Buying a house with a septic tank... what do I need to investigate ?? (real estate, home inspector)

[21mike]

I am currently looking @ a place on the water. The house was built in 1960, and I don't think it has had its septic tank replaced. The real estate agent has told me "it needs to be pumped every 8 months or so". Would this indicate a bad tank ? or whatnot?

How can I go about investigating the current state of my septic system, and take the nessessary precautions to ensure I don't get stuck with a house that will need an entire new septic system in 2 years?

This will be my first home. What other information and steps should I undergo to help me check out the property before I sign on the dotted line?

Tomoro on Monday I will head down to the town hall and try to hire a building inspector and try to get up to date information about everything possible I can about the property. Anything else I should look into ?

[GotBackHome]

If you're in his area range, JThibodeau (who is on this list) is a great building inspector! I plan on having him check our place - as soon as we get a contract accepted (new one going in today on a very old farmhouse!!). He can also check septic systems.

You want to have any place you buy thoroughly checked for water, septic, radon (if you care: some people don't, some people do), pests, heating, general condition. You can see what all he looks at in an inspection on this website pagejathibodeau.com

If there have had any previous inspections done (like from previous buyers), the listing agent is required to pass on any information to you. That's how I know about the well & septic issue in the farm house we're re-looking at.

Good luck! definitely get some good home inspector to thoroughly check it first, though.

[NH2008]

I would have a septic tank inspection done by someone who ONLY does septic tanks as well as a whole-house inspection by a regular inspector. They can check certain things but not every detail, so you will want to find out as much as you can. Getting it pumped every 8 months is not normal and I was told that our 30 year old septic system had already outlived its life expectancy, so if yours is 40 years old and needs to be pumped that often, there could be a problem.

[21mike]

ok good info thanks guys thanks. I will try to contact JThibodeau, as well as find a reputable house inspector and septic inspector. Any ideas for sources ?

[nhplanner]

What size is the lot? It sounds like the property only has a tank and no leach field. If the house is on a very small lot, which is common for waterfront properties in NH, you may be stuck with a tank that needs to be pumped out once a year.

[21mike]

its a .6 acre lot. There will only be 3 of us living there. I have been doing some reading about minimizing the use of water when using a "tight tank" like I believe we will have. We plan to change out EVERY sink and shower fixture as well as the toilet. The house is ONLY 680 square feet, it has 1 kitchen sink, 1 bathroom sink, 1 toilet and 1 shower.... this does not seem like alot of water use IMO.

But my question is... do all the drains (sink and shower) flow to the septic tank ? This would seem rather unnecessary. Or does only the Toilet ?
How big is your average tight tank ?

Also would the total price of our septic tank be less, since we don't have to worry about a leach field ?

Even if we have to drain it once a year, that 200 bucks a year would still probably equal out to being cheaper than installing a new leach field in a different house every 20 years or so...or am I wrong ?

[GotBackHome]

it has 1 kitchen sink, 1 bathroom sink, 1 toilet and 1 shower.... this does not seem like alot of water use IMO.

That's all I have as well - for 2 of us (mind you, we're on city water/sewage), but I can still see potential for a lot of water use: how many loads of laundry are you doing regularly? How about showers - how long/often are the 3 of you taking showers? What about brushing your teeth: do you leave the faucet running (that's a LOT of water)? How do you wash dishes - under a running faucet?

It can still add up! I don't entirely understand where all the water goes in a septic system (like I said: we're on city lines). There was an old thread once on here where someone explained how some got stored in the tank and some got filtered to the field???

[nhplanner]

You may have to pump it out quite a bit more often than once a year, depending on the size of the tank. My guess is that you probably have a 750 gallon tank or smaller. At 5 gallons a flush, you can do the math for how quickly it will have to be pumped. I don't believe you are allowed to have gray water going to a dry well, so yes, I believe all of your waste water would have to go to the tank. I would definitely find out the size of the tank, figure out your total water usage, and then decide if it is something you can live with.

[nhrocky]

Please make sure that your real estate agent, you and your inspector are up to date on the new regulations from NHDES that impacts all waterfront properties in NH. There are some strict regulations that went into effect this year.

[buck naked]

Originally Posted by nhplanner

What size is the lot? It sounds like the property only has a tank and no leach field. If the house is on a very small lot, which is common for waterfront properties in NH, you may be stuck with a tank that needs to be pumped out once a year.

I agree.. it sounds like you don't have a leaching bed - so just a tank would have to be pumped twice a year - properties like this are meant to be vacation properties and are not intended for year round use - you may have a problem in the winter months as well.