cesspool woes :(

A1 Sewer and Drain is here now and our cesspools are full. I grew up in queens, so this is all foreign to me. They said they're going to fig up some of the yard and assess the condition of them and take it from there. Our house is over 40 years old, so that's what they're basing that on.

I don't get the feeling that they're going to take me for a ride, but is it common to have to replace them at that age?

I know it's a huge cost, but does anyone have any idea how much it might run if we have to replace them? We have 2 tanks in a very accessible part of the front yard.

Re: cesspool woes :(

cesspools average life I think is 20-30 years. you got more then their life exp. out of them. knock on wood, I am in the same boat as you. ours are old and original to the house. we have a savings acc with $ set to the side because we know it won't be long before we have to replace them. (we have about 15K because DH thinks that's about what the 2 will cost us in our front yard)

the people we bought the house from had them pupmed out by the company you are using 1x a year and it was holding them over.

you might just need them pumped

hope they hang on a little longer!!

Message edited 11/15/2010 4:15:40 PM.

Re: cesspool woes :(

I grew up with cesspools and it was horrible. One time my dad had to dig up the entire thing himself because it backed up

To this day, my parents cannot do more than one load of laundry a day, two max and that is one in the morning and one at night. They fill up so quickly between showers, running the water, dishwasher and washing machine.

Cesspools are supposed to last a LONG time. My parents bought their house brand new 30 yrs. ago and I dont think they ever replaced the cesspools. You may have to get them pumped once a year or so.

Re: cesspool woes :(

Complete replacement needed! Ugh. They showed me the mess under there. Things are completely disintegrated. It's not as bad as I thought it would be--$6500.

Apparently the Town of Huntington is really rigid with their requirements, so they have to get permits and dot every i, cross every t, etc. That's ok, b/c the last thing I want is to cut corners or take shortcuts with the septic system.

These kind of repairs suck. It's not like I can sit back and admire my new septic system!

Re: cesspool woes :(

How many rings? 2 or more?

Normally I'd say you don't have to worry about them taking you for a ride, because we had our cesspool replaced by them. But we paid $4500 for two rings in one location. We have a very small house, so it's all we needed. It was in a very accessible spot they could reach with the backhoe, so that might also change the quote.

They found another pre-fabricated cesspool within that 10 foot section from the street that my town technically owns. We opted to fill it in and disconnect it, in favor of a new cesspool in a better location. I just didn't want the headache of dealing with the town, and in case they ever decide to put in sidewalks one day too.

A-1 was pretty great, and we'll actually be calling them shortly because I think we have a leak in the bathroom. Good luck with it, I feel your pain!

Re: cesspool woes :(

is it possible to hook up to public sewers? I know some areas there is no possibility but its worth to see the price to convert.

Re: cesspool woes :(

Re: cesspool woes :(

Our cesspool is original to the house (1954) and whenever we have issues with have it pumped out.

I would get a 2nd opinion if I were you before you spend the money to replace it. It may only need to be pumped out.

ETS: Just saw your post above about a 2nd opinion.
Good Luck

Message edited 11/16/2010 5:02:17 PM.

Re: cesspool woes :(

We have a septic system and just got it pumped. Getting it pumped every 5 years is important for maintenance purposes. People in my area are having problems with their systems because of tree roots.

ETA: My DH dug out our tanks before the people came and saved us $75.

Message edited 11/16/2010 6:02:54 PM.

Re: cesspool woes :(

Its possible they may just be able to pump or aerate them.

Happened in our old house - they aerated them and it was good as new - 500 bucks...

Re: cesspool woes :(

They're disintegrating...original to the house and the house is 45 yrs old.

Re: cesspool woes :(

Sorry to hear that the expense is warranted, but I'm glad at least for explanation in the difference in price. They were so nice and gracious with us, and have done well for others here, I was concerned when I didn't know why you were paying more.

This is one ring:



I only have two of them, because our house is a bit less than 1,000 square feet. The second ring is actually overkill, but we wanted to plan for the next owners of the house, if they added another bathroom.

If you have three, that will set you for quite some time. We replaced ours in 2007 and haven't had problems since. I hope you have as easy a time as we did.

Message edited 11/18/2010 10:40:58 AM.