Much flushing, slopping, and splish, splash sploshing......

On Wednesday we hope to find out a little bit more about our house because it is on that day that, eventually, the pump-out man cometh. As I reported several weeks ago we have trouble brewing! This is with regards to our sewerage in that whilst everyone is more than aware from whence it comes nobody seems to really know where it goes to.
Sorry this is a vulgar subject, I know, but I said that this would be a diary recording the events and issues regarding the setting up of The Old Bakery and however unsavoury this subject is one such occurrence!
The story so far.... Our drains are very slowly backing up, I tried using drain rods to clear the blockage but to no avail and so then following the route of the drains into next doors garden I had to introduce myself to my new neighbour and immediately talk of the pressing matter of the gutters. That is opposed to discussing the Levison enquiry which was strangely enough also talking about the press and the gutters.
He managed to source a basic drains map for his property and after much flushing, slopping, and splish, splash sploshing we were able to establish that there were two receiving tanks, one for each property, and they both appeared very full indeed.

Now I don't actually know if this is technically a cesspit or a septic tank. To be honest never ever having either I'd had no reason to even contemplate that the two things were actually different.

So for the record then....
Septic tanks are used where this is no public sewer available. They work on the principle of breaking down solids by anaerobic bacteria in an enclosed chamber. The final purification of the liquid is in a filter bed. The effluent is sometimes discharged into a humus chamber, which allows the unstable material from the filter to settle. The water resulting from the process then passes into a soakaway. Water from a septic tank should not be discharged into a ditch, stream, river or pond.
Cesspools are used where there is no public sewer available and where the sub soil cannot soak away the liquid from a septic tank, or if there is no suitable stream or river to take the final effluent from a processing plant. They are simply a large enclosed chamber to collect the effluent, which is then removed on a regular basis and taken to a sewerage treatment works. Cesspools are considered to be a last resort for dealing with sewerage. http://www.clearawaydrainage.co.uk/faq.html#n


Now that was all well and good but I still don't know what I have other than his plan shows pipes going to "land drainage" and I can just see a small piece of pipe leading out of my pit in that general direction. So , I think, I have a septic tank. Anyhow a man is coming to give my house a gynaecological clear-out on Wednesday and just hopefully he can diagnose what I've got and how I should 'manage' it. I used to manage nearly 300 staff now it has come to pass that I can barely manage a septic tank and spend my days being harassed by two women and a cat. How the mighty have fallen!




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