Regardless of the amount of time that has passed since the introduction of the new General Binding Rules in 2015 we are still coming across a number of property owners that were entirely unaware of the new legislation and what it entails.

It is only at the point of selling the property or by word of mouth (usually by their desludging company or builder), that people are actually finding out about the legislation change and this is some 8 years down the line!

This was very much the case for one property we recently visited in the North East, once the property had gone onto the open market questions we suddenly raised in relation to the compliance of the wastewater setup.

To clarify the existing wastewater situation on site our contracts manager attended site alongside the customer to review the septic tank and its compliance with the 2020 General binding rules. Unfortunately, non-conformance was immediately identified as the septic tank had a direct discharge to the nearby stream.

We therefore proposed to install a new Klargester Bioficient 1 package sewage treatment plant to serve the 4-bedroom property, this system was able to achieve compliance with the 2020 General Binding rules with retaining its discharge to the watercourse. This is due to the system undergoing rigorous testing and meeting the required certification of BS EN12566-3.

When installing a new sewage treatment plant it is not just the General Binding Rules you need to be careful to adhere to, there are also a number of regulation in place that must be met to reach Building control standards.

Understandably there is a lot of cross over between the General Binding Rules and Building control regulations, but understanding the criterium for both is essential.

For instance, in the case of this project we were limited on space on site, therefore to achieve the required distance of 7 metres from the building we had to be strategic in our placement of the new unit. Therefore our proposal was to utilise the existing inlet drainage to the point of the old septic tank, pipe through the old unit once it had been appropriately emptied, decommissioned, and infilled with gravel and divert the flow to the new installation location.

The new Klargester Bioficient 1 package sewage treatment plant was installed as per the manufacturer’s guidelines inclusive of a concrete surround. Ensuring the system is correctly installed, commissioned and serviced is vital to achieve the warranty conditions of the system should this ever be needed.

It is also important to ensure that the foul and surface/roof water drainage are separate before the new installation takes place, failure to appropriately separate them can lead to the system being overloaded and not functioning efficiently in times of heavy rainfall.

To ensure your system is installed properly and in line with all the required rules, regulations and guidelines why not give us a call on 01388 537030.