Septic installation costs?

Digger: $60/hr x 2hrs
Cylinder blocks: $.65 - $.80 aproximate 400-500 depending the size of the septic.
1-2 meters of sand: $35 - $45/meter
1-2 meters of gravel: $35 - 45/meter
45 minis of cement: $5/ea
22 rebarb 3/8": $2-$3/ea

Labor: $500-$800 for a week worth of work.

Usual size is a 5x5x5 solids with a 10x10x10 water. The dual tanks will allow for emptying the solids tank about every 10-15yrs depending of use. Or you can do a 15x15x10 with good soil drainage will last you over 10 years before having to empty it.

Do not poor clorox or grease in it, it will shorten the live of the septic system.

Thank you adlin20!  That is super helpful!

No problem!

We have one built on our property and only the black water goes to it. Use the grey water for the plants.

The one on my father in law is over 20 yrs old and hadn't been empty in over 20 years.

What about the sink water (soap) and the washing machine water which is likely to have chlorine?
How you separate all this stuff?

It never occurred to me I needed to worry about it, but I guess I do.

ReyP wrote:

What about the sink water (soap) and the washing machine water which is likely to have chlorine?
How you separate all this stuff?

It never occurred to me I needed to worry about it, but I guess I do.

When we built the house, I had all the grey water diverted to the backyard. We don't use clorox for washing and use biodegradable soaps. We use products that do not contain chlorine in it. You saw my pics, the plants get all the water we use with the exemption of the black water.

adlin20 wrote:

When we built the house, I had all the grey water diverted to the backyard. We don't use clorox for washing and use biodegradable soaps. We use products that do not contain chlorine in it. You saw my pics, the plants get all the water we use with the exemption of the black water.

That's my plan.  Small septic for "black water" and larger cistern for "grey water" for landscaping.  "Grey water" for those that don't know, comes from sinks, showers and laundry.  Use biodegradable soaps, and the water can be used to irrigate landscaping.  "Black water" comes from toilets and kitchen sink/dishwaher.  That goes into the septic, where bacteria break down the solids.

To keep the septic tank healthy, add some bacteria (Rid-X, e.g.) every now and then.  A little chlorine isn't going to kill all of the bacteria in your septic, but repeated and heavy doses can cause problems.

I grew up in the country.  Lived with septic most of my life.

You may also consider one of these septic tanks.
https://www.ntotank.com/septic-tanks

I only suggest it because not every septic tank in PR is up to code and they may leak or may have other problems.

I lived in the country part of my life but as a kid I never had to deal with a septic tank so I was unaware of its care, this has been very informative and interesting guys.

So I guess I will end up with 2 cisterns, one for clean water for emergencies, one for grey water (sink, shower, laundry) and a septic for dark waters (toilets and dish washer)

Yes, a very enlightening discussion, thanks!

If anyone else is interested, we have found this book to be a really big help in trying to plan the management of our potential PR home.  Some of these practices we already do here in Chicago.

WarnerW, I just have the tubing directly to the ground for the grey water. My land is sloppy so all the water flows down a ditch we have on the side of the house, it feeds all the plants on it's way downhill.

As you mentioned, we only use biodegradable soaps. Also, if you have a septic, it is not recommended to install a dishwasher. Since I retire, my second name is dish boy! 

ReyP wrote:

You may also consider one of these septic tanks.
https://www.ntotank.com/septic-tanks

I only suggest it because not every septic tank in PR is up to code and they may leak or may have other problems.

Rey,

You are going too high tech! LOL
Those tanks may be good for places where you need to contain all the use water, but been a close system it will need to be drained more frequently. When we built a septic tank in the island, the fist few rows of cylinder blocks are placed sideways to allow drainage, plus every so ofter, the bricks are space out. At 15-20' deep, there should be good drainage to allow for the water to be filtered naturally. There is a bed of gravel at the bottom to allow filtration as well.

You should not have a septic done close to a water source. And actually, if DRN happens to stop by, they will stop the construction if is done in close proximity to a river, lake or beach area.

Hola @aldin20,

Hey my name is Manny, and I was wondering if you know company in Aguadilla which build septic tanks.

thank you

start with this link it was actually send to me by a wonderful stranger I bet here so in order for us to keep it we must pass it on.

respectfully

Noel

https://ibb.co/q1BP0cm

https://ibb.co/92JRGN9

Thank you so much. Thank you 🙏

@adlin20

Hello, do you have updated prices for 2024 installation of Septic Tanks Services?