HomeSeptic servicesSeptic Tank Abandonment
Pumped, crushed, filled, recorded
Septic tank abandonment when the sewer line arrives
The tank pumped, the lid and floor broken or the tank removed, the void filled and compacted, and the county record closed.
At a glance
- When
- Connecting to sewer, or clearing a lot
- Method
- Pumped, crushed or removed, filled to rule
- Paperwork
- Abandonment permit and final inspection
A tank left in the ground is a hole waiting to open
When a property connects to sewer, the septic tank does not simply retire. An empty concrete box under a lawn eventually collapses, and a tank half full of sludge under a driveway is worse. Florida's onsite sewage rule sets out how a tank is abandoned: pumped by a licensed contractor, the bottom broken or the tank removed, and the void filled with clean material, under permit and inspection.
Call Flamingo pumps the tank, crushes the lid and floor or lifts the tank out where the site calls for it, fills and compacts, and closes the permit with the county environmental health office. On a lot also leaving a private well, the well is plugged on the same visit.
How a tank is abandoned
The permit is filed
With the county environmental health office, before anything is opened.
The tank is pumped
All contents removed and disposed of at a permitted facility.
The tank is crushed or removed
The lid and floor are broken so water cannot collect, or the tank is lifted out where the site needs the space.
The void is filled and compacted
Clean fill, compacted in lifts, so the ground does not settle later.
Inspection closes the record
The county inspects and the abandonment is recorded against the property.
Straight answers
Questions this job raises
Can the old tank just be left after connecting to sewer?
No. The rule requires it to be pumped and abandoned under permit. An unrecorded tank shows up as a problem at the next sale and as a sinkhole in the lawn before that.
Does the tank have to be dug out?
Not usually. Pumping, crushing the lid and floor in place, and filling with clean material satisfies the rule on most lots. Removal is for sites where the space is needed.
Is the well abandoned at the same time?
Where the property is also connecting to utility water, yes, and it is done on the same visit under its own permit.
Next door to this job
Work that usually comes up in the same visit
Well Abandonment
Old wells plugged and grouted to state rule when a property connects to utility water or drills new.
Septic Tank Pump Out
Sludge and scum pumped out, tank checked while it is open, next date set from what was measured.
Septic Tank Replacement
Cracked, collapsed and undersized tanks swapped for concrete or polyethylene under permit.
Free estimate, then the work
Call Flamingo quotes septic work at no charge and schedules seven days a week across the Jacksonville area.