Septic issues. What to do with tenants?

Question

We have an unknown septic issue. Our tank has filled up twice in 2 weeks. What do we do with the tenants while we are finding and fixing the issue, considering that we don't know how long it will take or how much it will continue to disrupt their lives? Not to mention the amount that this is going to cost us is also unknown. This is a SFH. There are 4 adults and 2 kids living in the home. Their lease is up at the end of July. Do we get them a portable restroom? Put them up in 1 or 2 hotel rooms based on six people for an undetermined amount of time? Terminate the lease? Give them a credit on their rent? Any other advice?

I want to be good to the tenants, but I also want to balance that with minimizing the financial impact on us as landlords.

Thanks for your help.

Sarah

I want to be good to the tenants,  but I also want to balance that with minimizing the financial impact on us as landlords.

Thanks for your help.

Sarah

Nathan Gesner · Answer

It will be cheaper to pay to rent a porta-potty and have the septic pumped every 1-2 weeks. If someone has inspected and discovered the problem, they should be able to determine the timeline for repair/replacement.

Sarah Moncivaiz · Answer

Thanks for replying! It is an old gravity system. The thing is that we lived in the house for many, many years and never had an issue with it. Our tenants have been there only 2 months and now we are having major issues.  I'm not necessarily blaming it on them because I know that the system is old and there is a real possibility that tree roots could have damaged the drain field. We are having the system jetted so we can get a camera down there today.

Colleen F. · Answer

@Sarah Moncivaiz  have them pump it weekly until you get it sorted. Is it just a gravity system or do you have ejection pumps?  If one of those fails the tank won't drain.  Is the septic tank really old or undersized for the occupancy?

1. You could also have a water issue,  Is there alot of water going into the tank? I had two faucet and a toilet leaking unreported and  there was a fast fill on the septic so it had to be pumped out and started backing up.  If you have a well this is hard to check but I had them put a water meter on my well so I could check flow.  The expansion tank for the well should also have a way to identify if water is constantly running.

Offer to let them out of the lease early especially if you need a septic replacement.