Tieing into existing septic.....

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Cgreer72

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Nov 27, 2015
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My parents live in a rural neighborhood. Their home sits on a lot that's about 2 acres. They are getting up in age and are going to be needing my help soon. I was thinking about purchasing a park model home and putting it on the empty lot beside them. Is it possible to tie into their existing septic system? I know new systems can be pretty costly.
 
Having just moved from a rural area and having a septic system, you will probably need a permit to attach to their system.  It may not be allowed though.  A park model on their property may be acceptable if the system is big enough for the number of people expected to use the system.  Check with the County planning office before going any further.

Our system was designed for a family of 5 so we would not have strained the system to add 2 more people in a park model.  We probably could not have gotten an approval for the park model but possibly could have for a "work shed" with facilities.
 
I would do it in a heart beat, as long as you can keep away from inspections.
The size of a septic tank is based on the amount of bedrooms, so if you go get a permit, you will probably have to put a larger septic tank in.

I  know a person who built a small three bedroom guest house and he just tied into the existing clean out on his house, and then added a new one in the line extending to the guest house.

You just have to make sure the pitch of your new sewer line is correct for the sewage flow

jack L
 
As stated, the design is based on number of bedrooms. In my state/town, my system was designed for a 4 bedroom house. The tank had to be 1500 gallons and the leach field had to be a certain size. I purchased the land with the approved septic design. I only built a 2 bedroom house but used the same design. I  could probably get away with putting a park model on my lot but I'd have to do it kind of illegally. If I said I as only adding 2 more bedrooms to a design already designed for 4 bedrooms, it may fly. But if they find out it's for another family, they would fight me and probably win. Zoning laws in my area requires 3 acres of land to be a house lot. 
 
I'd think it would not be approved because it's a seperate lot as well. Perhaps you could put a trailer or fifth wheel there and use a macerator to dump into the cleanout. That avoids the issue of using two houses on one septic system and you don't have to mention you will be living there.

Ernie

 
The most of important consideration is having a system that works properly.  There is nothing more annoying than having a sewer system that backs up.  The balance between gallons of effluent, tank size and most importantly, the design of the drain field are very important.  I've seen plenty of systems that don't work properly and it can be a real mess.
 
You may find that even the park model itself needs a permit. Even rural counties typically have restrictions on additional housing placed on a property.

You can skirt the issue by "storing" an RV on the lot and avoid telling anybody you plan to use it as an apartment from time to time. That probably doesn't work if you will stay there full time - sooner or later it will be noticed. Add water & electric hook-ups and run a temporary line to dump into the septic when needed. Easy if downhill, or add a macerator pump is flat or uphill. I do that at my own stick house, so we can use the coach as a guest apartment.

If you are planing on living at your parents lot for an extended period, check with the county on on requirements for placing additional housing, temp or permanent, on the property. Then decide how to proceed.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I will check with the county. I don't want to do anything illegal since it's my parents property.
 
We get reported to the township code enforcement officer at least once a year for living in our motorhome while its parked at our upstate NY cottage. The problem arises because it is a violation in some areas of the township, just not here. A quarter of mile away across the "Blue Line" that defines the Adirondack Park boundary, it is. The code enforcement officer is the one that changed the labeling on our then new septic system plans a few years ago from "4 inch RV dump port" to "4 inch cleanout" to avoid any code interpretation issues before approving them.
 
Gary RV Roamer said:
or add a macerator pump is flat or uphill. I do that at my own stick house, so we can use the coach as a guest apartment.
Gary, we don't have a swer cleanout at our house so no where to dump unless I about $20. Have considered a macerator but concerned the flow wouldn't be enough to pull solids. What's your experience with that?
 
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