Home clean out for dump site?

[NMWildcat]

Originally Posted by DaGrinch

Better to seek forgiveness than to be told "NO!".

X2!!! Use my house cleanouts all the time. Don't care if it's legal or not.

[awhitlow2000]

When we built our house 10 years ago inspector asked me about the "Clean out" I had the plumber install between the house and the septic. Told him it was just a just in case. He smiled and said be careful what went in it. We are in Jefferson County Alabama and based on his additional comments I'm guessing it is not legal here but we use it regularly.

[whj77372]

I have my own septic system and I dump black and gray tanks there.
I don't use chemicals in the holding tanks.

[EdnKat]

Originally Posted by emtp82

Out of curiosity, sometime in the future we may purchase a neighbor's property, can the sewer clean out for a residential property be used as a dump station? I am assuming they are basically the same thing. That would make life a bit easier and convenient for us and friends.

As long as no one dumps any kind of 'no no's in their tanks. We've done it for 40+ years.

[Stormrider151]

I'm wondering if it's illegal based on the fact that sewage charges are based on water consumption. Here it is anyway. Your rates are determined on the number of bathrooms in your house. Dumping from your RV would be free as no water is consumed. Just a guess.

[Still Kickin]

Originally Posted by emtp82

Out of curiosity, sometime in the future we may purchase a neighbor's property, can the sewer clean out for a residential property be used as a dump station? I am assuming they are basically the same thing. That would make life a bit easier and convenient for us and friends.

Yes, do it. As for all the mumbo jumbo gov't this, gov't that, just do it. Think about it, your disposal is proper, convenient, and you paid for it. Just sayin'

[Photogirl]

We have a sanitary sewer manhole in our driveway, that I occasionally use.

[awhitlow2000]

You may want to be sure that is a sewer not a storm drain line. I have read most sewer lines are sealed. Storm drain lines are not.

[modemem]

I just ran a small PVC pipe from the basement out to the garage and empty my tanks with Sewer Solution.
https://youtu.be/dsdfUXoOxrw

[Summer2Go]

Wow! I don't know why this is so confusing, if you have your own private septic system that is self contained, you should be able to occasionally use it to dump. I have a manhole cover in my driveway to my tank, it is not a storm drain, it is sealed. When I winterize, or feel I need to clean my tanks, the hose goes in the septic. I' m not dumping, as I do that in whatever campground or dump station I last attended. It's not a major amount, a five gallon bucket or two, maybe three at the most.


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[northstar1960]

Originally Posted by awhitlow2000

If on a septic tank be sure you clean the tank out on a regular (3 to 5 year) basis due to some of the chemicals used in holing tanks of RVs.

Naw don't think so . don't know where you come up with your 3 to 5 yrs . maybe a small 250 gallon tank . but most tanks are 1000 and depending on usage say a family of 4 about every 7 to 10 yrs . dumping your rv BT into your septic will not harm it in anyway . none of the chems used in the black tank will cause any harm either

[northstar1960]

Originally Posted by emtp82

Out of curiosity, sometime in the future we may purchase a neighbor's property, can the sewer clean out for a residential property be used as a dump station? I am assuming they are basically the same thing. That would make life a bit easier and convenient for us and friends.

The one thing to consider is which why is the clean out plumbed , toward the house or away ? they use a sanitary sweep tee for clean outs and normally head toward the house so if there is a problem they can run a auger/ snake in toward the house to clear any issues . if done correctly that's the way your clean out faces . some get it done even better by having 2 clean outs next to each other one heading out and the other heading in . if yours isas i suspect it runs back toward your house so when you dump it will force the sewage up stream and then it will stop by gravity and start going the correct way and that may cause a clog

[awhitlow2000]

From past experience and was told if you don't have a separate grease trap this is best.
Keeps the grease build up out of the lines from the tank. Our last house had a 250 gal grease trap cleaned it every 2 years. you wouldn't believe the amount of grease build up and we are extremely careful about what goes down the drain.

[northstar1960]

Originally Posted by awhitlow2000

From past experience and was told if you don't have a separate grease trap this is best.
Keeps the grease build up out of the lines from the tank. Our last house had a 250 gal grease trap cleaned it every 2 years. you wouldn't believe the amount of grease build up and we are extremely careful about what goes down the drain.

Hog wash ! i've dealt with and installed many a septic system and leach fields
over 30 yrs experience . someone is taking you for a ride .

[Photogirl]

we also have a storm sewer at the other end of our driveway,but i will check you have me wondering now.

[flovern]

I use the cleanout with no problems.


2011 Coachmen Sportscoach

[Bottomline]

Built a big addition on the house about 30 years ago that included a bathroom. The sewer line ran around the house and connected to the existing sewer line in front of the house. Since the neighborhood had a major problem with tree roots I had three cleanouts put in. One is in the back, one is at a turn under our drive and the third is where the connection was made to the existing sewer line in front. Over the years they have proven handy in dealing with problems and have saved me a bundle of cash. Never thought I'd ever use any of them for a rv dump but they sure are handy. I'm putting the same thing down the line that I would from my house. Is is legal? Never bothered to ask and I'm not going to stir up a hornet's nest by asking now. Only use it when I return from a camp that didn't have a full hookup and the dump at the exit was busy. Can't see that I'm doing any harm and it only take about 5 minutes. Have never had a problem. Probably helping the existing sewer by flushing out the buildup.

[hbdiver]

Do any of the cities, with ordinances against using sewer connections, provide another means of dumping? It seems that as more people buy Rvs there are less dump stations. In California they have been removing dump stations from the rest areas as well. I have found areas along roads that appear to be the residue from some people just dumping on the ground.
If communities make it illegal to use your own clean-out to dump they should provide a place for you to dump.

[JohnF]

[QUOTE=PHS79;1209511]Here is my take on it, as I am a Wisconsin state certified water and waste water operator.

Can it be done, yes. Is it legal to do it, depends on the city/village/town ordinances where you live, but more than likely it is illegal. The village were I live and work it is illegal to use the sewer lateral clean out of anything other than maintenance to the lateral. This was actually a topic of discussion at one of our meetings/classes this past year.

The reason for it being illegal is because there has been cases people dumping such things as motor oil, vehicle antifreeze, gasoline and other harmful chemicals down the clean outs. Doing such things like this will cause major problems in the sewer mains and at the treatment plant, there are two citys within 30 miles of ours that have had to do a complete restart on their treatment plants within the last year because of gas or motoroil being dumped into the city sewer. This process ends up costing thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars in damage and man power to get everything back up and working correctly.

Granted what you are talking about won't hurt anything, but it is more than likely illegal to do.[/QUOTE

Why not just make it illegal to dump anything but raw sewage into a sewer line instead of cutting off this resource to all rv's? It's likely the idiots who dumped oil etc. into the line will continue to do it if it's made legal or not. Imo

[dbarr]

Originally Posted by hbdiver

Do any of the cities, with ordinances against using sewer connections, provide another means of dumping? It seems that as more people buy Rvs there are less dump stations. In California they have been removing dump stations from the rest areas as well. I have found areas along roads that appear to be the residue from some people just dumping on the ground.
If communities make it illegal to use your own clean-out to dump they should provide a place for you to dump.

Don't know what Peoria IL's ordinance is but they do have a public dump for those who know where it is.

I have used my clean out at the end of the year for a good flush.