Septic tank question

Muahahaha

Looked at a house for sale that has no septic tank and no garden at the rear to install one. The house does have a small patch of land in off a road front, approx 3m from road edge to the house wall and then approx 20m in length. Are septic tanks allowed go underground at the front of a house or only the rear? Also are there any alternatives for properties like this that have little or no surrounding land? The property itself is only a one bedroom cottage suitable for 1/2 people.

BryanF

Site assessment required
Do not purchase until you have review ed independent technical advice from a suitably qualified eng with PI insurance

BryanF

Site assessment required
Do not purchase until you have review ed independent technical advice from a suitably qualified eng with PI insurance

kieran.

Where is the effluent going at the moment?

Muahahaha

Thanks BryanF, yeah I had thought as much myself.

Regarding the effluent -there is none right now- it was a derelict cottage. Some builder/developer bought it (AFAIK) and half finished the job of renovating it. From talking to the EA he ran into this septic tank problem and the guy who owns the land at the rear wouldn't sell him any to give him space to install a septic tank.Which is why I was asking if there are any alternative to one or if one can go underneath the sliver of land at the front. But as BryanF says its an engineer I'd need really to be sure.

kieran.

You wont be able to comply with the EPAs Code of practice for Waste water disposal for single houses given the scenario you have described above.

Your options would be (in my opinion)

1. Come to some sort of agreement with adjacent land owner to purchase an area or/ for a easement to in install/maintain a system
2. Connect to a foul main sewer line.
3. Approach the landowner across the road about installing a system there?

But to answer your original question there is no system the will comply with the EPAs COP where you could install a 'septic tank + percolation area/filter' within the confines of the existing boundary.

Muahahaha

Thanks kieran, I thought it might be like that. I guess I'll just have to walk away. In fact I reckon this is the very problem the builder/developer faced, the house itself is habitable and doesn't need much more work. But he must of assumed the landowner would give him leeway and allow a septic tank to be installed. The EA told me the landowner refused permission so I can only assume he would refuse me too if I went ahead and purchased it. I might ask the EA if he would put me in contact with the landowner to ask him but to be honest it sounds like a lost cause.