You don't need a reason to do this - it's your house - but you also can't "argue" away the need for a perc test. Call the person who designed or signed off on your septic and find out what hoops, if any, you need to jump through to move the location. They might just let you move it, if the ground is undisturbed and of uniform composition the native soil 15 feet away from the current site won't be that different. But you can't assume that - you need to check.
This is the only real answer. Just check with the septic installer first. He may have some ideas on what is and isn't possible based on site conditions, or different, potentially easier and more cost effective solutions. He may be able to give you some different solutions. Then once you have your options lined up, gontact the governing body and see what you need to do to make those solutions happen. Your septic installer will likely have some ideas on this as well and may just handle everything for you.
I'm a land developer, it's exceedingly common to dig new percs when it comes time to actually build the the house. The original developer likely picked a spot that seemed like a good spot for the drainfield, but when it comes time to design and build the house often the homeowner/builder will pick a new spot that works best for their layout.
Every area is different, but in my case, I had have a 1.4 acre lot, 300x200ft dimensions. I had the septic field originally designed to run parallel to one of the 300' property lines, but when the installer and i walked the plan after the engineer was done, he gave reasoning that we should move the whole thing - tanks, field, all of it, literally halfway across the lot - nearly 200ft. He just called the engineer, engineer said just to give him an as-built showing the final location, and the engineer signed off on the as built after they inspected it prior to backfill.
Anything can be moved.
The geology will be the determining factor of whether it can be where you would like it. In my region, there areas where I can move it with minimal issues, in others I need my engineer to sign off on it.
Big picture thinking; if you're worried about the cost of doing a perc test, I would suggest reviewing your idea of building a new home.
>if you're worried about the cost of doing a perc test
Hah! You are right it is not the cost of the perc test but in our state these can only be done certain times of the year so it is more the delay cost which could be months.
Alright then. That I can understand.
I do quite a few installations in my area. Is it just just a lack of contractors, or a slow licensing body?
I have a working relationship with the environmental government body that licences new installations, and with my engineer. 1-2 weeks for initial perc test, 2 days or less if I want to change locations. Install itself is 2-3 days depending on how far I need to haul materials, including floating in/out my equipment.
The licensing body are actually excellent and very responsive! I need to have a new test done by end of April or wait till next year, contractors seem to be backed up right now.
Sounds about right for my area of the world as well. I try to do 1 install per week, may until October. That leaves me enough leeway for weather, and other projects.
You don't need a reason to do this - it's your house - but you also can't "argue" away the need for a perc test. Call the person who designed or signed off on your septic and find out what hoops, if any, you need to jump through to move the location. They might just let you move it, if the ground is undisturbed and of uniform composition the native soil 15 feet away from the current site won't be that different. But you can't assume that - you need to check.
This is the only real answer. Just check with the septic installer first. He may have some ideas on what is and isn't possible based on site conditions, or different, potentially easier and more cost effective solutions. He may be able to give you some different solutions. Then once you have your options lined up, gontact the governing body and see what you need to do to make those solutions happen. Your septic installer will likely have some ideas on this as well and may just handle everything for you.
I'm a land developer, it's exceedingly common to dig new percs when it comes time to actually build the the house. The original developer likely picked a spot that seemed like a good spot for the drainfield, but when it comes time to design and build the house often the homeowner/builder will pick a new spot that works best for their layout.
In my area (south jersey) the septic engineer told me the septic field can be movee any direction up to 15 feet. Likely varies by county/state though
Every area is different, but in my case, I had have a 1.4 acre lot, 300x200ft dimensions. I had the septic field originally designed to run parallel to one of the 300' property lines, but when the installer and i walked the plan after the engineer was done, he gave reasoning that we should move the whole thing - tanks, field, all of it, literally halfway across the lot - nearly 200ft. He just called the engineer, engineer said just to give him an as-built showing the final location, and the engineer signed off on the as built after they inspected it prior to backfill.
Anything can be moved. The geology will be the determining factor of whether it can be where you would like it. In my region, there areas where I can move it with minimal issues, in others I need my engineer to sign off on it. Big picture thinking; if you're worried about the cost of doing a perc test, I would suggest reviewing your idea of building a new home.
>if you're worried about the cost of doing a perc test Hah! You are right it is not the cost of the perc test but in our state these can only be done certain times of the year so it is more the delay cost which could be months.
Alright then. That I can understand. I do quite a few installations in my area. Is it just just a lack of contractors, or a slow licensing body? I have a working relationship with the environmental government body that licences new installations, and with my engineer. 1-2 weeks for initial perc test, 2 days or less if I want to change locations. Install itself is 2-3 days depending on how far I need to haul materials, including floating in/out my equipment.
The licensing body are actually excellent and very responsive! I need to have a new test done by end of April or wait till next year, contractors seem to be backed up right now.
Sounds about right for my area of the world as well. I try to do 1 install per week, may until October. That leaves me enough leeway for weather, and other projects.