failing septic system

[cahferrets]

Hi- I just had a few questions. My husband and I are purchasing a new home and we know that the septic system is failing at the leach field.  We are getting ready to put a new system in.  My question is how do I know if we can put a conventional septic field in or do we have to do a mound type.  I do know that there  is  a 1000 gal tank in place now with a distribution box and 4 fingers.  I didnt know if we could salvage the existing leach field or have to start all over. 

Thanks for any info you can give!

[Stuart Meade]

The type of system you will be required to install (mound, trenches, etc.) depends on the suitability of your soil and your state and local regulations.  Always find out what type and size of system is required before buying a home. 
You should contact your local Heath Department (or local government entity that is responsible for issuing the septic system requirements and permit).  They will tell you what the local septic system procedure is.   You might be required to get your soil evaluated by a soils scientist, you might not.  Is this property in Indiana?

If the new system is elaborate and expensive, this will give you some bargaining room on the home’s purchase price.  On rare occasions, a repair system is wildly expensive.   This is why you should get thing checked out before you commit to buying the home.

How old is the existing absorption field?   

There is a possibility that you could put it on an alternative valve with your new absorption system.  Again, this depends on a number of factors including local regulations.

Stuart

[cahferrets]

Hi Thanks for the info.   We have done some investigating on the septic it is the original system about 35 years old.  It is a bank repo house in Whitley Co. Indiana so we did manage to contact the original owners that said they had been told that a mound type could be put in.  I just wasnt sure if it had to be a mound or if a regular leach field could be put in but just moved on the property.  There are a number of trees in the front yard close to the old leach field and wasn't sure if this could be part of the old systems failure.  I don't know very much on septic systems as I have a more extensive background in general construction.  We just want to make sure that we get a good contractor that is giving us the right options.  We were impressed with the information you had to offer.

[Stuart Meade]

Any system absorption system that is failing AND is 35 years old won’t of any use to you.
How did the previous homeowners know that a mound system might be required?  It sounds like they may have navigated the process but never had the system installed. It’s also possible that they were just assuming the worst case scenario.

You won’t know for sure until a soil boring report is completed.

If I had to guess, I would say that the original system consisted of a septic tank and a tile that cut across the front yard that then outleted to a field tile or ditch.  After 35 years, roots probably made their way into this old clay tile and plugged it up.

You can familiarize yourself with mound systems at my website:
http://www.septicdesign.com/septic-types-and-lingo/mound-septic-systems-design/

Stuart

[LM Excavating]

Here is what you need

http://www.isco.purdue.edu/irss/roster.html

http://www.isco.purdue.edu/irss/the_map.html

This is the list of soil scientists approved for Indiana

Your county may also do soil testing but it's usually best to use a soil scientist, unfortunately this is knowledge only gained from experience and I have no experience in your county.

I have seen usable 35 year old systems and with the house being empty (depending on how long, at least 1 year is best) the system may have recovered somewhat and may be usable for a short time and it could be worse if roots were the problem. It's a guessing game without doing some digging.

You may ask the previous owner or the local Health Dept. if there is any paperwork or plans for the original system. This is a benefit in 2 ways, tells you if you have any chance of anything being usable and tells you where it is so you don't run into it installing a new system.

ALSO There may have been a soil report done already if there was talk of a mound system, this would save the expense of having it done again (they don't expire)

Stuart is correct in that a replacement can be quite costly depending on requirements, space and type. Mounds are some of the costliest systems out there and they take some space.

BEWARE of some of the "New Technology" stuff out there and do your home work, some aren't doing so well and this may be hard to discover as it tends to get hushed.

Ask around several different avenues to find a good contractor this way you avoid bias. Most don't travel very far so you will quite possibly be limited to your local area to find one good or bad.

Click on my website below in my signature and click "Systems" then "Mound" there is some info and pics on that page. Surf the site a bit and you may learn even more,

Hey I think L.A. Brown is in that area but may be retired now, try and look him up, he'll help you.

[Toxic Avenger]

As mentioned above, the VERY FIRST AND BEST thing you need to do is contact the county health department and ask these questions to them.  They will be the ones handling any permitting and inspections anyway and they typically are the ones that know the county's requirements better than anyone. 

To add to LM Excavating's comment, some counties actually DO have a limit on how old a soil report can be before it is no longer accepted, so make sure to ask the local health department that as well.  But it won't matter if you discover there are no previous soil reports on record anyway. 

Whitley County has a lot of high clay soils, and therefore the chance of needing a mound system is very likely, but again, you need a soil report submitted to the local health department before a permit would be issued.