Even far from the city, it is difficult to imagine life without running water and sewerage. In a small holiday village or village, where there is no central sewage system at all, you have to arrange amenities yourself. If financial opportunities are limited, you can make a cesspool from a barrel with your own hands for a country toilet.
Requirements for the construction of a cesspool
The simplest bio-waste storage facility can be built on site from inexpensive materials. For a country toilet, it is enough to find 2-3 strong barrels of a suitable volume and bury them in the ground in a hole prepared in advance. A wooden or brick booth is being built on top. All-season and all-weather outdoor bathroom is ready. An experienced owner can build it in two days.
In order not to violate the ecology of households, the structure must meet the established sanitary standards. Observe distances to objects:
- residential building - from 5 meters;
- fence - from 2 m;
- main road - 2-4 m;
- drinking water well - 50 m;
- natural reservoir - 30 m;
- fruit trees, garden plants - from 5 m
A country toilet is installed at the lowest point of the site. In this case, the distance from the bottom point of the pit to the groundwater level should be at least 1 meter. Be sure to take into account the location of the neighbors' house so as not to inconvenience them.
Materials for the construction of cesspools and their characteristics
The most budgetary and easiest option is a cesspool made from old car tires. However, all the advantages are canceled out by the small volume of the structure, low tightness, and non-ecological design. A well made of concrete rings requires the involvement of a crane, an excavator and a few workers. The construction of brickwork should also be abandoned if there are no special skills and the ability to invite a specialist.
If of all the possible options the choice has settled on a barrel, the first step is to calculate the required volume of the container. This must be done in advance, so that later you do not have to order the services of sewer trucks too often.
Metal drums are strong but heavy. They are not resistant to the aggressive environment of household waste, they rust under the influence of soil moisture. The lifespan of a cesspool from a metal barrel, even with double-sided waterproofing, does not exceed 4-5 years. At the dacha, 200-liter containers or large tank cars that have served their time are used. The larger the volume of the tank, the less often you will have to call the employees of the sewage service. However, to install a large-sized tank, you will have to involve special equipment.
The use of a metal barrel without a bottom for a cesspool is the easiest way to install a toilet in a country house, provided that the volume of waste generated does not exceed 1 m3 per day.
At a summer cottage with a high level of groundwater, as well as in the presence of reservoirs nearby, the use of sealed containers is required to prevent runoff from entering the soil. Ready-made plastic barrels of various sizes are suitable for such sedimentation tanks.
Advantages of plastic barrels for sewage:
- strength;
- service life up to 50 years;
- resistance to chemically aggressive liquids, environmental influences;
- the presence of a ready-made ventilation hole, a sealed hatch, holes for installation;
- low weight, allowing you to install yourself.
The dirty liquid must be pumped out as the reservoir is full. Service frequency is 1-2 times a month.
A cesspool from a barrel without a bottom should be 30 cm deeper than the height of the container. A filtration layer is created under the barrel, consisting of 20 cm of crushed stone and 10 cm of sand, which allows the purified liquid to pass into the underlying soil. In areas with a high level of groundwater, this option is unacceptable. Since microorganisms from waste water can get into drinking water.
Design and preparation of tools
To build a cesspool from a barrel you will need:
- storage tank;
- pipes and connecting fittings, sealant;
- shovel, pickaxe, winch, bucket and wheelbarrow for moving soil;
- broken brick, gravel, crushed stone, sand for backfill;
- cement and a container for mixing it;
- Bulgarian;
- geotextile for winding joints.
During installation, you can use ready-made drawings and projects, or prepare your own scheme, taking into account individual parameters, dimensions of structures, site.
Installation steps
The sequence of work when constructing a cesspool without a bottom from an unpressurized barrel:
- choice of location;
- container preparation;
- construction of a pit, taking into account the additional diameter on the sides and a depth of 0.3 m, which are added to the dimensions of the tank;
- backfill with 20 cm of fine gravel and 10 cm of sand for the construction of a filtration layer;
- installing the barrel so that about 7 cm protrudes above the ground;
- filling successively with gravel by 2/3, clay by 1/3 and sand of the upper part of the pit between the walls of the pit and the outer walls of the tank;
- compaction of the soil;
- pouring the foundation and erecting an outdoor toilet booth or installing a ready-made one.
When building a cesspool from a sealed barrel, there is no need to build a filtration layer, so the number of stages is reduced. Before compacting the earth, fill the sealed container with water to avoid damage to the container.
Advantages and disadvantages of a cesspool from a barrel
When arranging a storage tank, you need to take into account the pros and cons of the design.
| Benefits | disadvantages |
| long service life | unpleasant smell from the ventilation pipe |
| ease of installation | the need for regular maintenance |
| low cost of materials and tools | high requirements for the selection of the installation site |
| the need to use special bacterial compounds | |
| decrease in the absorbency of the filter layer and the environmentally friendly nature of leaky containers |
The easiest way is to purchase a ready-made plastic tank that meets all the requirements of sanitary standards in terms of material, strength and service life. Polymer containers for sewage are easy to install and environmentally friendly. You shouldn't save on your own health.
