Septic tanks/whatever they are called

[kreecherlivesupstairs]

We have one in our garden apparently and I have no idea how long you have before it needs emptying. Does poo no longer flush or do you get an odour?
Our landlords are away for six months so I can't ask them.
Thanks in advance.

I think they only need emptying and refilling about every 20-25 years! I've never had one but I'm sure I heard that on Property Ladder once!

Brilliant, unless the people who lived here before us were super shitters and haven't had it cleaned for 19.5 years.
Anyone else?

Septic tank or cesspit? I had the former and although it was super-sized for the property it was recommended that it be emptied every 7 - 10 years. Here, the council send round a note in January to septic tank owners, saying, will you want yours done this year? And then they draw up a route, and turn up at some point in the year. I only knew they'd been because of a lingering scent of, well, you know. Anyway, could you contact your council and find out when it was last done? And are you looking after it properly, in regards to the chemicals you put down your sinks/toilets etc?

Depends on the size... our septic tank needs emptying every couple of years and yes, you get whiff every now and then.
Why don't you just lift the lid kreecher?

Tank Pumping Frequency Guide

btw... don't put any baby wipes or that sort of thing down the loo... it forms a crust that is difficult to get rid of.

You really should keep to a schedulw with them, loads of people leave it till there's a problem such as overflowing but you can end up with loads of sludge settle in the bottom that can't be pumped out. It then has to be dug out and it costs a lot. I used to have to dig out tanks in a previous job, believe me I earned a good wage billking people for thousands of £ wheras if they'd just paid to have it emptied every few years it wouldn't have been as bad.

we have a sceptic tank and get it emptied every six months. I am not aware of us overly shitting.

Viva - that's a great guide. Thank you.

If you don't know what size tank you have then unless its a small bungalow I'd work on the idea that its probably a 2000 gal tank for the average family house.

We have a septic tank (not a cesspit - they need emptying regularly) and have only had it emptied for maintenance reasons.

If the tank can't cope with the amount of use it will start to back up so if you have a drain cover between the house and the tank you might want to lift it every now and then and check the level is OK. It may also start getting smelly - there should be a vent at the top of the tank so if the level rises you may be able to smell it more.

It will need emptying more if you use bleach a lot - it kills the lovely little organisms that eat it! Check what you're using in the way of loo/bath/floor cleaner (and it doesn't need to be Ecover, lots of stuff is suitable for use in septic tanks now).

If they are working properly (and that includes not using bleach, and having a proper soak away) they shouldn't really need emptying at all.

As others have said, lift the lid and look!

TBH, I don't know where the lid is or anything remotely belonging to it. We live in Belgium in a house about 100 years old. It is in a terrace, so presumably the next door neighbours have the same system. I know that there isn't a sewer due to the age.
I'll have to contact our landlord or agent for more advice.
I don't use bleach despite loving the smell of it, just give it a good scrub every couple of days.