Septic system survey in Bosley
Septic system survey to confirm compliance for property sale.
Location: Bosley, Cheshire
Service: Septic tank surveys
Overview
We were recently instructed by the owner of a farm property in Bosley, Cheshire, who required a detailed inspection of their private water treatment plant system ahead of a pending property sale.
As part of the legal enquiries during the sale process, the purchaser’s solicitors requested confirmation of the condition and operation of the foul drainage system prior to exchange. The client contacted our team to arrange a professional inspection and reporting package within a tight timeframe to help keep the transaction progressing.
Following the initial enquiry, we quickly mobilised to site and coordinated the necessary pre-inspection works to allow for a thorough assessment of the treatment system.
To ensure a suitable visual inspection of the tank’s internal condition could be carried out, we assisted the client in arranging for the water treatment plant to be emptied and desludged prior to attendance.
What we did
Using our iTouch HD CCTV drainage camera system, we carried out a detailed inspection of both the inlet pipework and the outfall arrangements connected to the treatment plant.
The system itself was located adjacent to one of the farm outbuildings and was fed via a manhole chamber situated on the main driveway.
A nearby river also required consideration during the investigation, specifically to determine whether the treatment plant discharged directly into the watercourse or whether an alternative outfall arrangement was present.
Our findings
During the CCTV inspection of the inlet pipework, we identified a broken section of 100mm diameter pipework with visible signs of root ingress. The defect had created a catch point within the line, restricting the flow of wastewater into the treatment plant.
Our CCTV camera was unable to pass through the damaged section of pipework, meaning the survey of the inlet line had to be abandoned beyond this point. Despite the restricted access, the findings provided valuable evidence of a structural defect requiring remedial attention.
Following completion of the inlet survey, attention turned to the outfall pipework from the treatment plant. Initial attempts to inspect the line from within the chamber were unsuccessful, as the bend within the pipework prevented our CCTV systems from progressing.
Given the urgency of the instruction and the client’s need to provide information to the solicitors, we undertook a localised excavation to expose the outfall pipe externally. Once exposed, access was gained via core drilling into the pipework, allowing our engineers to continue the CCTV inspection further downstream.
The outfall pipework was generally found to be in good structural condition. However, one notable observation was that the pipe depth dropped significantly below the level of the nearby river. This strongly indicated that the system likely discharged into a drainage field rather than directly into the adjacent watercourse.
Within the outfall pipework, we also identified a piece of masonry lodged within the line, resulting in a reduced bore. As only treated effluent was passing through this section of pipework, the obstruction had not caused any operational issues to date. However, the restriction prevented us from conclusively confirming the final discharge point of the treatment plant.
The survey identified structural defects affecting the system and provided the seller with tangible items to resolve prior to sale. Recommendations were issued for remedial works and further investigation was carried out where required.
Location
This project was carried out in Bosley, Cheshire. We regularly carry out septic tank surveys across the surrounding areas, including Congleton, Macclesfield and Holmes Chapel.
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