Cornwall
Cornwall septic tank and treatment plant questions often come down to granite and killas ground, rural cottages and holiday lets off mains drainage. Typical work here includes septic tank emptying, treatment plant servicing, drainage field repair and septic tank replacement or upgrades.
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Soils and ground conditions in Cornwall
Cornwall’s granite uplands and slate (killas) ground often have thin soils, so drainage fields need careful percolation testing and siting.
A large share of rural Cornish properties, from farmhouses to holiday lets, are not connected to mains sewers and use septic tanks, treatment plants or cesspits.
Weather, groundwater and drainage fields
Wet Atlantic winters and steep valleys mean drainage fields can become saturated for long spells.
A tank only works as well as the drainage field after it: saturated, compacted or root-filled ground is the most common reason for slow drains, odours and wet patches, so the soil and the water table are checked as well as the tank.
Local approvals and rules
Cornwall Council building control approves new systems; the Environment Agency regulates discharges under the general binding rules.
In England, small sewage discharges must meet the Environment Agency’s general binding rules: septic tanks may discharge to a drainage field in the ground, but not straight to a river or stream, and older systems that did had to be upgraded or replaced. Approved Document H of the Building Regulations covers the design of septic tanks, treatment plants, cesspools and drainage fields.
Typical septic tank and treatment plant work in Cornwall
Septic tank emptying, treatment plant servicing, drainage field repair and septic tank replacement or upgrades. Every property is different, so the system is located, opened and inspected on site before any repair is recommended or quoted.
Know where your tank, lids and drainage field are, keep vehicles and new building work off them, and note when the tank was last emptied before the visit.
UK Septic Pro in Cornwall
We take septic tank, cesspit and treatment plant enquiries from Cornwall and surrounding areas around the clock. Tell us the address, the type of system if you know it and what is happening, and we will arrange a visit.