Posted: 8/12/2010 6:42:40 PM EDT
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Can anyone tell me how much it costs to get a septic tank emptied and how often they need to be emptied? Looking at a house that has one and I have zero experience with them..
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Can anyone tell me how much it costs to get a septic tank emptied and how often they need to be emptied? Looking at a house that has one and I have zero experience with them.. Thanks Ask for the sellers to have the septic system emptied as part of the buy offer. |
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We bought a house with a septic some 14 months or so ago.
1) It cost us $180 to have it pumped. 2) We were told to have it pumped every 2-3 years. Unasked for 3) If you're going to buy a house with a septic, get it professionally inspected by the best fucking guys you can get your hands on; preferably someone unrelated to either of the realtors, the seller, or anyone else who profits from the sale. Part of this is pumping the tank (on your dime), and having a complete tank inspection. They can also shoot cameras down the lines to the leach field, and I'd recommend having that done as well. My house had a cracked septic tank that was caught in inspection. It cost the previous owner $15,000.  If we hadn't had the tank pumped we'd be on the hook for that. Everything looked ducky right up to the bottom foot of tank, and then *whammo*.
If ANY problems show up, either shitcan the purchase or require full remediation PRIOR TO CLOSING. Don't take a fucking escrow account at the time of sale, because if they stick ten grand in a coffee can for septic repairs and the bill comes in at twice that, it's your brand new homeowner ass on the hook for that. Let the previous owner worry about a thousand dollar job turning into a thirty thousand dollar job. It's his shit after all. |
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A properly working septic system never needs pumped out. When you pump it out you lose your bio-mass and the system has to start all over again. Most areas (local laws) require the system to be pumped in the event of a sale, but now thanks to Florida a few years ago it's a federal law to have it pumped every five years because of ground water contamination (which never happens if it's working right.) The one next door to me was pumped last year after 27 years and it worked perfect, it needed pumped only because the property was sold. Even the septic guy said it was a shame to pump such a good working system.
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What kind of septic system? I can't tell you that we bought a house with an aerobic system and had to not only have one but two tanks pumped, an air compressor replaced and I had to re-wire the pump in the 3rd tank which sent the effluent to the mound. Not all septic systems are the same.
That being said, a normal system probably needs to be pumped every 3 to 5 years. They usually put them in by 'bedrooms' of the house and guess the occupants. If you have a 4 bedroom house and there are two people living there, you can probably get away with stretching it to 6 or 8 years per pumping. If you run a laundry service out of your house or have 5 kids, you'll need it pumped more often. And don't listen to these fools who say to wait for sewage to pool in your yard before you pump it out. Its like 250 to 300 bucks to have it pumped and that's not much compared to repairing and/or replacing your leech field. Not everying put down your drain can biodegrade, even in the best case sceneario. Eventually the fats and non-degradables will get high enough to block your lines and it's just not a good thing. |
| 200-300 depending on tank size. I get mine every 3 years, but I can be conservitive on it. Also some systems have a filter that needs to be cleaned. Also some will have an airator that needs to be running. These systems will have a few concrete openings in the ground. |
| It all depends on how many people you have in your household.This is what I do for a living.In the state of Florida the health dept recommends for 2 people in a household to have your tank pumped every 5 yrs. and it also depends if you have put in any kind of bacteria additives to help break down the waste.I recommend you put 1 box of rid-x per month down your toilets,make sure you do it for the whole year every year.Also the type of toilet paper you use has an affect on your system also,be sure to use 1 ply paper instead of 2 ply.These things are like cars,if you don't do maintenance on them they will eventually break down and then you will have some very expensive repairs on your hands.Here in Florida we charge $215 per 1000 gallons.Hope this helps,if you have any questions feel free to contact me. |
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Quoted:
We bought a house with a septic some 14 months or so ago. 1) It cost us $180 to have it pumped. 2) We were told to have it pumped every 2-3 years. Unasked for 3) If you're going to buy a house with a septic, get it professionally inspected by the best fucking guys you can get your hands on; preferably someone unrelated to either of the realtors, the seller, or anyone else who profits from the sale. Part of this is pumping the tank (on your dime), and having a complete tank inspection. They can also shoot cameras down the lines to the leach field, and I'd recommend having that done as well. My house had a cracked septic tank that was caught in inspection. It cost the previous owner $15,000. If we hadn't had the tank pumped we'd be on the hook for that. Everything looked ducky right up to the bottom foot of tank, and then *whammo*.
If ANY problems show up, either shitcan the purchase or require full remediation PRIOR TO CLOSING. Don't take a fucking escrow account at the time of sale, because if they stick ten grand in a coffee can for septic repairs and the bill comes in at twice that, it's your brand new homeowner ass on the hook for that. Let the previous owner worry about a thousand dollar job turning into a thirty thousand dollar job. It's his shit after all. Very good advice. How often will vary on septic size, leach field, drain lines, household users, etc. I was told 4-5 years when I purchased my house but it has been 6 years for me with no problems. |
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Thanks to .gov ours will be pumped and inspected every 2 years at my expense. This year it cost about $100 plus the $15 county paperwork fee. Fuckers getting all up in my shit man.  WI law or .us? (just bought a place about a year ago with Septic. Was told it was installed sometime in the 80s, and should be good for at least another 10 if we take care of it. |
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Can anyone tell me how much it costs to get a septic tank emptied and how often they need to be emptied? Looking at a house that has one and I have zero experience with them.. Thanks there are literally DOZENS of variables which affect how often the septic tank needs to be emptied. consider that the septic system consists of two major components: the solids tank and the leach field. the design of such a system is intended to allow the solids to beak down in the tank, and the leach field to carry excess "grey water" away from the tank. 
now then, under "optimal" conditions the sludge (basically, your mushy crap) in the tank is continuously broken down by bacteria, which results in a stable "ecosystem". under these conditions it is quite possible that the net year-to-year increase in the amount of sludge is actually quite small –– leading to a situation that the tank only has to be pumped once every 15 years or so. however (you knew this was coming), the amount and "quality" of the outflow from the house has a MAJOR impact on the rate at which the ecosystem in the septic tank breaks down solids. for example: 1) does the laundry system drain into the septic tank? do you use a lot of bleach? well, the bleach kills the "good" bacteria and therefore contributes to the amount of solids left. 2) does the kitchen sink drain directly into the septic tank, or does it go through a grease trap? again, more grease in the septic system is bad. 3) is the capacity of the system in line with the number of people living in the house? for example, the septic system is usually sized by the number of bedrooms in the house. but the house may have been expanded without a corresponding increase of the septic system capacity (this is usually a code enforcement issue, but sometimes missed). in the end you have 10 people pooping into a system designed for 4 people. net result, frequent pump outs. 4) do the inhabitants introduce a lot of foreign, non-biodegradable matter into the system? condoms, plastic applicators, plastic Q-tips, etc are all bad news for the system, they can't be digested, build up, and ultimately cause problems. in a similar manner, flushing lots of paper towels or other personal hygiene products can cause problems. anyway, the short answer is that there is no "rule of thumb" answer. on one hand, 2 very conscientious people living in a 4 bedroom house, who pay attention to what they put into the system (including laundry bleach) may find that it's 15 or 20 years between pump outs. on the other hand, 8 people living in a 4 bedroom house who DON'T give a crap about what they put into the system may find that it's every two years between pump outs. in this case they are just filling the solids tank, and there is very little breakdown going on since the conditions in the tank are not conducive. there is no reason to "fear" buying a house with a properly operating, well designed septic system (tank and leach field). this "technology" works. but you have to pay attention –– when you are about to flush something, think to yourself "will the bacteria in the tank be able to digest this?" ar-jedi 
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| I am a licensed designer, installer and maintainer of septic systems in good old minnesota. Rid-x is worthless but they have a very good marketing campaign. Generally every 2-3 years is fine unless you have excessive use. The purpose of pumping is to remove sludge before it reaches a depth where incoming water can stir it up and carry it out into the drainfield. I could go on and on but if you have any other questions just IM me. |
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Thank you all.
You all gave me some great info that put me on the right path. As I said, I was clueless. You ever have a moment where you think "Wow, what a tool I am. I was off 1000%"...That was me. I thought they needed to be emptied all the time and had no idea about leech fields, etc. Thanks again. Thats why I love this place. Guys give solid info. ETA- Blown post 1911 for a guy that daily carries a 1911...This isnt my carry piece but rather my pride and joy.... 
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Thank you all. You all gave me some great info that put me on the right path. As I said, I was clueless. Aint nobody born knowing this stuff man, but finding out is all part of being an educated, intelligent homebuyer. Best of luck to ya, I hope you're as happy with your castle as we are with ours 
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Can anyone tell me how much it costs to get a septic tank emptied and how often they need to be emptied? Looking at a house that has one and I have zero experience with them.. Thanks Got no clue for where you live but around here I pay $250 for pump and disposal. It depends on usage for how often. For me there are only two of us using it so every 4 years is good. You got family with lots of girls then more often but not more than every 2 years. EBR666 |
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My grandmothers house was on septic. It wasn't pumped for 25 years. She lived alone and didn't do stupid stuff with the septic system. After she passed away and I rented the house the idiot renters had 10 people living in the house (single bathroom in the house...they were supposed to only be two people living there) so I had to get it pumped out several times because the system wasn't designed for a damn apartment building.
Left alone and used properly they never need pumping out but if you decide to have it pumped out it really isn't that expensive. |
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Probably never need it pumped out. If it backs up, you have a problem with the field lines. I had it done a few years ago and it cost a couple f hundred dollars as I recall. Turned out it did not need it. Maitainance pumping could help the system last longer. Mine lasted 20 years. Then dry wells plugged up. |
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One factor contributing to the calculation of how often you should have your septic pumped is how much junk you put down your drains.
If you dump a lot of stuff that takes a long time to break down into your sink (used cooking oil/grease, cat litter, egg shells, tampons, etc.) or stuff that will kill the bacteria in your septic tank (bleach, chemicals), you risk a situation in which the sludge level rises to the point that sludge will go into the drainage field. If sludge goes into the drainage field, you've got problems... Around here, pumping costs around $200 for a 1200 gallon system. Cost to dig a new drainage field can be many thousands... |
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Quoted:
A properly working septic system never needs pumped out. When you pump it out you lose your bio-mass and the system has to start all over again. Most areas (local laws) require the system to be pumped in the event of a sale, but now thanks to Florida a few years ago it's a federal law to have it pumped every five years because of ground water contamination (which never happens if it's working right.) The one next door to me was pumped last year after 27 years and it worked perfect, it needed pumped only because the property was sold. Even the septic guy said it was a shame to pump such a good working system. right there. my dads house was built in '74 and has never had the septic tank pumped. |
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We have a septic system and because of that we elected to have a gray water well for the washer (the closest tree is very big and healthy) and not to have a disposal in the sink. We also have it pumped every few years. We did it a few months ago and it was $225. There are only 2 of us with periodic guests. We are careful about what we put in there, but there is only so much you can do with guests...short of a firing squad threat.
As I have driven by people's homes that are having septic system issues...  I do not want to go through that myself.
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I am a licensed designer, installer and maintainer of septic systems in good old minnesota. Rid-x is worthless but they have a very good marketing campaign. Generally every 2-3 years is fine unless you have excessive use. The purpose of pumping is to remove sludge before it reaches a depth where incoming water can stir it up and carry it out into the drainfield. I could go on and on but if you have any other questions just IM me. That's pretty much what I figured. Every time someone takes a shit, there's a crap-load of bacteria added to the septic tank. |
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It cost me $285 to get my tanked pumped three months ago.
A pumper will say you should get it pumped every 3-5 years. It really depends on how many people are in the house. If you have a single tank, I'd get it done more often. If you have a pump tank in addition, you could stretch it. If you want to pump both tanks it will be more (you really only need to get rid of the solids). I have a guy who comes around and inspects my system every six months (LPP system) and he said the tank was half full. That was after 8 years of living here. So it can vary quite a bit. |
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I've got a 1050 gallon system (with 2 sections). They charge $250 for a good job cleaning it out. My household can go about 5 years between pumpouts. We don't have the washer hooked up to the septic, as it has it's own grey water system. Still, 5 years is the max.
It also has an outlet filter that occasionally gets clogged. That's easy to clean. They charge $90 for that. |