Connection to septic tank - a bit of help please!
Posted: Thu Nov 21, 2024 11:34 am
Hello everyone, first post here. I need help to hook up the waste pipe(s) from a static caravan to an existing septic tank. I have a real gap in my knowledge and can't find any easy answer online to what I think is a simple problem.
SOME BACKGROUND INFO:
We've sited a static caravan next to my partner's dad's bungalow on his land. There's already a working septic tank system - for waste both from the bungalow and a temporary building (known as 'The Chalet'... which has now been demolished and cleared away). The static caravan is now where 'The Chalet' used to be.
There is a pipe right next to the caravan (recently checked/cleared) which leads to the septic tank. There's another 'mystery' pipe a little further away the same diameter, which The Dad 'thinks' might be a vent for the tank, too.
So, what is best practice for hooking it up to the loo waste and grey water?
MORE INFO:
Someone at work runs a plumbing business and I asked him for advice. He showed me the system on the loos at work, which are a pre-fab unit on an airfield. Here's a link to photos of that, (I bought the similar parts from Screwfix yesterday). The last photo shows the 'mystery' pipe near the caravan.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/7lef32a ... rr6h2&dl=0
There's one vent pipe/flue fixed to the wall of the loo block, higher than the roof to exhaust gases/smells. That makes sense. But the other outlets (from the Ladies' and Disabled loos) are also vented, but with shorter, knee height vent pipes with caps. Why are all the waste pipes vented, and why aren't they all higher than the roof of the building?
WHY IS THIS RELEVANT FOR THE SYSTEM AT HOME, AT THE CARAVAN?
Well, we have those two pipes. I can attach the waste pipes to the nearer pipe, the same as the one at work (1st picture)
But what do I do with the other, considering we don't know FOR SURE what it is? Is it likely to just be a second 'in' pipe to the tank, that we don't need?
Should I block it off? Put a low vent cap (maybe with a filter on it), like the shorter ones at work? Or route it to a second tall flue and fix both like chimneys to the side of the caravan? Or connect the two together?
Also are filters needed?
Sorry for the long post! Thanks for any advice you can give.
SOME BACKGROUND INFO:
We've sited a static caravan next to my partner's dad's bungalow on his land. There's already a working septic tank system - for waste both from the bungalow and a temporary building (known as 'The Chalet'... which has now been demolished and cleared away). The static caravan is now where 'The Chalet' used to be.
There is a pipe right next to the caravan (recently checked/cleared) which leads to the septic tank. There's another 'mystery' pipe a little further away the same diameter, which The Dad 'thinks' might be a vent for the tank, too.
So, what is best practice for hooking it up to the loo waste and grey water?
MORE INFO:
Someone at work runs a plumbing business and I asked him for advice. He showed me the system on the loos at work, which are a pre-fab unit on an airfield. Here's a link to photos of that, (I bought the similar parts from Screwfix yesterday). The last photo shows the 'mystery' pipe near the caravan.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/7lef32a ... rr6h2&dl=0
There's one vent pipe/flue fixed to the wall of the loo block, higher than the roof to exhaust gases/smells. That makes sense. But the other outlets (from the Ladies' and Disabled loos) are also vented, but with shorter, knee height vent pipes with caps. Why are all the waste pipes vented, and why aren't they all higher than the roof of the building?
WHY IS THIS RELEVANT FOR THE SYSTEM AT HOME, AT THE CARAVAN?
Well, we have those two pipes. I can attach the waste pipes to the nearer pipe, the same as the one at work (1st picture)
But what do I do with the other, considering we don't know FOR SURE what it is? Is it likely to just be a second 'in' pipe to the tank, that we don't need?
Should I block it off? Put a low vent cap (maybe with a filter on it), like the shorter ones at work? Or route it to a second tall flue and fix both like chimneys to the side of the caravan? Or connect the two together?
Also are filters needed?
Sorry for the long post! Thanks for any advice you can give.