Autonomous sewerage: septic with own hands

What is a septic tank? Simplified, this is an improved cesspool, although this is not entirely true. The watered well for drains made of concrete rings, old tires, brick, without a bottom, with a pillow of sand and rubble for filtration - it's still not a septic tank, although many call it that way. Important: a septic tank for a dacha or a country house with a similar or similar construction does not meet sanitary requirements and is not allowed for use. Unfortunately, the natural filtration system is not enough, and there is always the risk of sewage runoff to groundwater or nearby water bodies. If you approach the issue more strictly, then the septic tank is part of an autonomous sewage system. Autonomous sewerage is an expensive pleasure, so sometimes a septic tank is made by hand. This allows you to save up to 50% of total costs.

Classification of septic tanks

• Hermetic tank: drains simply poured into it, and then pumped out and taken out with the help of a sewage machine. The advantages of such a system are simplicity and accessibility. Disadvantages - it is suitable only for a cottage, which is visited from time to time.
• Single two-chamber septic tank. Principle of operation: solid waste is deposited in one chamber, which ensures the cleaning of drains by 60-65%, from the second chamber the drains merge into the filter well.
• A block of septic tanks with a multi-stage cleaning system. Solid waste can be decomposed both naturally and with the help of special biological preparations.

Containers for drains can be either underground or terrestrial. The latter are used if the groundwater is close to the surface.

How to make a septic tank with your own hands

It is possible to build a septic tank from concrete rings, and even from old tires, but this design requires good waterproofing. Some people prefer to cast the concrete rings themselves in the pit, layer by layer. Such a septic tank will cost inexpensively, but the construction will take a long time, so the capacity is best to buy the finished one, plastic or iron. Both options have a number of drawbacks: iron in the ground will rust, and a light plastic barrel will gradually "float" to the surface.

However, we recommend that you still purchase a plastic container in order to build a septic tank with your own hands: the polymers do not rot and do not decompose, which means that the barrel will last a very long time. The cost of plastic capacity from 30 thousand rubles. Below are the stages of installation of an autonomous sewage system with a single-chamber septic tank.

Stages of construction

• Excavation. It is necessary to dig a hole with even edges. The distance to the house is not less than 4-5 meters, to the outlets - not less than 1 meter. However, it is not worthwhile to dig too far from the buildings - it will be necessary to increase the sewage pipes, which will lead to higher construction costs.
• Leveling of the bottom of the pit: a layer of sand or screed made of concrete.
• Installing the container.
• Making the protective layer from deformation: lay the walls of the excavation with brick or pour concrete.
• Pipeline laying. The main condition: it must pass with a slight slope, below the freezing level of the ground or be insulated.
• Connecting the pipeline to the septic tank.
• End of excavation.

These are the main steps that need to be adhered to in order to build a septic tank with your own hands. Partially treated effluents should be sent for soil post-treatment, or in artificially created filtration fields or a filtering well.