Type 2 and Type 3 System Design
Not every property can take a conventional gravity system. Where soils are tight, lots are small, the water table is high, or a site sits close to a well or a watercourse, effluent has to be treated before it reaches the ground. A Type 2 or Type 3 system provides that treatment, and designing one is engineering work rather than a catalogue choice.
The three system types
The classification comes from the BC Sewerage System Regulation. In short:
Type 1
Septic tank with gravity-fed dispersal, for sites with suitable soil conditions.
Type 2
Adds a treatment stage before effluent reaches the dispersal field. Used on smaller lots, difficult soils, and environmentally sensitive sites.
Type 3
Advanced treatment using mechanical or biological components, for tight setbacks, high performance requirements, or where discharge conditions demand it.
What designing one involves
Establishing what the site can take
Soil evaluation and percolation testing come first. The design follows the ground, not the other way round, and a treatment system is specified because the site calls for one.
Selecting and sizing the treatment
Type 2 and Type 3 systems bring in components that have to be matched to the site and to each other, then sized for the loading the property will actually produce.
Sealed drawings and a filed design
The design is drawn, sealed and filed with the health authority, with the supporting documentation that goes alongside it.
Ongoing maintenance and monitoring
Treatment systems have components that need servicing and documenting for as long as the system is in use. That obligation is part of the design, not an afterthought to it.
Not sure which type your site needs?
That is the question a site assessment answers. Send us the property details and we will tell you what is involved.