{"id":39619,"date":"2026-09-17T20:16:48","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T17:16:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reoveemahutid.ee\/?p=39619"},"modified":"2026-09-17T20:20:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T17:20:59","slug":"buying-holding-tank-10-questions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reoveemahutid.ee\/en\/buying-holding-tank-10-questions\/","title":{"rendered":"Buying a sewage holding tank: 10 questions before requesting a quote"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ask for “a price for a 5 m\u00b3 tank” and the supplier must guess the inlet, riser, cover and accessories, or write back with questions. If you are buying a sewage holding tank (reoveemahuti<\/em> in Estonian; UK readers may know a sealed tank as a cesspool or cesspit, the word on Vesmaco’s English order drawing), ten answers settle most of it. A holding tank only stores wastewater until a tanker pumps it out (purgimine<\/em>); it treats nothing and has no outlet, so it is not a septic tank. The questions follow Vesmaco’s order drawing and the site facts a manufacturer needs; a list to copy comes at the end.<\/p>\n

Questions 1\u20133: the household and the ground<\/h2>\n

1. How many people will use the tank, and when?<\/strong> State the number of people, whether this is a permanent home, a summer house or a rental, and your monthly water-meter reading if you have one. Volume follows from people \u00d7 litres per person per day \u00d7 the days you want between emptyings; where no meter data exists, the Ministry of the Environment’s 2015 guide plans with 100\u2013150 L per person per day. The tankers available locally cap the useful volume. What size sewage holding tank do you need?<\/a> has the method and worked examples.<\/p>\n

2. How high is the groundwater?<\/strong> In wet ground an empty or partly filled tank can be pushed upwards by the groundwater. Vesmaco’s installation guide anchors the tank with textile straps to a 20 cm reinforced-concrete slab dimensioned by a certified design or construction organisation; the ministry guide calls slab and anchoring essential where groundwater is high. For the quote, your answer decides whether anchor straps with tensioners (item 9 on the drawing) are added. Write what you know: water in a trial pit, a garden that floods in spring, clay, rock, or “unknown”.<\/p>\n

3. Will anything drive or park over the tank?<\/strong> The two guides disagree. The ministry guide (2015) says a holding tank must not be installed under a road or parking area, and that even the emptying truck must not drive over it; Vesmaco’s guide permits trafficked areas only with a reinforced-concrete load-distribution slab above the tank. The slab is a qualified designer’s job and a line in your installer’s quote, but your answer steers the cover in question 6.<\/p>\n

Questions 4\u20136: three fields on the order drawing<\/h2>\n

Every model has an order drawing (PDF and DWG, in the homepage model table) that doubles as the order confirmation: you tick the options and sign. The options below come from the MK-5 D1400 drawing, so check the drawing of your own model. Three fields need figures from your site.<\/p>\n

4. How deep does the inlet pipe arrive, and in what diameter?<\/strong> The drawing has a blank for h<\/em>, the depth from ground level to the inlet pipe, maximum 1500 mm; ask the supplier exactly how h<\/em> is measured on the drawing before you fill it in. The inlet is PVC, \u00d8110 or \u00d8160. Depth is not a free choice: per the ministry guide it follows the building’s sewer pipe, and cover of less than about 1.3 m over pipe or tank calls for insulation. Deeper than 1.5 m, Vesmaco’s guide requires a load-distribution slab. Your plumber or designer can supply the figure.<\/p>\n

5. How tall and how wide should the riser be?<\/strong> The riser brings the emptying point to the surface. Standard is a PVC D200 pipe, 500\u20131000 mm high; the options are D400 (500\u20131000 mm) or a D600 shaft (500\u20131500 mm). Height follows from question 4 and the final ground level, so mention landscaping that will raise the ground. If unsure about the diameter, write “please advise”.<\/p>\n

6. Which cover?<\/strong> The base kit includes a plastic cover. The option is an EN 124 hatch in class A15 (1.5 t), B125 (12.5 t), C250 (25 t) or D400 (40 t). Vesmaco’s guide says the hatch class must suit the surroundings and tells buyers to ask the company, so describe the surface (lawn, footpath, yard where cars turn) rather than guessing a class.<\/p>\n

Questions 7\u20138: alarm and delivery<\/h2>\n

7. Do you want a level alarm, and where will the receiver sit?<\/strong> The ministry guide calls a level sensor advisable, and the drawing lists an overfill alarm as an option. The data sheet of the wireless Smartel Tank-Check RF-431 on the Vesmaco site recommends a link test beyond 70 m or where buildings stand in the way, and warns against mounting the transmitter under a metal cover, which matters if the hatch you choose is metal. State the distance from tank to house. The site also has a sheet for the “Vesmaco Cesspool Alarm”; to choose between the two, compare the datasheets or ask the supplier. The drawing also offers a vent pipe, plain or with an anti-odour (carbon) filter.<\/p>\n

8. Can a delivery vehicle reach the site?<\/strong> Fibreglass tanks are light but long: the MK-5 D1400 is about 3.6 m and 290 kg, the MK-15 D1600 about 7.8 m and 750 kg; the model drawing gives the exact dimensions. Give the address and describe the last stretch: narrow track, gate width, weight-limited bridge, soft ground, overhead lines. Agree in writing with the supplier what delivery covers and how the tank will be unloaded, and prepare a firm surface and a clear space to set it down. The same route matters later: the tanker needs access in every season.<\/p>\n

Questions 9\u201310: your municipality and your timeline<\/h2>\n

9. What does your municipality require?<\/strong> Under the Building Code, installing a holding tank calls for a building notice (ehitusteatis<\/em>), filed through the Building Register (ehitisregister<\/em>, ehr.ee) at least 10 days before work starts, and a use notice (kasutusteatis<\/em>) at least 10 days before use. Setbacks (kuja<\/em>), documents and proof of emptying are local: under Water Act \u00a7 104(7) each municipality adopts its own on-site wastewater rules, so ask yours. Saaremaa, for example, accepts only leak-tight, certified and\/or CE-marked tanks and asks for conformity certificates at commissioning. In a sewage collection area (reoveekogumisala<\/em>) of 2,000 p.e. or more where you cannot connect because there is no public sewer yet, \u00a7 47(7) of the Public Water Supply and Sewerage Act requires a leak-tight tank large enough for at least two weeks’ wastewater. Name your municipality and the documents it wants, and ask the supplier which conformity documents come with the tank. More in Sewage holding tank rules in Estonia<\/a> and Sewage holding tank certificates and warranties<\/a>.<\/p>\n

10. When do you need the tank?<\/strong> Give your target delivery date and work backwards: the building notice needs its 10 days and your installer must be booked. The drawing’s approval box has a readiness date that Vesmaco fills in on confirmation, so ask for the expected production and delivery time together with the quote. If you plan to apply for the rural household grant (hajaasustuse programm<\/em>), say so: each round has its own terms and deadline, and you will probably need a supplier’s quote and drawings. See Estonia’s hajaasustuse programm<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Your ten answers, ready to paste<\/h2>\n

The quote covers the tank and its options; the price guide<\/a> explains how each option moves the price. Excavation and installation are priced by your installer, and Sewage holding tank installation costs<\/a> lists what that second quote should contain. Emptying, the running cost of any holding tank, is paid to the emptying company. “Unknown” is a valid answer to any line.<\/p>\n

1. Users: \u2026 people; permanent \/ seasonal \/ rental; water use \u2026 m\u00b3 per month (if known)\n2. Groundwater and soil: low \/ high \/ seasonally high \/ unknown; soil \u2026\n3. Traffic over the tank: none (green area) \/ cars may pass or park \/ unknown\n4. Inlet: \u00d8110 \/ \u00d8160; depth h = \u2026 mm (max. 1500)\n5. Riser: D200 \/ D400 \/ D600; height \u2026 mm, or \"please advise\"\n6. Cover: plastic \/ EN 124 hatch A15 \/ B125 \/ C250 \/ D400; surface: \u2026\n7. Alarm: yes \/ no; tank to receiver \u2026 m; vent pipe: none \/ plain \/ with filter\n8. Delivery: address \u2026; access notes \u2026\n9. Municipality: \u2026; documents it asks for: \u2026\n10. Timing: delivery wanted by \u2026; grant application: yes \/ no<\/code><\/pre>\n
Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n
Do I need all ten answers before I enquire?<\/strong> No. Send what you have and mark the rest unknown. Find out inlet depth and groundwater first, because they change the order itself: the h<\/em> figure, the riser height and the anchor straps.<\/p>\n
Does the quote include installation?<\/strong> Plan for a separate installer. Vesmaco manufactures, advises, designs and delivers. Its installation guide suggests that buyers without experience contact the supplier or manufacturer for a list of licensed installers. Give the guide to your installer: it states that the warranty does not apply if the instructions are ignored.<\/p>\n
The same volume comes in two diameters. Which do I name?<\/strong> A larger diameter means a shorter tank but a deeper excavation: 5 m\u00b3 is about 5.7 m long as the MK-5 D1100 and about 3.6 m as the MK-5 D1400. If undecided, name both and describe the plot.<\/p>\n
Send your ten answers.<\/strong> Copy them into the message field of the enquiry form<\/a> and attach a site plan or photos; the form accepts files. Vesmaco manufactures the tank, advises on the choice and delivers across Estonia, and its site says enquiries are usually answered within 2\u20133 days. For anything urgent, call +372 641 8550.<\/p>\n
Sources<\/h2>\n