New Sewer District Rules

[ultrarunner]

Just learned effective January 1 several million homes in my area will need a Sewer Lateral Inspection/Clearance upon sale or major renovation...

Don't know how I missed it.

Is this common practice around the country for those with city sewer service or just another example of California leading the nation?

Small residential lateral replacement typically runs about $5,000 with permits and can be as high as $15,000 when street work is needed.

 

[brokenknee]

Just learned effective January 1 several million homes in my area will need a Sewer Lateral Inspection/Clearance upon sale or major renovation...

Don't know how I missed it.

Is this common practice around the country for those with city sewer service or just another example of California leading the nation?

Small residential lateral replacement typically runs about $5,000 with permits and can be as high as $15,000 when street work is needed.

About 15 years ago when we were on a lake, the county and dnr came around doing septic inspections. It was pretty much if you didn't have a mound system you had two years to put one in.

 

[jinman]

Ultrarunner, is the purpose of the inspection to find defective/broken or offset lateral lines? Is it to force upgrade of tile or cast iron systems? It would seem that upgrades should only be required when a large percentage of homes in an area showed problems. Is this related at all to possible earthquake damage or just another source of local gov't revenue?

 

[ultrarunner]

Ultrarunner, is the purpose of the inspection to find defective/broken or offset lateral lines? Is it to force upgrade of tile or cast iron systems? It would seem that upgrades should only be required when a large percentage of homes in an area showed problems. Is this related at all to possible earthquake damage or just another source of local gov't revenue?

Here's a quote, "Age, ground movement and other circumstances cause cracks in private sewer laterals and allow rain water to enter the sewer system during storms. All the extra water can overwhelm wastewater pipes and treatment facilities and cause untreated sewage to flow into San Francisco Bay."

What I find particularly interesting is we have a neighborhood 8" Sewer Main the serves hundreds of homes that spills into a creek regularly... sometimes for days or weeks on end.

It is only cleared when I call and take the city crew to the spill location... they won't even dispatch without a street address and the spill location is down a steep ravine hundreds of yards from any vehicle access... used to be covered in poison oak till I started clearing the easement.

As a condition of sale, meter change or major remodel, the property owner will be required to show their private sewer lateral is free from defects...

The website also states:

"What are the problems associated with private sewer laterals?

Many East Bay homes were built before 1950, and most have never had their original sewer laterals replaced. Over time, these pipelines, generally made of clay, can crack or become disjointed, become displaced, and/or become subjected to intrusion by rainwater and tree roots, which can cause leaks and blockages. In addition, some sewer laterals lack the right kind of “cleanout,” which provides access for clearing blockages."

I know from experience many homes do not have standard clean-outs or they are located in the crawl space. Laterals can be anything from Clay, Cast Iron, Orangeburg, Asbestos Cement, Solvent Welded ABS, Heat Welded Poly, etc...

Sounds like a good time to get into the sewer upgrade business.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

Just learned effective January 1 several million homes in my area will need a Sewer Lateral Inspection/Clearance upon sale or major renovation...

Don't know how I missed it.

Is this common practice around the country for those with city sewer service or just another example of California leading the nation?

Small residential lateral replacement typically runs about $5,000 with permits and can be as high as $15,000 when street work is needed.

A few years ago, they made homeowners up here have them inspected just out of the blue (we were spared). They also repaved the street after all was done with...

 

[tallyho8]

Around here, in areas with sewer, the Parish (county) sent a team of inspectors out throughout the Parish. They put smoke bombs in the sewers and then checked around the neighborhood in people's yards and their gutter pipes to see where the smoke came out which would indicate rain water infiltration.

Most of the leaks they found were in the Parish's sewer pipes under the right of way. They hired a company to put liners inside their pipes. I found it interesting watching how they did that without having to dig up the streets to remove old pipe. Then they had to dig up the sidewalk in front of each home and remove a section of the homeowner's pipe to cut a hole through the liner and then replace it. No charge to the homeowners except in taxes, of course.

 

[ultrarunner]

Local Realtors have said the new rule is causing confusion and several sales in my Brother's office have been cancelled.

Apparently, even though not specifically mentioned... any sewer with clay tile will not pass the test and therefore replaced... we are talking about hundreds of thousands of potential replacements...

Also there is confusion because the law specifically says the requirement kicks in upon sale... it doesn't say who is paying for it and the Banks/Lenders sitting on Homes are Balking at the added expense... they don't like spending any money on property.

We will see... it certainly has come in under the radar as far as the public is concerned and the cost can run into 10% or more of the price of the home in some cases...

 

[300UGUY]

About 20 years ago, sewers were run into lakefront areas previously served by septic systems. On sale of any home, it had to hook into the system. Some folkd did it right away, they could pay for it over 10 years on their sewer bill. I think the max was 10K. If you did not want to hook up, the septic was tested once per year, with a dye put in the tank. If any dye showed up in the lake, you had to hook up, and pay a cost prorated by lake frontage. For some folks, this cost over 25K. What was really amazing was how many folks wanted to argue, even getting lawyers involved when their tanks had clearly been leaking.

 

[dave1949]

A few years ago, they made homeowners up here have them inspected just out of the blue (we were spared). They also repaved the street after all was done with...

That's odd, they usually repave the streets first :laughing:
Dave.

 

[PILOON]

That's odd, they usually repave the streets first :laughing:
Dave.

So true!
Seen that time after time.