Question on Septic/Well for house

[MN_Nole]

I am looking at potentially buying a house that has its own well and sewer(septic). As I have no experience with either of these systems I wanted to see what I should be looking at/for. Before the question is raised, yes I am going to have the house inspected, but unsure if the inspector will be fully qualified for this system.
I know water quality out of the well is one item to look at, I plan on pulling a water sample on my next visit and getting it tested. To see what or if/a treatment system is needed.(This I am going to do myself as I work in a chemistry lab and have the ability and knowledge to do it for free.)
But as for the septic system, are there any things to look for that may be obvious to the layman, I was planning on having someone inspect that as well on its own.( septic specialist).
I hate to lay out the money for the inspections, if there are obvious signs I can spot before I potentially make an offer and have to bring and pay people to inspect these things.

 

[Blu Du]

I'm the man to answer all of your questions. I do well drilling and septic systems in Nisswa. request septic inspection and water sample which the seller pays for. make sure it's a 4 " drilled well, if not you might as well have one drilled now. as for the well age is the main thing to find out. if over twenty years and original pump, you may need a new pump in the next five years. if well is 20 yrs or newer there is well unique # on the well that gives you info from MDH. also turn on all of the sill cocks for 10 min or so to make sure water flow doesn't slow down. thats about all to check for. a good septic inspector should do a good job inspecting septic and find any thing wrong

 

[Camden]

A septic system inspection will cost you about $100 but it's well worth the money to have piece of mind.

I think a very important question you should ask is if the system has ever frozen up at any time during it's existence. If it has I would tell them you want a new system put in or the price of the home will have to reflect the cost of installing a new system. You do not want to deal with a frozen drain field in the dead of winter - trust me!

 

[SNOW JW]

I end up going into way to many lawns in the middle of winter with the mini x. Call a place and have them go through the septic a larger company with a camera would be the best that way they can look to see if the pipes have grade and if they are root grown in, crushed lines, bad lift pump, cracked tank, D-box full of condoms ect I have seen it all. Lots of things that can go wrong and when they do most times its in one night and to late to have a simple fix.

In MT we have to turn in as-builts and update to any problems or upgrades to the system. Not sure if MN does this but it's worth checking into.

Take a water sample also check to see if the water line as a stop and waste or shut off just incase if not that's ok but good to know if you do have one. Also check to see if the line is plastic aka pure core, copper, steal, garden hose (yes I seen that on a brand new house one time). Make sure it's not in bad shape and if it's plastic check the psi rating to see if it's the cheap stuff.

Think that's about it.

 

[MN_Nole]

Thanks Blu Du,JW, Camden,

Since the house is only about 10 yrs old, I have to assume the well is the same age. So on my next visit I will go look for the well # and get that info. I will also make sure and do a water flow measurement over 10+ minutes. I may look weird with a graduated cylinder and stop watch entering the house, but I can then take a initial water flow measurement, and at time intervals with the sytem running.
I will also have my realtor confirm with them the well size and pump age. Also of the septic system has froze recently. ( Is the last time the system was pumped an issue, A friend of mine oversees his cabin community and they have it done every other year. My being a single person is this an issue.)

The water sampling(forquality) is a non-issue as I work in an enviroment which I have the ability to do the testing, might not be reportable, but the results will be very close, and at no cost. Good enough for an early stage of thought and consideration of what I may need to do to treat the water.

I do plan on a septic system inspection, granted most sellers pay for this, but based upon the house asking price and the offer I plan on giving(to start). This minor cost is something I plan on(offering) to pay for, give the seller some breaks(hopefully in good faith to get my offer accepted). I would hate to get that far into the process and find something wrong at the last minute, i.e. something I paid for. Since every dollar spent on testing is the same amount left out of my down payment, which is money I don't want to spend.

Thanks for all the advice, an other input of what to look for and ask for before I get to actually making the offer would be great.

Thanks again

 

[SNOW JW]

Just curious what is the ground water level???

 

[xrated]

check the water table levels and how deep the well is.

With Septic make sure it is fully inspected and up to date. I know a few folks in northern MN who on the books have up to date systems for the county, but that is all a load of crap(pun intended). Is it a full basement or crawl space? Ask about pipes and sewer freezing.

Good luck, is this in the Big Lake area?

 

[snowmobiler]

if you dont smell doody or see a steaming spring in the back yard its probably ok.

 

[SNOW JW]

if you dont smell doody or see a steaming spring in the back yard its probably ok.

I fixed a system a wile back that stopped working. Ran the camera down the pipe and after I pushed a few of the clogged corn-backed rattlers down the pipe I seen a car door WTF??? Turns out the old guy that dug the basement had a few old cars laying around and used it as the drainfield slash tank LOL was a grandfathered system with a nice remodel on the house. Worked good for longer than I would have thought.

 

[mattymac]

if you dont smell doody or see a steaming spring in the back yard its probably ok.

HAHA LMAO!


A good rule of thumb is to have em pumped about every 5 years or so to keep the leach fields from gumming up!

Im assuming its a standard septic not a pressure dose tank? (pressure dose just has pumps and usually more tanks/bigger leach field, way more $$$$)

 

[Blu Du]

I fixed a system a wile back that stopped working. Ran the camera down the pipe and after I pushed a few of the clogged corn-backed rattlers down the pipe I seen a car door WTF??? Turns out the old guy that dug the basement had a few old cars laying around and used it as the drainfield slash tank LOL was a grandfathered system with a nice remodel on the house. Worked good for longer than I would have thought.

a van works the best !

 

[GODEEP]

I fixed a system a wile back that stopped working. Ran the camera down the pipe and after I pushed a few of the clogged corn-backed rattlers down the pipe I seen a car door WTF??? Turns out the old guy that dug the basement had a few old cars laying around and used it as the drainfield slash tank LOL was a grandfathered system with a nice remodel on the house. Worked good for longer than I would have thought.

LOL.. that sounds like a great idea?