06/10/2025
If you're dealing with country property, something you might come across is a grey water system.
Let's talk about it š§µ
Grey water is basically everything coming out that is not your toilet.
Your sinks and laundry water all contain soaps and other things that can make it harder for the bacteria in your septic system to work, in addition to adding a lot more water.
At our old house, all of the gray water was directed to a single pipe that then spread out to feeder pipes that irrigated the whole hillside.
That's great if you know about it, but it's not great if one of those feeder pipes becomes clogged and starts to back up. Surprise!
Another system you might see is where they are using two septic tanks, one for grey water and the other for toilets.
But you need to know where that water is going.
And often, this institutional knowledge gets lost.
With any of these systems, you need to keep an eye out for spots that are greener, which indicate a leak, potential backup, or leech field failures.
When you're buying a property with any of these kinds of systems, you need to know as much as you can. But be aware that seller's may not even know about these systems enough to disclose them.
In some jurisdictions, it's quite difficult to get a permit to install a new grey water system. So, while you might have an old grandfathered in system, you might not be able to modify it.
Which is why you need somebody representing you who is familiar with these challenges and knows to ask the right questions.
I've dealt with country properties for a long time, so if you've got a burning desire to get off public utilities, shoot me a message.
