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1) Dept of Health is waste of time. They will have no info to help you.
2) When was the house built?
3) A vent without a fill may indicate it was properly abandoned. Still need the cert.
4) Can you see the vent enter the house? Just because its next to the foundation does not mean the tank was in the house.
5) What did the inspector see? Did he is any feed lines enter or exit from the basement through the foundation?
6) You can have an enviro company scan the ground for a tank for around $850. If they find one, another $750 to see if it was abandoned.
7) Full abandonment is around $2500.
For what it's worth, I was in the same situation in Huntington last year. My understanding was that we'd be responsible for all tank related problems once we bought the place. I was going to walk on the deal because of that. Got lots of feedback that I should ignore this and go ahead with the deal, but was important to me to have that record.
Luckily I tracked down the (retired) attorney of the owner that removed the tank, and they kept all the certification paperwork. I was surprised that the town doesn't keep records of this.
The less people you involve or talk to the better. Don't under any circumstances call the DEC. You should follow the vent pipe to find out where it goes just so you know what is going on. Beyond that, just forget about it.
Generally; If the tank was removed the fill line was either removed or capped with concrete. This is to prevent oil from introduced into the fill pipe without the tank being present. If you don't have a fill line that is a good sign.
If the tank was abandoned in place but not removed; the vent line must be intact.
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My guess is you have/had an underground tank. I have seen lawns sag because of abandoned tanks that were not filled with sand on decommissioning. To decommission an underground tank; the tank is emptied, a hole is dug to the tank, a grinder is used to cut a hole in the tank; and then the tank is filled with sand.
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