Can't Find Your Septic Tank Lid in Tucson? Before the Inspection

You are selling a house on a septic system around Tucson and the inspection is booked. Then the question comes up: where is the tank? The old owner did not leave a map, the yard has changed, and nobody has opened that lid in a decade. If you cannot say where the lid is, the inspector may not be able to do the job, and the sale gets tight.

Why the lid matters

A transfer inspection looks inside the tank. The inspector needs to open the access lid, check the tank, and look at what flows in and out. Without access there is nothing to inspect, and a sale that depends on the inspection report cannot move. The transfer inspection page explains the visit, and the page on the ADEQ inspection explains why it comes up at sale.

Places to look

• Your records. Closing papers, the original plans, the county or state file on the septic system, or an old pumping receipt may show the location.
• The house plumbing. The main sewer line leaves the house in one place. The tank is usually in line with it, a few feet to a few tens of feet away, so check the wall where the pipes go out.
• Yard clues. A patch where the grass is greener or the ground slightly raised, or a vent pipe sticking up.
• Neighbors and past owners. Someone may remember where the pumper dug.

Do not guess and start digging with a backhoe. Pipes, drain lines and the leach field are out there, and a bad dig turns into a repair bill. A probing rod will find the tank in many cases without damage.

Who digs

If the lid is buried, someone has to uncover it and often set a riser, a short collar that brings the lid up to ground level so it can be opened. Tucson sellers often have the pumping company do this, since the tank usually needs pumping before an inspection anyway. Our pumping service can help with that step, and we can tell you when it is worth doing before the inspector arrives.

Order of events that saves time

1. Look for records and clues now, while there is still time before the inspection date.
2. If you cannot find the lid, call us. We can tell you how to locate it and whether it needs to be uncovered.
3. Uncover it before the inspection day, not on it.
4. Keep it accessible and mark it so the next owner does not have the same trouble.

What if the tank turns out to be damaged

Sometimes uncovering the tank shows a cracked lid or a worn baffle. That is something you want to learn before the buyer does. See what fails a septic inspection and our repair page, and read the selling with septic guide so you know where this fits in the sale. For the price of the inspection, see the cost page.

Call us

Tell us your closing date, what you know about the tank, and whether anything has been pumped. Call (520) 389-5764 and we will say what to do first.