How long of an infiltrator septic system do I need?

Started by SardonicSmile, November 11, 2009, 02:56:05 PM

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SardonicSmile

The inspector drew me out a 288 foot infiltrator system for a one bedroom cottage. My septic installer says that this is way more than I need. They also said that it would need to be 400ft for a regular septic system. Any opinions? Keep in mind that infiltrator septic systems use less footage than regular systems.

bayview



   Seems that the inspector may be over cautious. . .

   But, soil conditions - (how well liquid is absorbed) dictate some of the sizing of septic. . .

/
    . . . said the focus was safety, not filling town coffers with permit money . . .


Redoverfarm

Here a normal system will run 60' of field per bedroom .  With mine I am classifing it as a 2 bedroom therefore 120' of field.  I am not that familar with a infiltrator system but that seem rather long for a 1 bedroom.  As far as the soil.  If it perks irregardless of type of soil it should not dictate the length of the field. Maybe some jurisdictions have other criteria. [noidea'

devildog

What state is your land in?

In Virginia, my 2br system has 2-65' lengths of infiltrators ,If this is what yourtalking about.
I think its a 10% reduction from pipe and rock system.                                                                                                             

And I think there is aminumum  length required even for 1 br
Darrell
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985

Squirl

#4
Although most septic system sizing requirements are based on number of bedrooms, normally there is a minimum sizing requirement.  I know for NY it is for a two bedroom and at least 1000 gallon tank.  I have heard of some jurisdictions with a minimum sizing for a 3 bedroom, but I have not experience this first hand.  This obviously varies by state and locality.  First you would have to know what your soil perced at.  There are a few sizing charts online.

As per the specs from this article.
 http://www.inspect-ny.com/septic/lockwood.htm

You would need 130 gpd per bedroom.  If you locality requires a two bedroom minimum (not uncommon) that would be 260 gpd.  If your soil perced at the lowest rate  (60 min. per inch) you would be required to have 577 sq. ft of leach field for a traditional system. With a normal trench of 2 ft wide it would be around 300 feet of leach field.  This calculation seems to be for the state of NY.  There are other sizing guides online.

http://www.eco-nomic.com/septic.htm

According to this one you would need 39 6ft vaults or 234 ft with poor soils.  288 seems to be a little high, but if you have poor soils not astronomical. As you can see by the charts sizing can vary widly by soil type it can be from 60ft for a #1 soil type to 234ft for a #6 soil type. I would check with the inspector as to how they calculated the sizing.  Maybe it was a simple error.


SardonicSmile

Turns out they had me down for 3 bedroom. All I had to do was come in and apply for a 1 bedroom and they gave me a new plan while I waited.

Infiltrator system installed by a professional: 100 ft
Infiltrator system installed by me: 140 ft
This seems more like it.

I noticed my inspector drew out plans for two lengths of infiltrators.. One is 85 feet and the other is 55. Why the different lengths? I read on the infiltrator installation guide that they should be no longer than 50. Think itll be ok?

glenn kangiser

Here they allow up to 100 feet per set - they are just a big covered hole that has been government approved.  Same as we used to use in the old days except the approval,  Yeah - they will work.  :)

"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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devildog

Sardonicsmile, why did they say if you,rather than a pro, install them that you have to put in another 40'?
Darrell
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985

glenn kangiser

My guess is that it is the part of the good ol' boy system that insures that you buy the maximum amount of corporate produced goods or professional services.  If you don't use a State Licensed contractor who has paid them then they want to see to it that you pay a penalty.

I have seen a so called pro put them on a 3 foot slope down hill which will not work and it did fail, but if they are kept within an inch or two of level down hill at the far end or plainly level, they will work fine whether you are a pro or clutz.  

It is plainly just bullying by the authoritarian system.  The inspector needs to inspect it before it is covered anyway - can he not substitute his massive authority and know how for the pro..... nope just bullying by the sold out bought off system.  Taxation and control is the number one concern with safety running in second place.

For all of their fees, inspection and taxation, they will not accept any liability or guarantee you anything.  No written warranty from the building department.  Their inspections do get you to a minimum level of safety.

Note that my opinions of how the system works are exactly that ... not a reflection on John or CountryPlans....I am just a lowly volunteer. ::)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.


SardonicSmile

Well, i'm not sure if I HAVE to go 40 feet extra - I think she was just telling me I should.

She probably thinks I don't know what I'm doing because I'm 21 years old.

Either way, I don't see a problem with spending the extra 300 bucks and having a little more septic than I need. I could have a family one day.

rick91351

I have put in several of those and I am still scratching my head.

The one for the house we own was two 45 foot runs.  They allowed me to do it in a straight line joined in the middle. This was for a three bed room home.  But we had to dug to China and filled back with like 8 or 10 12 yard truck loads of sand.

Last year another three bed room home.  It required three 60 or 65 ft runs and they had to be forked with a minimum of twenty feet between runs   
Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

devildog

there's alot I dont understand about how they figure septic systems. especially how they vary from state to state. Even when it comes to distance from a well. In Florida the distance is 75' , in Va. 100'. It took forever to lay out my system because of my well location. It actually became critical. My area for my house was only 135'x135', and to put a septic, well, and a house was tight. You have to keep the house 10' ( 20' if a basement) from septic tank, I also had to keep the house 18' setback from dropoff. they had the lines going in front of my house, so you had to park 30' away and walk to the house.

Forgive me, I started to relive it again there for a moment. I say all that to say, depending on your lot or land layout you may have to consider alot of things. fortunatly I got it all worked out, but I had to reduce to a 2br septic, build only one house (I wanted to build a small 1br first and then a medium size 2br inthe future). And my well is exactly  100', there was no room to play with.




Darrell
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985

glenn kangiser

Quote from: SardonicSmile on November 14, 2009, 11:41:19 AM
Well, i'm not sure if I HAVE to go 40 feet extra - I think she was just telling me I should.

She probably thinks I don't know what I'm doing because I'm 21 years old.

Either way, I don't see a problem with spending the extra 300 bucks and having a little more septic than I need. I could have a family one day.

There is nothing wrong with making it better.
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.

glenn kangiser

Quote from: rick91351 on November 14, 2009, 02:39:19 PM
I have put in several of those and I am still scratching my head.

The one for the house we own was two 45 foot runs.  They allowed me to do it in a straight line joined in the middle. This was for a three bed room home.  But we had to dug to China and filled back with like 8 or 10 12 yard truck loads of sand.

Last year another three bed room home.  It required three 60 or 65 ft runs and they had to be forked with a minimum of twenty feet between runs    

Much of it comes from the knowledge and feelings about your soil right from the health official you are working with.  Many times he has a pretty good idea of what will work and what won't.  Sometimes he is relatively clueless.  Hopefully those things meet together somewhere in the middle.

They do have formulas for the sizing.
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.


SardonicSmile

We're picking up the infiltrator system today!

Here are the prices for anyone interested:

$658 - 140 ft of infiltrator and two caps (100 ft was minimum)
$540 - 1000 gal concrete tank (state minimum)

A friend of my dads does septic on the side.. he's bringing the backhoe and showing us what to do for about $500. He is supplying all the pipes.

Grand total for complete septic: ~ $1700


Redoverfarm

Sounds like a good deal. A comparable system here is around 3K.

SardonicSmile

Just an update, we got the infiltrator for 650 because we wanted the genuine EZ Flow brand.

Just to give some of you an idea on how easy infiltrator is:


This is the entire infiltrator system. It can be lifted by two people : )

muldoon

sardonic, I don't have much to offer on this post but am quite interested in it.  I hope you take plenty of pictures of it going and and plumbing it.  I will be doing the same thing eventually and appreciate the real world look at the ez-flow system. 

SardonicSmile

Quote from: muldoon on November 17, 2009, 09:50:06 AM
sardonic, I don't have much to offer on this post but am quite interested in it.  I hope you take plenty of pictures of it going and and plumbing it.  I will be doing the same thing eventually and appreciate the real world look at the ez-flow system. 

I'll do my best, but since the guy with the backhoe isnt really charging us, I don't want to be skipping around taking pictures and wasting his time. I'm sure there will be breaks, though.

glenn kangiser

"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.