Cesspools and Septic tanks
Houses in rural areas are often connected to a cesspool or septic tank because there is no main drainage in the area. Cesspools A cesspool is simply a collecting pit for waste. Most are cylindrical and lined with brick or concrete. The pit needs pumping out regularly. This is done by a waste contractor or the local council. There is usually a charge for the work. The Building Regulations state that a cesspool must have a minimum capacity of 18 cubic metres (4,000 gallons). An old pit smaller than the recommended size may need weekly pumping. Septic tanks A septic tank is a brick-lined pit. Waste in a septic tank decomposes by natural bacterial action. Heavy sludge falls to the bottom of the brick-lined chamber. This leaves clear liquid on top. New waste is discharged into the tank below the clear liquid.
Baffles divide the tank into chambers so that sewage sinks down the tank gradually. This allows time for bacterial action to turn solid waste into sludge. If you have a septic tank, be sparing with lavatory cleaners and other products containing bleach as it can stop the bacterial action. The partly decomposed waste passes out of the tank through a dip-pipe into a filtration tank (usually another chamber filled with gravel or a similar material). From there, the waste filters away into clay drains which allow the liquid to seep slowly into the soil.
Septic tanks need both planning and Building Regulations permission, a site placed and built well away from the house and enough land for the network of drains which leads off from the tank. You cannot run these drains across someone else’s land without permission.
