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How to Measure the Distance from House to Septic Tank - Find the Septic Tank Location InspectAPedia®  -     How To Measure The Possible Distance From the House to the Septic Tank How to locate the septic tank at a property, as step by step procedure to find any septic tank

Septic tank location guide: this document provides procedures for using measurements to find the septic tank. When the septic tank needs to be pumped, a regular maintenance task, the cost of that service will be less if the property owner found the septic tank location and perhaps even uncovered the septic tank pumping access cover. Other reasons to find the septic tank include inspecting and testing septic systems when buying a home or for safety, to assure that the septic tank cover is in good condition.

This article tells us how use measurements to locate a septic tank when it's placement is not already known or when the location of the septic tank is not visually obvious. Videos showing how to find the septic system, septic tank, & septic drainfield are at SEPTIC VIDEOS. Also see Drainfield Location - how to find the leach fields.

Citation of this article by reference to this website and brief quotation for the sole purpose of review are permitted. Use of this information at other websites, in books or pamphlets for sale is reserved to the author. Reviewers and content suggestions are welcome and are credited at "References." This document is a chapter of Inspecting, Testing, & Maintaining Residential Septic Systems an online book on septic systems.

© Copyright 2009 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

DISTANCE TO TANK - How To Measure The Possible Distance From House to Tank

Find the distance between the septic tank and the building: in our sketch at left we marked the location of waste lines leaving the building and then made measurements accurate to one inch, locating the septic tank center and the onsite seepage pits, by measuring from the center of each of these to prominent site features. Making these measurements at the time of installation of the septic tank and seepage pits made life easier for the next owner.

The steps below address measuring the septic tank location after it has already been installed.

• Measuring septic tank distance step 1: If there is a main waste line cleanout access opening and IF you are unable to find any clues of tank location by looking outside, open the cleanout (your plumber should be doing this) and run a plumbing snake (plumbing line cleaning tool, not the slithering animal) into the line. A plumbing snake is nothing more than a flexible steel or fiberglass rod which is pushed into the main drain line to break through drain line clogs. But as you'll read below, clever use of this tool can find the exact septic tank location.
• Measuring the septic tank distance step 2: Push the snake into the waste line until it stops. It will stop either when it hits the inside of the septic tank (often it hits the inlet baffle) or if (bad luck) it hits an obstruction such as a collapsed line between house and tank. (If the tank baffles have been totally lost the line may just run out and coil inside the septic tank until all of the available snake length has been inserted. Bad luck.)
• Measuring the septic tank distance step 3: By observing how far the plumbing snake goes into the waste line before it stops you have measured the maximum distance the tank is likely to be from the building. The tank may be closer since the line may bend or run at an angle - it may not run away from the house at a straight 90 degrees from the house wall.
• House to Septic Tank Drain Line Obstructions: If you've hit an obstruction instead of the tank, you needed to find, excavate, and repair that problem regardless of tank location.

Here is the exact septic tank location:

• By Distance: The septic tank will be located outside the building on an arc formed with its radius distance from the building equal to the length of snake fed into the house drain until it was stopped by an obstruction. Often the septic tank is about ten feet from the building.
• By Electronic Sensor: The septic tank can be located exactly electronically: Some plumbing contractors can at this point find the exact septic tank location by using a special plumbing snake fed into the main house drain line. An electronic signal is fed into the metal plumbing snake. From outside, a receiver can sense the signal from the plumbing snake. By passing the receiver, a sort of electronic metal detector, over the property surface, the exact path of the snake in the buried drain line can be followed right to the tank.
• Septic Tank Locating Equipment also see SEPTIC TANK LOCATING EQUIPMENT in this article.

In cases where this special electronic plumbing snake equipment is not available, we rely on visual clues indoors, at the site, and outdoors in probable septic tank locations, combined with some judicious digging. No we don't need to dig up the entire property. The visual and excavation approach to finding the septic tank continue below.

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HOW TO FIND A SEPTIC TANK
SEPTIC SEARCH SAFETY
WHO KNOWS SEPTIC LOCATION?
FIND MAIN WASTE LINE EXIT
DISTANCE TO TANK
POSSIBLE SEPTIC TANK LOCATIONS
  VISUAL CLUES LOCATE TANK
  WHERE TO LOOK
  SEPTIC TANK DEPTH
SEPTIC TANK LOCATING EQUIPMENT
SEPTIC TANK COVERS
DOCUMENT TANK LOCATION

• Thanks to Donica Ben who points out the danger of digging into buried electrical wires (11/11/07) as we discuss further at Septic & Cesspool Safety Procedures

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

• Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
• Clogged Drain Diagnosis - is the problem the septic system or the Building drain system?
  Septic Tank Safety: Septic System, Septic Tank, & Cesspool Safety Warnings for Septic Inspectors, Septic Pumpers, and Homeowners
• Tank Condition - How to Inspect Septic Tanks and evaluate the septic tank condition, baffles, sludge levels, damage, evidence of septic failure
• Drainfield Layout: septic drainfield or leaching bed shape and placement considerations
• Drainfield Location: how to find the septic drain field or leaching bed
• Drainfield Inspection Procedure Septic Leach Fields - how to inspect and diagnose septic drainfield failures
• ...

More Information on Building Diagnostic Inspections and Repairs

• The Septic System Information Website home page for this topic
• Septic Systems Inspection, Testing, & Maintenance- online textbook. Detailed how to inspect, maintain, repair information
• The Home Buyer's Guide to Septic Systems
• Septic Tank Pumping Guide: When, Why, How to pump the septic tank
• Table of Required Clearances: Distances Between Septic System & Wells, Streams, Trees, etc.

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