Septic Tank - Planning Issues

fergiesfolly

Looking at a house and engineers report found that the septic tank on the property should have been a treatment unit according to planning application.

Not sure if it's best to walk away or renegotiate the price, which would be difficult as I don't know what a new system would cost.

AnRothar

There is a sub-form in construction and planning that deals with prices and costs.

You could ask there.

alan partridge aha

Depends if you could apply for retention and if not you are looking at a treatment unit costing at least 5k plus all work needed to disconnect /remove septic tank and install new system.

I know you need less percolation area for treatment plant than for septic tank.

Whatwicklow

You went get the smell of retrofitting a treatment unit for 5k.

It will be close to that to buy a until, plus site works removal of the old one. Building a compliant percolation area and landscaping, you won't get much change from 20k for something that is signed off commissioned and compete.

fergiesfolly

Thanks for the replies. We got a couple of vague quotes from between €15 and €25 grand, depending on suitability of site, placement of percolation area etc. That's a big variation to go back to the seller with.

Don't want to screw myself over by getting too little and being left with a hefty bill. There were a few other minor things that came up that'll also need to be put right.

Process of buying is long-winded and difficult enough. This really will drag it out. This is the first house after months of searching that we really wanted, so we're in two minds about pulling out.

alan partridge aha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120716580#Comment_120716580

Sorry maybe I wasn't clear, the unit will cost that at least plus the extra costs of decommissioning the old, percolation area possibly redone etc.

Waste systems in houses are always a big problem because a lot of people cut corners and then when they want to sell these issues crop up.

alan partridge aha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120716595#Comment_120716595

Well you have your quotes, subtract from the selling price and see what happens.

Best of luck anyway I'm sure buying a house can be very stressful.

shane b

If the septic and percolation area are working and there is no obvious signs of sewage or wet patches on the site you may not have to do anything. The problem with wastewater is that most of its underground and covered over. Unless you plan on selling again in the future, no-one is really going to check whats in planning vs whats on site.

The only other thing to check is whether the drinking water is from a well or public supply.

We bought a house in 10 years ago where the wastewater system was a bit suspect. We decided to overlook this as we decided this was the house for us. Initially the treatment unit within the tank didnt work and we got that fixed and 12 months later we figured out that the wastewaster was going to a soakpit rather than a percolation. It seems the previous owner never installed a percolation area.

We went with retrofitting/upgrade the current system rather than a full new system. Costs were as below

New treatment unit in tank = 3k

New percolation area suitable for 7 people, plus improve sealing around existing tank = 6k

Landscaping of 1000m2 lawn including topsoil = 2K

That was 2014 and thankfully we havent had any issues since.

purplefields

I just got a tertiary wastewater treatment system installed last week. Total cost was €12000.

This was far an awkward site with trees and walls and difficult access.

Make sure that a treatment system can actually be installed. You need to have enough space and various components have to be certain distances from other stuff (dwellings, walls, boundaries etc)

If you have a choice between this and something else that actually is compliant, then I'd go for the latter.

Toots

I'm having a retrofit septic system put in at the minute. We're on an awkward site with a high water table so a lot of soil will have to be brought in. On the planning docs for our house, it was meant to be a treatment system installed, but instead there was a bog standard (pun intended) tank and a length of corrugated pipe running out the back of it. House was built during the early 2000s so I reckon nobody actually inspected it before it was signed off.

We don't have to re-apply for planning because it's an existing dwelling, and we're just putting in what was supposed to be in there in the first place, but as far as I know if we'd wanted to make significant changes to what was on the plans we might have had to.

Our current tank is shot, so we're having the whole thing replaced, so new concrete tank, treatment unit tank, new raised percolation and loads of soil, plus then all the engineer's paperwork. I think when it's all done it'll be just under €25k.

fergiesfolly

Thanks for the replies lads. So from €11 grand 10 years ago to between €12 and €25 grand now. That's some variation.

And that's my fear. We'll start this process and end up paying out more than we expected.

It's a long narrow site with most of the land in the front garden. The back garden, where the septic tank is located is rather small. I was told by one engineer, it may be a case of removing and filling the existing tank and putting the new system out the front. All in all he reckons €25 grand.

Unless the current owner is willing to drop the price to match that, I think I'm out the gap. I don't fancy paying for someone else's sloppy / lazy shortcuts.