Sewage Treatment System Options

Off-Mains Sewage Treatment Options

CESSPOOL (Cesspit, cess pit)

A "Cesspool" is an enormous, fully sealed underground wastewater holding tank having only an inlet and no outlet. A cesspool is designed to hold all sewage and wastewater effluent and does not carry out any treatment of the sewage whatsoever. Many people to refer to their septic tank as a "Cesspit".  You MAY have a cesspool or it may be a septic tank.  If it has an outlet, irrespective of the size of the tank, it is a septic tank, not a cesspool.  A cesspool (cesspit) simply stores sewage and can only be emptied via a suction tanker. The installation cost and annual running cost of a cesspool is prohibitive. Cesspool units should only be installed as a last resort where a septic tank or treatment plant would not be suitable. Running costs for a family of 4 are about £7000 to £9000/year We always consider the options that are available to your site and we can provide a report and quotation for the preferred system.

Septic Tank

Septic Tank systems used to be the common method of treating sewage in rural areas.  They consist of a holding tank which partially breaks down the solids by anerobic bacteria before discharging the liquid effluent through the outlet pipe into a septic drainage soakaway. Unfortunately, the effluent they produce is very polluting and can ONLY be discharged into a septic drainage soakaway, if the ground conditions allow. The soil must be able to soak away the required volume.  Clay soils will NOT support soakaways. The water table or bedrock MUST NOT rise to within 1 metre of the bottom of the soakaway gravel under the pipe at any time.  This means that your water table must never rise to within 2 metres of ground level. The site must not be in an E.A. Inner Groundwater Source Protection Zone.  Ring Waste Tech to determine this. The septic drainage soakaway alone usually costs between £2000 and £5000 to construct.  You cannot discharge to a watercourse from a septic tank, nor can you allow the effluent to leak into a watercourse as the fines are enormous.

 Sewage Treatment Plant

Sewage treatment plants have replaced septic tanks.  They clean the wastewater to a high standard and the effluent can be discharged either to a soakaway, if the ground conditions are suitable, OR to a watercourse with Environment Agency Consent.  The effluent is non-polluting if the plant is used and maintained correctly. There are many different types available, including the BIOROCK non-electric plant.   Typical installation costs are between £1000 and £8000, depending on the type of plant.

Rainwater must be kept out of all sewage systems. 

Please click on the link below for full details of costs, types available, pro's and con's etc. of all the sewage treatment plants and options available.