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BEFORE you make an offer on that house in the country, you MUST find out several things about the well and septic system:
1. When was the well dug, how deep is it, what kind of "system" is it, and what is the quality and quantity of water it brings up.
2. Does the septic system meet current county code? If not, you may be required to put in a whole new system.
The main problem with having your own well and septic system is that, if something goes wrong, YOU have to pay for it. And it's not cheap. Well work can run anywhere from $1,000 to $50,000, depending on if you need a small repair or a new well. Septic work can run anywhere from a couple hundred dollars to $25,000, depending on if you need a small repair or need a new system.
The most important thing here is that you go into it with full knowledge of what you're facing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by David A Stone
( #2) .......many places require the seller to have the septic system upgraded or the title can not be transferred.
Any septic system that is not compliant it should be the seller's responsibility.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Volvo Driver
Yes, it depends on location. Sometimes it even depends on the county within a particular state.
But ultimately, this will be reflected in the price. As you know, nothing is free. Somebody is going to pay for it.
All of this^
Quote:
Originally Posted by eddie1278
If it were me i would have a whole new septic system installed. I wouldn't want to inherit anyone elses chit and problems lol
Given the cost, it would be really stupid to replace a system that was still functioning just fine. Save your money for when the system fails and you HAVE to replace it.
Given the cost, it would be really stupid to replace a system that was still functioning just fine. Save your money for when the system fails and you HAVE to replace it.
I think differently. I rather have new from the start so it's one less thing i have to worry about failing. Because either way at one point you are going to have to replace the existing system anyway so you are just doing it earlier. And depending on your age you won't ever have to worry about replacing the new system again.
Most things i wouldn't replace if they are working fine but something serious like a septic i rather get it out of the way now.
We have are own well and septic system (leach field). Our water is purer than city water and has a better taste. We are also on propane, 500 gallon tank buried in the ground. We have no problems. Suggest you have the well water tested as well as condition of septic system before buying, to make sure they do not have to be replaced. AFA septic system, we have it pumped out every three years.
Can one actually "replace" a septic system? Don't you have to abandon it and locate a new one elsewhere on the property? And if so, couldn't the old one still create problems?
Can one actually "replace" a septic system? Don't you have to abandon it and locate a new one elsewhere on the property? And if so, couldn't the old one still create problems?
The tank can be pumped out and dug out. The cheaper way is to fill the old one with rock and concrete so there is no risk of it collapsing in on itself.
A septic tank that is not connected to the house will cause no issues.
Can one actually "replace" a septic system? Don't you have to abandon it and locate a new one elsewhere on the property? And if so, couldn't the old one still create problems?
Short answer: not if it's done right.
The person digging in and installing the new system should simply dig out the old tank and fill the hole where it was. Problem solved.
A well and septic do not always go hand in hand. The heat source is not even related.
I have city water, but have a septic system. 1/4 mile away, they have city water and sewer. Even though the sewer system is less than 1/4 mile away, we do not have the option to connect.
A well should be tested by a professional lab. You may want to re-test every year.
A septic system should be inspected by a professional. They will open the tank, pump it, and inspect the inside for damage to the baffle between tanks. They will also look at the filed lines.
Depending on the age of the property, there very well could be enough land to put another filed in case the existing field fails. While that is required in a lot of areas now, it was not always the case. The local health department can give you information.
If the well is healthy, and the septic system is working fine (and sized correctly), there really isn't much to deal with. The advantage to a city sewer system, and city water, is its the city's responsibility to maintain it. With a well and septic, its all on the homeowner.
One downside that frequently happens with wells is the sulphur smell of the water, or an off taste. Well water can also have a lot of dirt in it, so filters are usually needed. Well water can discolor toilets, bath tubs and sinks.
A well and septic do not always go hand in hand. The heat source is not even related.
I have city water, but have a septic system. 1/4 mile away, they have city water and sewer. Even though the sewer system is less than 1/4 mile away, we do not have the option to connect.
A well should be tested by a professional lab. You may want to re-test every year.
A septic system should be inspected by a professional. They will open the tank, pump it, and inspect the inside for damage to the baffle between tanks. They will also look at the filed lines.
Depending on the age of the property, there very well could be enough land to put another filed in case the existing field fails. While that is required in a lot of areas now, it was not always the case. The local health department can give you information.
If the well is healthy, and the septic system is working fine (and sized correctly), there really isn't much to deal with. The advantage to a city sewer system, and city water, is its the city's responsibility to maintain it. With a well and septic, its all on the homeowner.
One downside that frequently happens with wells is the sulphur smell of the water, or an off taste. Well water can also have a lot of dirt in it, so filters are usually needed. Well water can discolor toilets, bath tubs and sinks.
Until you have to repair the service lateral to the street that comes from your house. Replacing a busted lateral is not cheap and if you have concrete walkways or it goes under your driveway it costs even more. Usually not an issue but in old homes with cast iron it's quite common.
The other issue with city sewer is you pay for it another extra bill every month. A well and septic have maintenance costs but not every month.
We have a lake house that was on a well for decades. A few years ago the county extended the water system and we got put on it. We had a pretty deep well but the county water is so much better (and this is rural GA). Better water pressure. Better taste. It was a shared well with the rest of the street so when someone goofed up, like when someone thought that to protect against freezing they needed to leave the hose bibs on FULL BLAST, everyone else had to deal with extremely low water pressure.
We recently had a leaking joint but it was on the county side. We called and within an hour it was fixed (it wasn't a big issue anyway). Something like that happens with a well, you'll have to deal with getting it fixed or in our case, get the owner of the well who doesn't live there full time to respond.
We're still on septic and we had an issue years back with a joint. Wasn't a huge deal but I did not enjoy digging to find the cause. We had to pay a pro to fix it.
We bought a house with a septic and a well. Lessons learned:
Have the septic inspected by a Septic person! Our home was a 5 bdrm, 3200 sq ft. What we didn't know was that it wasn't originally that size and the septic system that our inspector passed, was only rated for a 3 bdrm home half that size. So when our huge family moved in guess what happened...it failed. We had to sink $7500 into a new, larger septic system.
Our well water had invisible rust. The water had a sulfur smell to it and stained everything orange. When we had the home inspected it was winterized. I didn't even know this was a thing. We had to sink another $2500 in for a water conditioning system.
We had the opportunity to hook up to city water three years after moving here and it was only $100 connect fee if you signed off in the initial planning phase. I jumped at it. Best $100 ever spent. I have zero interest of being on a well or septic again. Like someone else said, when something goes wrong, you are on the hook for it. And it can be very expensive. But I realize that there are locations where that's the only thing you get and if those locations matter enough, then you put up with the downsides of a well and septic. Just make sure you know what you are buying.
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