Type 1 and Type 2 systems, designed, filed and built
New Septic System Installation in Sooke
Sooke Septic builds new Type 1 and Type 2 septic systems in Sooke, East Sooke, Otter Point and Metchosin. We design your system, file it with Island Health, put it in the ground, and send the Letter of Certification within 30 days of finishing.
A new Type 1 system runs $18,000 to $30,000, and a new Type 2 system runs $25,000 to $45,000 or more. A sand mound or pressure-dosed system runs $25,000 to $45,000.
What goes into a new septic system?
We build what the design calls for: the septic tank, the distribution box and lines, and the dispersal field. A Type 1 system is treatment by septic tank and dispersal field, and it is defined by its treatment level rather than by gravity, so a Type 1 system can use a pump. A Type 2 system treats effluent to under 45 mg/L suspended solids and under 45 mg/L five-day biochemical oxygen demand.
Who has to design it and file it?
You have to retain an Authorized Person before anyone constructs, alters or repairs a sewerage system. We hold the practitioner registration the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians Association of BC issues, and it covers Type 1 and Type 2 systems, for a daily design flow under 9,100 litres per day.
What do we file before we build?
Before construction we send Island Health the Filing form, the plans and specifications for your system, a site plan for the property, and any covenants, easements or hydrogeological reports that attach to it. Island Health checks the package against its minimum submission criteria and keeps it. It does not approve the design, and it does not routinely review filing documents for their technical merit.
What do you get when the work is done?
We finish, then we certify. Within 30 days of completing construction we send the health authority a signed letter confirming the system meets the Sewerage System Regulation, that it will not cause a health hazard in normal use, and that its daily design flow is under 22,700 litres per day.
With it you get the as-built diagram and your maintenance plan. Your system stays out of use until that Letter of Certification is in.
What's included
New Type 1 system
Septic tank and dispersal field, designed, filed and built.
New Type 2 system
Effluent treated to the Type 2 standard for suspended solids and five-day biochemical oxygen demand.
Sand mound or pressure-dosed system
A raised or pressure-dosed dispersal field where the design calls for one.
How a new system goes in
- 1
Free site visit — we come out, walk the property with you, and talk through what the build involves.
- 2
Site and soil assessment — we dig the test pits and read the soil. This is billed design work with its own price.
- 3
Design and filing — we design the system for your property and send Island Health the plans, the site plan and the Filing form.
- 4
The build — we set the tank, run the distribution lines and build the dispersal field.
- 5
The Letter of Certification — we send the signed letter within 30 days, and you get the as-built diagram and your maintenance plan.
What is different about your area?
Anything past the Sewer Specified Area boundary in Sooke is on a system of its own. Which authority issues your building permit depends on your address: Sooke and Metchosin each run their own building department, and the Capital Regional District covers East Sooke and Otter Point. Island Health, being provincial, receives the filing wherever you are.
What does a typical job look like?
- The problem
- You are building on a lot in Otter Point with no sewer to connect to.
- What makes it harder
- Nobody can start until an Authorized Person designs the system and files it with Island Health.
- What we do
- We do the assessment, design the system, file it, build it, and send the Letter of Certification.
People also ask
Can I build my own septic system?
You may build it yourself, but an Authorized Person still has to design it, submit the filing documents and supervise the construction.
What is a Type 1 system?
A septic tank and a dispersal field. The name is about the level of treatment, not about how the effluent moves, so a pump is allowed.
How soon can I use it?
Not until the Letter of Certification reaches the health authority. It goes in within 30 days of construction being complete.
Does Island Health approve my design?
No. It takes the filing in and checks the package is complete. Responsibility for the design itself stays with the Authorized Person who signed it.
Related: site and soil assessment and system designseptic repairsseptic price rangesSookeOtter Point
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Ready for a quote on septic in Sooke?
The site visit is free, and we reply to you within 24 hours.