A bit of venting with a question

Ewww, some of you make me really nervous, with this build first, put the septic in, THEN drill the well. I know of two people who purchased land, did all the power, septic, etc, then had the well driller out, and no water could be found on their properties. I don't know any more specifics, but one of the properties was one we had looked at, then were told by an adjacent land owner about the water situation, so we passed it up. Hope you that are doing that have better luck, and I'm sure it must be very frustrating to have to work with all the rules and regs that make it more and more difficult to save a little money. Good Luck! Jan in Co

Wow, you say that the local powers are by the book. What book? Know your local code.I've been a builder for 30 years don't be afraid to ask your local health agent for advice they are not out to hurt you and if they are fire them.I can't under stand what the light company is talking about. Get it in writing.I don't think you should put in foundations or anything else untill you know what you're talking about.You don't need anything but free information. Get it.The best place to look is the local powers that go by the book.Talk to a local carpenter or builder that will give you some advise but, trust yourself to seek out the truth.

House #, that can be fun. I arrived to my property 4 weeks ago......township didn't know..P.O. didn't know.... seems around here it's all up to the 911 co-ordinator(emergency management). My property had 4 #'s assigned to it and I could take my choice. Maybe all the time I spent hunting will help lead you in the right direction...happy house # hunting and good luck with the perk.

PQ

here is athird world idea i was thinking about for my problem...

build a methane digester tank. it doesnt need a perk it produces methane to burn and its "experimental" system falls within most ordenences for a permit.

you may, like around here a lot of times, have to put in a sand mound... theres a pile of money there.

do your own perk testing around the place till you find a spot that perks fast, then get them to test in that spot too.

ive been looking at experimental sewage treatment plans, and if you have the room you can put up treatment tanks that process the sewage from raw to almost neurtral pond water for discharge with bublers and water plants... the look pretty simple, just a series of big tanks with airieators in them...
bet the dont smell very nice but... -

All this cr@p is why we are selling our land near Dallas and looking farther north. We have been looking in fannin county but we may end up in oklahoma. (far back in the mountains) Way too much bureaucratic BS. How many people have tens of thousands of dollars for a D@mn septic system they won't use because they are using a composting toiled and grey water treatment system. sigh... time to go take my Xanex.

That unregistered poster was ME. Buffy in dallas. WHat is with this place lately. I registered all of 30 seconds before I posted that and it had already kicked me off!

Well, in order to finish the well installation, they need a place to put the tank, etc. The guy across the street hit water at 65 feet, and everyone in the area has springs like crazy, and wells that aren't that deep. So, we decided we'd just have the entire water system installed at one time instead of having the guy make two trips and charge more.

I would think most people would check with neighbors about the water situation before getting in too deep. But, it's a good point to raise for those who may not have done so.

What CabinFever is trying to get across is that a septic system you are going to be actually using needs to be properly planned to work right and for long period of time. This is important for septic in marginal areas. Not so important in good areas. If you are going to be using a septic system, why not do it right the first time and have it work right rather than having it redone in few years?

If you are putting a septic in just to meet code and jump through hoops and actually are going to use a composting toilet for example, then there are tricks to get successful perc. Using tricks to put in cheap system that you are actually going to have to live with day to day is like shooting yourself in the foot.

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I know it doesn't help you, but this is why I tell people to get a perc test BEFORE they buy land. :no: I put it in as a contingency on my offer but they already had one done---I've got 37' of sand and rock! Sucks for a pond though :waa:

Ed

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I called the soil and water people today for that county. They said they don't have a soil scientist, but they can give me the soil maps, and books and things. So I went down there and I have one section that has bad soil for a septic, and another section that is worse for septic. So it looks like an engineered system for us. Where else would I find a soil scientist? I looked online for this area, and there weren't any. So I would think that if we have to get an engineered one anyway, we can pretty much put that anywhere, right? Maybe in the spot that 2 of the 3 holes did ok. Oh, I asked her why they still do regular perk tests, and she said it is because that county has the highest amount of wetlands in the state, and it is the best way to do it there.

~Marisa

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Ed and HermitJohn both make good points.

Yes, you can write anything you want into the offer, making sure that it says somewhere that a licensed professional does the testing, that way you're protected. Otherwise, what is to prevent a seller from making up some good looking invoice stationery on a computer (I think you could do it with Quickbooks) and printing you out a fake one?


The other thing is that you seem to be moving in an "I'm living here forever" mode, and sometimes it just doesn't work that way. If you put in a bad septic now and have to sell later, it can cost you more to correct the problem than it would have to do it right the first time.

We bought the land months ago, so talking about having it in writting before we buy it is a bit of topic. I am sure you have made mistakes before. The realtor told us the land perked, but unofficially, and we never asked for it in writting. Yes, we made a mistake, we have to live with it, that wasn't anywhere part of the question, so I don't see why it is brought up.
I don't see where I said I wanted a cheap or bad septic, I meant get the perk test done and out of the way so we can get started on other things. The idea of me talking about putting in an engineered septic sohuld have cleared that idea up.

Anyway, back to thr constructive ideas people are giving me, Where would I find a Soil scientist? Someone also suggested looking into a septic that was dug deeper, to get past the clay, I forgot what he called it. but it was dug deeper. He said it was more than a regular septic, but less expensive than a sand mound one. Has anyone ever heard of that?

Thanks!

~Marisa

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I pledge allegiance to the earth, one planet, many gods, and to the universe in which she spins.
~If Only Closed Minds Came with Closed Mouths~

You can find certified soil scientist in your state by checking this website: ARCPACS Certified Soil Scientists

You may also find soil scientists who work in New York State by contacting them off of this website: Membership Registry of the Society of Soil Scientists of Southern New England

Lastly, you can search the membership list of this website: National Society of Consulting Soil Scientists

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