Whether it is one house tank or a whole estate, our free service makes it easy to price soakaway in Welkom. Your request goes to a drainage contractor serving Welkom and nearby areas of Free State, so you can compare prices and response times before you commit.
Soakaways in Welkom
Soakaway work in Welkom is mostly booked by owners of plots, farms and older houses where a septic tank is the only option. Share the number of people, the tank size and whether the ground is sandy, clay or rocky, so contractors serving Welkom and the rest of Free State can quote accurately.
Want to know more first? Our soakaway guide covers the options, what to check and what affects the price.
Septic tanks and drainage in Welkom
Welkom is a goldfields town of wide streets and traffic circles, with most of the suburbs, such as Riebeeckstad and Bedelia, on the sewer. As mines have closed, ageing pipes and pumping stations cause blockages and spills, and some areas depend on septic or conservancy tanks. Smallholdings and farms toward Odendaalsrus, Virginia, Hennenman and Allanridge use septic tanks. The flat landscape has shallow pans, and the ground holds water after summer storms. Sandy loam and clay layers vary from plot to plot, so soakaway tests are worthwhile. Honey sucker operators work from Welkom and Odendaalsrus, and mine and school sites need regular scheduled service.
Typical soakaway requests in the area come from:
- Houses: a new or rebuilt soakaway for an older house whose pit has clogged or flooded
- Smallholdings and plots: a larger pit or two linked pits on a smallholding with space but heavy clay soil
- Schools, churches and clinics: large pits for schools, clinics and churches, designed for heavy daytime use
- Farms and game farms: building pits at homesteads and worker housing, kept well clear of boreholes and dams
- Restaurants, shops and offices: pits for rural shops, filling stations and restaurants that are not on a sewer
- Factories, mines, sites and events: pits for site offices, depots and ablutions, sized for the number of workers
- Estates and complexes: sizing pits for shared tanks on a complex, with a test report for the body corporate
Local tips for Welkom
Common here: septic tanks on holdings, conservancy tanks for schools and former mine housing. Ask each operator or contractor to allow for this: ask for a soakaway percolation test, as soil varies a lot between plots. Help usually comes from honey sucker operators based in Welkom and Odendaalsrus.
Soakaways usually means dig a pit, fill it with stone or fit chambers, for 2 to 3 m across, 1.5 to 2.5 m deep, check yearly, lasts 15 to 25 years. Ground in the area: flat ground with shallow pans: water lingers after rain and soakaways struggle.
What to include in your request
- Number of people using the system and the tank size in litres
- Whether this is a new soakaway or a repair of an old one
- Soil type and whether a percolation test has been done
- Distance to buildings, boreholes, streams and boundaries
- Stone pit, rubble pit or chamber, if you have a preference
The more detail you give, the more accurate your quote will be.
Service area: Welkom and surrounds
Operators, contractors and suppliers on our network work in Welkom and surrounding areas, including Thabong, Odendaalsrus, Virginia, Riebeeckstad, Allanridge, Hennenman. Give the suburb, holding or farm name so the quote can include travel, and say how soon you need someone.