2

Gophur wrote: »

No they haven't!

Yes, they have, by building on every former pasture and field the most butt ugly houses, that would be illegal in any other country in Europe. They are about the septic tank equivalent of architecture to be honest with you. Gombeen parish pump politics and a weak (by European standards) planning system) has given us these visual and environmental catastrophes as the pollution of drinking water in Galway a while back attests.

starbelgrade

Daisy M wrote: »

Personally I think this is an exercise in job creation more than anything. I am not opposed to it but hope it is done fairly, I would find it hard to understand if we were told our soil was been contaminated by our septic tank given that everything down that end of the garden grows so fast much faster than any other part of the garden.

As regards treating slurry I know it is meant to be done but I dont know if it is, however farmers have been using slurry as a natural fertilizer for generations and it appeared to work very well.

In order to prevent it being simply an exercise in job creation, I think there has to be a common sense approach to this. As Overshoot said, it is unreasonable to apply current Codes of Practice to systems built under previous standards.

But there has to be some system in place that ensures that systems that are seriously & obviously substandard are repaired, upgraded or replaced.

You can't always trust people to be sensible - like you say, most farmers, like most septic tank owners are responsible & sensible, but there are many farmers (as galwayrush pointed out) and many homeowners who simply don't or want to understand the concept that poor disposal of wastewater can have serious negative effects on both the environment & humans.

dilbert2

cassi wrote: »

Seriously OP, there already is another thread in which you're very active in your rantings and ravings about one-off housing. Did you really need to create another??

What isn't there to dislike about the mess that is modern rural Ireland surrounding one off housing? Have you been around this country in recent years - places like Donegal in particular, every second field has a house that looks out of place. It's disgusting - even more so the ignorance and lack of education in Ireland surrounding environmental, planning and architecture issues. Visiting the countryside in other European countries is a pleasure. I personally vouched a while back that I would no longer visit the Irish countryside as I get fed up with pig ugly housing (even more infuriating that these areas are subsidized for a lot of services by those in towns and cities) - and I believe that many tourists from other countries have taken the same stance.

Good luck surviving when all the agricultural subsidies dry up in 2013, and the tourists go to Scotland, Belgium etc. Don't see much else that can sustain already dying rural economies. Ironic, that a little bit of cop on and planning would have averted all of these disasters, but like so much in Ireland - gombeenry and corruption wins the day.

ilovesleep

I hope the septic tank is up to scratch at home. It's about 25 years old and never once gave any trouble.

What will it mean if its not up to scratch ? We dig it up and replace it is it?

Will pm you Galwayrush to get the number of your guy.