Hi Brill, I can only tell you about our experience in a similar situation (new house, mile outside of a village, no mains drainage or gas)
The heating is oil, we have a large house containing 32 radiators (17 downstairs and 13 upstairs, I put that because it sounds such a lot) A big floor standing boiler and a huge oil tank. It's cost us £1214.75 in oil since March last year (the last bill for I think 1500 litres was £210.43 inc VAT) The price of oil changes ever day though, so you need to try and fill up when it's cheap (make sure of a big summer fill)
Servicing of the boiler is a bit more expensive than gas, and of course you have to pay and store your fuel, as opposed to paying in arrears - you also have to remember not to run out, but you can get a service that indicates inside the house (Guardsman?) that ties you though to one supplier usually.
You'd need to check on the condition of the oil tank, and that it's retained within a brick wall to prevent leaks escaping (regulation)
As for drainage - we have mains water supplied, but a tank for drainage - ours is the kind that needs a yearly service (for the blower/filters etc) and emptying as recommended by the engineer.
Last year cost of water(metered) + insurance policy that includes service + emptying, totalled £441 - although as our tanks's shared by neighbours, they contributed back proportionally to the cost of that part - so it works out cheap for the size of the house, compared to what it would be on Ratable Value.
You have to be careful what goes down the loo though - anything other than toilet paper and the engineer tells you off! (with good reason)
Oh and they tell you not to use too much bleach/disiinfectant/too many loads of washing one after the other, as it can disturb the chemical balance in the tank.
Ours is a modern arrangement though and once again an older one may be different or need checking out - my friend moved to an old house and two days after moving in found the back lawns flooded with the contents of the tank!
HTH
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You'd need to check on the condition of the oil tank, and that it's retained within a brick wall to prevent leaks escaping (regulation)
Have to disagree that the tank has to be "bunded" within a brick wall. When I bought my present property (15 months ago), my solicitor originally thought that it was a legal requirement. Fortunately she eventually found out that it was a only a recommendation, in other words it is considered by some to be good practice. Unless, of course, it has become a definite requirement in the last 15 months. In which case I will butt out!
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L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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I've always thought that oil tanks did have to be bunded. Modern plastic ones are double-walled I believe, so don't have this requirement.
Water, from condensation, gradually collects in the bottom of the tank. It can rust steel tanks and can damage the oil pumps.
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Brill,
'Private drainage' can mean a septic tank but it can also mean a private sewer which has not been adopted by the water authority. I have seen both on village properties.
A well maintained septic tank is no real problem, hardly if ever require emptying, just take care exactly what is flushed/washed down the drain. IE avoid strong bleaches, chemicals, disposable nappies.
It is possible to kill all the bugs that do the work in the tank if anyone in the house is on a course of anti-biotics, you just need a
small septic tank starter pack to get them going again.
Certainly a septic tank or oil CH would not put me off the right house.
regards
Ian L.
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Both pretty straighforward. If an old septic tank (i.e. not new build), make sure your surveyor has looked at it and checked that it is apparently in working order.
When they do require emptying (which in most domestic applications is virtually never, say every several years as they are supposed to break down the solid matter of their own accord), the council will come and empty it. Chap always appreciates a mug of tea and a bacon sandwich. Cambridgeshire charge £106 for emptying. Some big septic tanks require two loads, so would be £212 - but if they're that big, you won't ever have to empty!
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Both pretty straighforward. If an old septic tank (i.e. not new build), make sure your surveyor has looked at it and checked that it is apparently in working order. When they do require emptying (which in most domestic applications is virtually never, say every several years as they are supposed to break down the solid matter of their own accord), the council will come and empty it. Chap always appreciates a mug of tea and a bacon sandwich. Cambridgeshire charge £106 for emptying. Some big septic tanks require two loads, so would be £212 - but if they're that big, you won't ever have to empty!
My local farmer charges £45 to empty a tank of whatever size as long as it'll fit in his ginormous tanker. Never had to do it yet though. I'd steer clear of the council and shop around.
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Septic tanks are great. My parents' house has one, and they've lived there for 30 years. Cheap to run, no water company charges for waste water, and environmentally friendly. Every so often it needs emptying with a gully sucker type machine. Look under "sludge" or "waste disposal" in the Yellow Pages and give one of the companies a ring. They'll tell you how often and what this costs.
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Be wary of these guys and check the actual volume of the tank as i knew of one guy who was told by the waste disposal firm that they had removed 20% more 'cess' than the pit actually held. He was overcharged for years.
When he found out the scam he successfully sued.
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It is possible to kill all the bugs that do the work in the tank if anyone in the house is on a course of anti-biotics, you just need a small septic tank starter pack to get them going again.
Having researched the subject of septic tanks in some depth, I have to disagree with your comment about the need for a "starter pack". A new tank, or one that has been completely emptied, only needs a helping of human effluent to get it going. In fact the experts state that so-called "starter packs" at best are a waste of money, and at worst can be detrimental.
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L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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And a dead rat is excellent too for 'getting it going'. I too find it difficult to believe that a course of antibiotics can kill all the bacteria in a tank, but maybe I'm wrong. I also doubt greatly whether you can 'completely' empty a tank of bacteria.
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Mapmaker, L'Escargot
Just my experience from a cottage in France where the tank was subject to infrequent (a few weeks every couple of months) use. The bugs worked best is 'fed' on arrival to get the tank going. We once had a visitor who unbeknown to us was taking a course of tablets....didnt do the tank any good. OK so probably a slightly unusual case where usage was infrequent.
I bow to the experts for a tank in regular use.....
StarGazer
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As mine was fed by a pack of hounds, it needed emptying every 3 months, so was not really a proper, self-consuming septic tank. It never smelled, though.
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Brill
To get back to your request for pros and cons, the pros are probably not too important. It's the cons that mean you have to compromise. I have both septic tank and oil heating. The cons I have to accept are (a) part of my garden is very wet (even in summer) because of how the outlet water from my septic tank disperses via land drainage pipes, and this is aggravated by next doors ancient soakaway system which is close to my boundary and (b) having oil instead of gas means that I don't have a gas fire to provide cheap top-up heating in my lounge, and this I really miss. Regarding the soggy part of my garden, my neighbour is of the opinion that there are too many septic tanks and/or soakaways too close together and he could well be right. This situation is probably quite common in existing rural housing developments. It probably would not be so bad if the soil were very light and free-draining, but unfortunately mine is clay.
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L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
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