I'll keep this as short as I can. I have some questions at the end!!
We Bought a house 6 months ago and were told there was a septic tank next door. However next door denied this and said they have their own system. Sellers were adamant as they and previous owners (covering 70 years) had NEVER emptied a tank, located a tank or access point etc. Seller said ignore neighbour, we are connected and he empties it. Asked solicitor for indemnity but she said didn't need one.
Anyway after a few months of living here, whenever it rains the house stinks of sewage, and water leaks out of the front of the house permanently rain or shine. There is about 6 inches of water (sewage) under the house at anytime.
Anyway after being unable to locate a septic tank and confirming next door have a stand alone system (die testing and he is a mechanical plumber who put his own system in, sellers knew this but wanted to push the sale through. Apparently they had the same problems with sewage under house as we are having) we called in the water company. They at first thought we were connected to a pumping station next door but one which was broken. This has now been fixed, our drains are no longer full, the house smell has gone, no water under house etc. However we still have no idea where our waste water goes. Water company say we must be on a septic tank so it is a private matter. CCTV does not find a septic tank, travelled over 50m. Die testing does not show up anywhere we can access. I'm so worried that things will back up again and don't know what to do next. So can anyone answer these questions:
Can a septic tank be more than 50m from the house?
Can a septic tank be built to never be emptied? Would have been built sound 1930
Can a septic tank cope with all foul, waste and surface water? (All goes in the same drain)
How can I find where the water goes?
Any help would be great thanks.