I bought a house a few months ago in North Carolina, it's the first house I've lived in that has a septic system. I've read a lot about the proper care that is required and to be careful about planting anything close to the tank and drain field.

There aren't any trees in our front or back yard, I'm considering putting a Crab Apple or Dogwood tree in the front or back yard but I want to make sure I know the location of the septic tank and drainfield first.

I went through all the closing paperwork for our house and I find the septic tank inspection paperwork. It says it's a 10,000 gallon tank and that they recommended it get pumped and a few roots removed. We told the sellers we wanted this taken care of before closing and they agreed to taking care of it in addition to the other repairs we requested.

When we first moved in I was under the impression the tank and drain died was in the front yard. There is an S painted in the street in front of each house in our development, we assumed the tank was located in line with this S. There is an in ground water meter in our front yard in line with the S on the street and then a foot further from that is some other type of rectangular cover but it isn't marked. At first I assumed this must have been the septic tank but I now realize this must be something else.

I ended up finding a permit in the closing paperwork of a drawing that looks like it's for the building plans for the house with the location of the detox tank and drainfied in the backyard. There's also a "repair area" in the front yard.

So in the picture I've attached is the septic tank the small box near the southeast corner of the house and then the drain field is the 3 long black lines? If I understand this correctly the repair area is a location that needs to be kept clear (can't be paved or built on) in the event that the drain field has to be relocated, is that correct?

I've searched all over the area in the backyard and can't find anywhere that looks like where the tank is buried. Our backyard has lots of bare spots and not thick grass and isn't very level as it is so it's tough to look for other clues.

The tank was supposedly inspected and cleaned this past August, so shouldn't it be much more noticeable that an area would have been dug up? The house was vacant when we bought t so I doubt grass would have been planted to cover it up and as bare as our yard is I didn't see a bare area big enough to uncover the manhole.

Am I at least looking in the right area? The house is 10 years old if that makes any difference.

http://www.imagebam.com/image/4356f2525885266

 

This may help the others. The size of the picture was too small to make out.



There should have been one or two excavations to the tank level in order to pump it. If you don't see a good amount of moved lawn and dirt, it is likely it wasn't pumped. I am not sure what the "repair area" is in the front yard, but I don't think it has anything to do with the septic system. n This is what mine looked like when I had it pumped.

 

Chandler, thanks for replying and enlarging the pic. I searched online and from I read an article from N. Carolina state university that the NC department of health requires most septic systems built since the '80s are required to have a "repair area" where a second drainfield could be added at a later date if needed. It says the health department will designate this area and it should be included in the article system drawing. The homeowner must not excavate this area or huilf anything on it (house, garage, etc).

There are no big trees on any of the front lawns in my development so the repair area is probably why.

When they inspect the tank don't they also remove the man hole cover? Would as much grass get dug up as when they do a cleaning?

But I am looking in the right area (southeast corner of the house) for the tank though, right? My house doesn't have a foundation or crawl space so I can't follow a pipe from there. There is a white pipe coming out of the roof which I'm guessing might be the septic vent but the pipe is towards the middle of the house, I would expect it to be closer to the tank location from what I've read online. Although the pipe is essentially above the two bathrooms.

The more I look at the drawing the more it looks like I'm not going to be able to plant any trees on either yard.

 

My opinion is start digging 5-6 ft off corner of house and find the lid to the septic. If its full of water have it pumped anyway..

If the people did not do it before you then so be it. Its cheap to have done..

If water comes back from the field into the tank then you have field issues..

Do this and let us know the outcome. Then we can move forward..

 

If your Closing Documents read 10,000 Gallons, it was probably meant to read just a 1000 Gallon Tank, which is much more common.

I would think you'd be entitled to a receipt evidencing that the Tank was actually pumped and by which Firm. Then you can probably contact that Firm for a copy of their Inspection Report.

If you had an Attorney involved in the Transaction; s/he would probably seek out this material for you pro bono because it was apparently material to your Contract.

 

I have a copy of the inspection report, oddly enough it's dated for June and I could have sworn the home inspection wasn't done until July

Anyway the report stated the thickness of the sludge and solids and that they recommend the tank get pumped and any roots removed. I guess my next step will be calling that company to see if they have a record of coming back to pump it.

 

If your Purchase and Sales Contract called for the Septic Tank to be cleaned, I don't know if that would be automatically construed to mean "pumped" . . . . but it seems to be a no brainer. I don't know why there should ever be roots in the tank . . . . maybe they were discovered at the inlet or the outlet; regardless, their source should be identified and future invasion prevented. What actions, if any, did the Septic Tank people perform ?

If only a few months have passed since your Closing, now is the time to do your research and call them out on any misunderstandings or failures to perform. If there are any irregularities discovered in this area, I'd take the time to review everything else where short-cuts may have been taken.

A visit to the Septic Tank people will prove fruitful; they will have done only what they were hired to do, and they were paid for that. Now, you present yourself as a new future Customer . . . . NOT a disgruntled prior Customer. They know more than what they're willing to commit to paper.

 

If you intend to have your septic tank pumped regularly as you should then I would consider installing risers over your two tank access lids. They are available in different heights and will allow you to access the tank without digging. The big drawback is their appearance and it's one more thing in the yard to mow around.

 

That's what I did at the cabin. Not really the aesthetic thing to have in a Yard Of The Month club, but it is functional.

 

Larry I'd bet if you painted the tops brown and threw in some mulch around them - they wouldn't hardly be noticeable.

 

Mine slowly become invisible as the Peonies deveop:



And for 6 months out of the year, they're covered with snow anyway !

 

Thanks for all the replies everyone. I went went to look again this afternoon and I finally noticed a small area that was a little lower than the area around it. I also notice that it wasn't really grass on top of it, more like just loose brown grass or weeds that wasn't rooted into the ground. It blended in with the rest of the grass since grass turns brown this time of year.

The soul is very sandy down here so I easily dug a few inches down and found the tank. So I'm starting to think they very well could have actually pumped the tank but I'm still not 100% sure. I know I specified I wanted the tank pumped before closing (and our realtor even suggested it) but there wasn't any paperwork in the closing documents that show the tank was actually pumped.

On a side note, the area above the drain field there isn't a whole lot of grass, it's very patchy with more bare areas than there is grass (and the soil is very sandy). I've read that having grass above the drain field helps with the drainage system function more efficiently. I am thinking about planting some new grass but will it create any problems if I water it everyday? Also is it ok to put down lawn fertilizer or bug killer fertilizer in the area above the drain field or could that cause problems with the bacteria that filter the water underground?

 

None of those should affect the drain field. Most of the bacteria work is done in the septic tank. The main thing is you don't want to plant trees or bushes that can have their roots enter the septic pipe in the field.

If you know which company was used they should have a record of the last time they pumped the tank.