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Posted to uk.d-i-y
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Septic Tank: how often to clean?
wrote:
But how often is regular for a two-person household?
Most people go about once a day 
You already have your answer. Once a year is a small price to protect
the herringbone.
I bought a rural bungalow off a little old lady, who assured me the
drainage system was fine, but had the tank desludged twice a year.
Two weeks later it backed up (and that's as unpleasant as you
imagine).
The pump out man said "Oh yes, the herringbone's wrecked - the old
lady had me round every 2 weeks".
First quote (this was 1999) was £6500 for a complete refit.
Eventually got that down to £2500 for retrofitting the tank as as
processor, environment agency approval, and certified clean outfall
into a river instead of a herringbone.
I am rather confused by this post. What is a "herringbone". My parents
had and old fashioned septic tank installed when the property was built
in 1939. During the war there was no opportunity to empty it, in fact
is was first emptied around 1950 and caused no problems. I had my
concrete septic tank replaced by a modern one on purchasing this
property in 1900, I have had the tank emptied once in that time.
Admittedly I am careful that no bleach or biological washing powders are
used, but it is fine, as I would expect. What does annoy me is that one
of my neighbour's cuts costs by having a local farmer empty theirs
instead of a property specialist, this saves then the fantastic sum of
£40. The farmer sprays his on his fields where as The specialist gives
you a certificate that his effluent is safely disposed in a sewage farm.
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