Installing RV sewer connection at home

[fochman]

Has anyone had a sewer connection installed at their house that dumps into the house's septic system? I'm going to talk to a plumber next week about doing this a my house and wondered if there was anything in particular I should cover with him.

[Camping Couple]

I can't think of anything in paticular you would need to cover with him. If it's a septic system, I would ask if the capacity of your system is adequate to handle the extra sewage. Dumping and flushing your black and great water tank will use more water.

[NC Roamer]

Had a sewer connection to my septic installed in September. While the trench through the backyard was open, I also had him run a waterline and add a yard hydrant by the RV. He also placed an electrical cable in the trench before backfilling, leaving several extra feet out at each end. Then an electrician installed a 30 amp service by the RV and connected it to the service panel on the back of the house.

It is really nice to be able to plug in the power before a trip to pre-cool the fridge. And it is extremely convenient to not have to detour by a dump station on the way home.

[Grumpy]

Be sure you avoid any chemicals with formaldehyde it kills the bacteria in the septic tank that break down the solids.

[314BHDS]

I have 3 cleanouts on septic line,i just used the furthest one before holding tank and dump into that.99% of the places we go have septic but for long trips we use bathroom for pit stops.I just get home and fill tank up thru tank flush then dump and flush again.Most of the stuff is broken down at that time and mostly liquid that comes out. We have a filter on septic before leach field so nothing big can get by anyway

[clutch]

An RV dump may not be legal every where. Cleanouts are always legal.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by NC Roamer

Had a sewer connection to my septic installed in September. While the trench through the backyard was open, I also had him run a waterline and add a yard hydrant by the RV. He also placed an electrical cable in the trench before backfilling, leaving several extra feet out at each end. Then an electrician installed a 30 amp service by the RV and connected it to the service panel on the back of the house.

It is really nice to be able to plug in the power before a trip to pre-cool the fridge. And it is extremely convenient to not have to detour by a dump station on the way home.

Sounds like a nice set up. I have a spigot on the back of the house that I can use to get water to the TT. I'm having a surface mount power pedestal installed on the outside of a storage building that will be near where I will park the TT to plug into. I'm having a 50/30/20 amp box installed in case we upgrade in the future to a 50 amp service. I'm really looking forward to having full connections at the house.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by Grumpy

Be sure you avoid any chemicals with formaldehyde it kills the bacteria in the septic tank that break down the solids.

Thanks for the advice. I don't know if I would have thought of that.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by 314BHDS

I have 3 cleanouts on septic line,i just used the furthest one before holding tank and dump into that.99% of the places we go have septic but for long trips we use bathroom for pit stops.I just get home and fill tank up thru tank flush then dump and flush again.Most of the stuff is broken down at that time and mostly liquid that comes out. We have a filter on septic before leach field so nothing big can get by anyway

Maybe I'll be lucky with a clean out also.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by clutch

An RV dump may not be legal every where. Cleanouts are always legal.

Thanks for the response. I'm outside of the city limits so think I'm ok. I'll check with the plumber though.

[Camper_bob]

I had thought about doing that, but I came to the conclusion that for the rare event that I need to dump at the house, I could just use a portable waste tote. The added benefit is that I could use it "in the wild" as well. My other alternative was the "Sewer Solution" as my septic wash-out is close enough to use this. It's almost close enough to use a couple extra 3" standard sewer hoses, but as yet I don't have a need to go through the trouble, and getting the hose to flow downhill the entire run would be a little tricky. And there's the matter of having enough flow to carry all the "material" the length of the run, but I could solve that by rinsing each hose as I disassemble the "apparatus". (too many solutions for a problem I don't have! LOL!)

I do have 50A power and water available for when the rig is at home though; that power outlet was some of the best money I've ever spent.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

I had thought about doing that, but I came to the conclusion that for the rare event that I need to dump at the house, I could just use a portable waste tote. The added benefit is that I could use it "in the wild" as well. My other alternative was the "Sewer Solution" as my septic wash-out is close enough to use this. It's almost close enough to use a couple extra 3" standard sewer hoses, but as yet I don't have a need to go through the trouble, and getting the hose to flow downhill the entire run would be a little tricky. And there's the matter of having enough flow to carry all the "material" the length of the run, but I could solve that by rinsing each hose as I disassemble the "apparatus". (too many solutions for a problem I don't have! LOL!)

I do have 50A power and water available for when the rig is at home though; that power outlet was some of the best money I've ever spent.

When I talked to the plumber yesterday, he told me that due to the distance of the septic tank and clean outs from where I will park the camper I would need to install an electric pump to make it work. Due to the cost of doing this, I have decided as you did that I'll live with waiting at the campground dump station for now. Thanks for the response.

[RoyBraddy]

It is a COUNTY THING with proper permits... Good Luck... Without permits you nay end up putting in alot of work and money just to find out it is not allowed which results in fines and gets involved big time etc...

A typical Home septic system is based on the number bedrooms in your household. Your present septic system may not be large enough to handle addition connections.

You may get away with occasional dumping of your trailer tanks using a macerator type pump however if you check in with your local county office this is probably illegal to do as well..

Its all in the planning

Roy Ken

[fochman]

Originally Posted by RoyBraddy

It is a COUNTY THING with proper permits... Good Luck... Without permits you nay end up putting in alot of work and money just to find out it is not allowed which results in fines and gets involved big time etc...

A typical Home septic system is based on the number bedrooms in your household. Your present septic system may not be large enough to handle addition connections.

You may get away with occasional dumping of your trailer tanks using a macerator type pump however if you check in with your local county office this is probably illegal to do as well..

Its all in the planning

Roy Ken

So I'm learning. Sounds like more work/money than I want to deal with. Have a Happy New Year!

[tnchuck100]

Originally Posted by RoyBraddy

It is a COUNTY THING with proper permits... Good Luck... Without permits you nay end up putting in alot of work and money just to find out it is not allowed which results in fines and gets involved big time etc...

A typical Home septic system is based on the number bedrooms in your household. Your present septic system may not be large enough to handle addition connections.

You may get away with occasional dumping of your trailer tanks using a macerator type pump however if you check in with your local county office this is probably illegal to do as well..

Its all in the planning

Roy Ken

Just a point that the government bureaucracy is not able to understand or consider.

There would be no difference in the amount sent to the septic system. I was simply delayed. The same amount of "stuff" would have been sent to the septic tank anyway if they stayed at home. It is just that the RV delayed the "deposit".

[RoyBraddy]

The tricky thing in our county is we are allowed to park our RV Trailers at home but not allowed to have a trailer park type MOBILE HOME except only at trailer parks... ALot of the area here is woods and some folks will buy land here and will put up a mobile home while they build a house. Not authorized here in this county.

I feel very blessed here to be able to park my RV;s here next to the house but when checking on what I can or cannot do county wise it scares me they might think my of RV trailer as a mobile home and not allow me to park it here.

Almost a tight rope walk here hehe...

I imagine all counties have different laws and perhaps in your county it may not be a problem at all...

All you have to do is check into it first...

You really should check into the FLOJET Mercerator 18555000A Waste Water Pump kit (AMAZON). Not all that expensive and can pump down your trailer a couple of hundred feet using 3/4 hose if you need that. Comes in a nice carry case and works from 12VDC...


Roy Ken

[NC Roamer]

Originally Posted by fochman

When I talked to the plumber yesterday, he told me that due to the distance of the septic tank and clean outs from where I will park the camper I would need to install an electric pump to make it work. Due to the cost of doing this, I have decided as you did that I'll live with waiting at the campground dump station for now. Thanks for the response.

We are on a hillside lot and fortunately the septic tank is downhill from the RV parking pad and not far away. I think we needed only 30' of PVC. The most expensive single material was 100' of #10 direct bury copper wire. And given what the electrician charged to make the connection at the service panel and install the pedestal at the RV, I definitely went to school for the wrong thing.

[clutch]

Originally Posted by NC Roamer

We are on a hillside lot and fortunately the septic tank is downhill from the RV parking pad and not far away. I think we needed only 30' of PVC. The most expensive single material was 100' of #10 direct bury copper wire. And given what the electrician charged to make the connection at the service panel and install the pedestal at the RV, I definitely went to school for the wrong thing.

When we remodeled our house I realized that I should have sent one kid to school to be a plumber and the other to be an electrician.

[fochman]

Originally Posted by clutch

When we remodeled our house I realized that I should have sent one kid to school to be a plumber and the other to be an electrician.

I've been thinking the same thing!

[Bassdogs]

The portable tote is my solution. Also have a CG 2 miles down the road so I can run the TT down there if need be. No zoning where I live and if there was, there is no one to enforce it. Very rural and within reason you can do what you want on your own property. If I felt the need, I would just dig a hole and bury a couple 50 gal plastic drums with drain holes and a couple 10' fingers for drainage. Pretty much was the septic set up at my cabin when I bought the property and dug it up when we remodeled. Still places in the lower 48 that allow you some flexibility in how you live.