The world of wastewater can be a pretty daunting place fraught with rules, regulations and guidelines and certainly is not an easily place to navigate if you don’t know where to start – this is certainly best left to the professionals. Here at R A Dalton we have a team of specialist contracts managers who aim to devise a thorough proposal for a cost effective and compliant solution to your wastewater troubles.

Therefore to further understand what will occur when one of our contracts managers  attend site I requested some further information on the processes they follow to enable us to issues you with a comprehensive quotation and clear scope of works.

When you first make an enquiry with us in relation to a new installation, we may ask you for the following information:

Full name:

Site Address:

Contact details (number and email address):

What you currently have installed and where it discharges to:                              

What kind of issues you are experiencing if any:

What the system is to serve:

This information helps us pass the required information on to one of our contracts managers. Once this has been allocated our contracts manager will be in touch usually within a couple of days, as this team is primarily based out on the road most messages are picked up between site visits and phone correspondence is usually made whilst travelling or during ‘office days’.

From here we may ask for a bit more detail such as the timescale you are working to, what budgets you may have and any timing restrictions for both the site visit and the installation (e.g. if the property is a holiday cottage, dates for site visits may be restricted to changeover days).

Once all the details have been ironed out a site visit will be arranged for a mutually convenient time.

When first attending a property, aside from a non-compulsory complementary brew for the contacts managers they may ask if you can show them where the existing septic tank is and location of any relevant manholes. The first thing we will check on site is the compliance of the existing system with the 2020 General binding rules, this can give a good indication on the route to proceed with.

It is advisable at this point to mention any issues that you may be experiencing so these can be investigated, e.g. water ponding or the system backing up from the outlet could indicate a failed soakaway.

From here discussions can progress on what the scope of works required will be.

Siting of the new sewage treatment plant

The location of the new location can then be considered and dependant space on site, lay of the land, condition of the existing pipework and site boundaries.

Levels of the existing pipework

Once the siting of the new system has been confirmed measurements will then be taken on the invert levels of the incoming pipework both in the inlet inspection chamber and in the primary chamber of the tank. This basis can help us decide which system is best to install. Following this the outfall sample point will also be measured and checked, dependant on the new proposed discharge location this will help identify if a pumped system is required.

Ensuring compliance with the 2020 General Binding Rules

There is a number of criteria that needs to be checked against when advising of what to install for a new wastewater set up, the most important of which is to comply with the 2020 General Binding rules, there is also the guidance outlined in the Part H guidelines which Building control will need to see evidence of to sign off the work.

Surface water cross connections and dye tests

It is vital that there is no contamination of surface water in with the foul drainage, this will be investigated and if necessary dye tests carried out on site. If this proves inconclusive we would recommend that a comprehensive CCTV survey is carried out to identify where any connections are, excess surface water can overload the septic tank/ sewage treatment plant, cause flooding and even affect the treatment process.

Access restrictions, hazards, health and safety

The next stage of the site inspection phase is to identify if there are any notable risks on site such as overhead cables, general public access etc. Site access can also change the scope of work (e.g. if you are restricted on wagon size or machine side this may vary your expected time frame on site).

Ground conditions

We generally have a good regional awareness of where is likely to expect shoring or the use of a breaker to carry out your installation, however this is not an exact science and there are some deviations that cannot be identified until we break ground. If you do have a background knowledge of what excavation work in your property uncovered please do share any information that may be helpful to clarify a clearer quotation.

Once our contracts managers have a good idea of what our proposal will be they will walk you through their recommendations including highlighting where the new tank is likely to be installed, any new manholes and potentially anything else that may be visible. This could include showing you some pictures of our previous installations.

It is important to remember that all our jobs are carried out to a machine finish only and if preferred you will need to locate a landscaper to attend upon completion of the work. We will also outline any works that may be required to take place prior to our start on site to enable us to efficiently carry out the work, this could include installing a dedicated power supply, removing fences or lifting flag stones/ paving.

But this will all be outlined during the visit on site and further clarified on our quotation.

If everyone is happy with the proposal then the information will be collated and forward on to our office team who pull together your quotation.

Following the site visit you will then receive:

• Copy of our covering letter
• Copy of our quotation
• Brochures for the recommended system
• Details on the servicing we can offer
• (If applicable) Leaflet for the Klargester extended warranty
• Any other information that may help you decide how to proceed.

We are always here to answer any further questions you may have, no job is too big or too small for R A Dalton!

Not sure if you need a new sewage treatment plant/ septic tank or not?

No Problem!

Did you know, here at R A Dalton we provide Septic tank compliance checks whereby our contracts managers will attend your property to identify if you comply with all the current rules and regulations. Thorough visual investigations will be carried out and you will in return receive a full letterheaded report with our findings and recommendations.

Over the last several years we have found that it has become a common occurrence that when selling/ buying a property with off mains drainage that you will need to justify not only the system you have installed is fit for purpose but also that all the boxes are ticked to make for an easier sale process.

For more information on the services we can provide please don’t hesitate to give us a call on 01388 537030.