Septic tank advise pls

[mumzof4x]

We are now 5 months into buying our dream home however the delay is solely because we still have no idea whether the tank meets law requirements
We commissioned digital survey which was inconclusive as the tank has never ever been emptied
The sellers then paid for a more detailed one to answer our questions . We asked 5 main but reasonable questions which included:did it meet regs / what was the type/ where did it drain
Survey has returned inconclusive again but with some identified faults
They can't even confirm where it drains to ??
Would it be unreasonable to agree to only proceed (everything else is done and tbh I think the sellers have been poorly advised .... they are elderly and I feel a bit anxious) if the sellers bring the septic tank into line with current regs or replace it before proceeding ?
If dropping the price is mentioned that means our savings will be cleared out and we can't renovate the house when we move in . We e kept 20k back just for this TIA

You need a survey and assessment that involves a bit of physical digging. There should be an access hatch to the septic tank as all tanks need to be pump drained occaisionally. This would help determine what kind it is, how big it is. You then need a surveyor to dig a bit to find the leach field and map it out as well as assess its condition/functioning or not. Subsidence can wreak a leach field. You should pay for your own survey.

Most septic tanks drain into a leach field. If the septic tank is not up to regulations, then the sellers should bear the cost to repair or replace the whole system up to regulations or have the house connected to mains sewerage. They can do this in a couple of ways.

They would get 3 quotes for repair/replacement up to regulations and then
a) reduce the selling price by the average quote amount and you pay for the work after completion out of your pocket.
b)selling price stays the same but they cut you a check for the average quote amount from the funds disbursement on the day of completion for you to carry out the works. or
c) selling price stays the same and they pay out of pocket to have the work done and inspected with a warranty that transfers to you prior to completion

I would also get a quote to connect to mains sewerage as as time goes on many properties that were built with septic tanks are not so remote any more and it may be cheaper to connect to the mains.

In some local authorities too you can’t replace a septic system if mains sewerage is now within a certain distance to the property line, so you may not have a choice if repairs cannot be done. The a,b,c ways can be applied to cost of connecting to mains sewerage as well.

Is it actually a septic tank or a packaged sewage treatment tank? Most septic tanks need emptying fairly regularly (6 months- 2 years). You might be best just getting a local contractor out who installs and services package sewage treatment plants and asking them to take a look. It wouldn’t be legally binding but you’d probably get a realistic view of whether it’s likely to cause you bother or not. We had a small one put in about five years ago for our business and it was under £10K. It’s very common for rural properties to have septic tanks and other forms of private drainage and in all the few dozen houses we’ve viewed in the last year or so, I don’t think any of them had all (often any of) the paperwork so your situation isn’t uncommon. Maybe I am too relaxed about it but I just think it’s one of those things about rural houses. You need to get them serviced every year or so anyway and those guys will tell you soon enough if it needs replacing or repairing etc. would seem a shame to lose a dream house over IMHO!

Our drainage was marked on the land registry docs for the property, although a solicitor should have checked this. Any neighbours who could shed any light on it? Our nearest neighbours were really helpful and gave all sorts of info about the history of the site and the drains/tanks.
at a minimum I’d expect the sellers to pay for an empty so it could be properly surveyed

We just got the results of the third survey
Tank is GRP bottle shaped and in his professional opinion does not discharge into a drainage field. Tank has never been emptied in over 20 years .
There is also storm water draining into it . In his opinion the tank is discharging to an open pipe? It is not compliant with regs .
Gutted really but we persevered with surveys. Even the digital one couldn't provide this but at least we know now .
Think we'll go back to sellers and ask if they can offer a solution , otherwise have looked at some of the really helpful replies on here (thank you ) and think that in view of potential immeasurable neighbouring contamination will ask for repairs and or new tank with inspection and warranty prior to completion.

We've already paid almost £5k in so fees and surveys and will lose that if they say no but better that than not have known what a liability the tank is .

Gross. That is so negligent of the current owners. That septic tank is probably discharging into ground water or a nearby stream every time it rains by the storm drain ‘flushing’ it. Raw sewage. Disgusting. It has to be emptying somewhere because it doesn’t take 20yrs to fill a septic tank.

I hope the water supply is mains and not a well? If it is a well better get the water tested as well to see if safe to drink/use.

I agree the sellers need to sort this. They should have done this years ago:
https://hallwell.co.uk/septic-tank-regulations-in-the-uk-what-existing-and-new-homeowners-need-to-know/

Just a heads up that storm water should not go into a septic tank/cess pit/sewage treatment plant. The theory of them all is broadly the same inwhich the solid waste rises to the top of the tank and causes a crust. The rest of the waste below is broken down by bacteria and microorganisms. The outlet of the grey water side of the tank should be at a lower level than the incoming to make sure the out put water has been "treated" and reduce the likelyhopd of solid waste being discharged. When storm water is added to a tank, it forces the waste out before it has had time to be broken down therefore discharging raw sewage.

There are new regulations regards septic tanks but in our experience even the professionals didn't know what was required. We opted to have the septic tank decommissioned and a sewage treatment plant installed. Our storm water is connected to the output side of the tank so that it mixes with the water pumped out of the tank and all soaks away together.

If you haven't had a house with off grid drains just be aware that you have to be careful what you out down the drains. No harsh chemicals, no washing out paintbrushes in the sink etc.

We had a very similar situation when we were buying our current house. There was an old Victorian cesspit which didn't need emptying. It just sort of got absorbed into the ground around it. Pretty gross. We knew it would need replacing but we're not banking on doing it straight away. Unfortunately a tree fell on the top and went through the pipe coming from the house when we had only lived there a few months. So we bit the bullet and got a sewage treatment plant installed (which meant digging most of the garden up...). I feel much better now I know all our shit and household chemicals are not just leaching into the ground. It did cost around 15k though. 😫

Just wanted to say thank you to each of you for the advice
I read the whole little out to dh in bed this morning !
It's been super helpful.
We have a great solicitor and she's on this also on professional as well as knowledgable capacity.
We said that we wouldn't complete until this is sorted now and her advice is aligned with everything you have all said thank you .
The storm drain advice was particularly helpful thank you.

"That septic tank is probably discharging into ground water or a nearby stream every time it rains by the storm drain ‘flushing’ it. Raw sewage. Disgusting."

Ironically isn't this just saving the water company from doing the exact same thing....