Buying, selling, own or manage a rural property?
Unsure if a property’s off mains sewage installation is compliant with the General Binding Rules?
We can help.
Before the sale of any property, the sewage disposal installation must be confirmed as being compliant or the cost of making the system compliant is to be deducted from the sale price for the works to be carried out by the new owner.
With costs of up to £20,000 including VAT for installing a new tank, plant or a drainage field (for a 3 bedroom property) this can affect the value of a property substantially.
An ageing system may also not cope with a modern families water usage thus requiring investment to upgrade/renew as soon as the property is purchased and occupied.
At Aqua-Jet we have extensively studied the General Binding Rules (including related British Standards and regulations) and obtained information from the Environment Agency to be able to provide accurate guidance on whether the installation is compliant. We’ve inspected thousands of installations all over the UK!
Septic tanks and soakaways are not illegal. The tank and discharge method will have needed to comply with the standards in place at the date of installation. Soakaways were still able to be installed in porous subsoil areas before the second edition publication of BS6297 which was introduced in December 2007.
Depending on the type of septic tank installed an empty may be required to confirm the structural condition and confirm if any internal sections are complete. The tank must be inspected before emptying as this provides vital information as to whether the system is operating correctly and allows a dye test to assist in confirming the discharge location if the outlet is not accessible with CCTV/tracing equipment.
We operate predominantly in Derbyshire , Staffordshire , Nottinghamshire , Yorkshire and Cheshire areas. However, we are also able to carry out works in other areas if requested (subject to additional travel charges).
