Ever seen a privy turned into a septic tank?

halfdime

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I'm posting this here because it probably gets the most views. I've grown to like digging privies, and I decided today to try my luck in my own back yard. I know the neighbors had several, and we live in an old neighborhood; why not us? I took my probe into the yard and began poking about as far from the house as the neighbors privies. I hit something solid about 6 or 8 inches, so I poked again, and again, and again. Solid. I thought perhaps an old privy had been capped, so I started to dig; sure enough, there was a large rock laying flat, and I could see a little opening to one side. I pushed the probe into it and hit water. Off came the rock, and there was a small oval opening, maybe 1.5x2 feet. Next, I got a long pole and got a depth; it was about six feet to the bottom. I began to bail the water, stirring up sediment below and giving off a sewer type smell. Once the water level dropped, I noticed a pipe running out of the hole, away from the house. Immediately, I figured septic tank, except that it is stone lined like a well or even a privy. A little more investigation revealed a pipe coming in from the direction of the house, making this a septic tank. My question, since the hole could have been easily used for a privy, has anyone ever found a privy made into a septic tank? I know our house has been hooked up to the public sewer for a long time; in fact, we just had to replace it in January! I'm dying to dig the whole thing out, empty the pit and do some searching; who knows what might have gone down a drain decades ago?
 

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moundbuilder

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halfdime said:
I'm posting this here because it probably gets the most views. I've grown to like digging privies, and I decided today to try my luck in my own back yard. I know the neighbors had several, and we live in an old neighborhood; why not us? I took my probe into the yard and began poking about as far from the house as the neighbors privies. I hit something solid about 6 or 8 inches, so I poked again, and again, and again. Solid. I thought perhaps an old privy had been capped, so I started to dig; sure enough, there was a large rock laying flat, and I could see a little opening to one side. I pushed the probe into it and hit water. Off came the rock, and there was a small oval opening, maybe 1.5x2 feet. Next, I got a long pole and got a depth; it was about six feet to the bottom. I began to bail the water, stirring up sediment below and giving off a sewer type smell. Once the water level dropped, I noticed a pipe running out of the hole, away from the house. Immediately, I figured septic tank, except that it is stone lined like a well or even a privy. A little more investigation revealed a pipe coming in from the direction of the house, making this a septic tank. My question, since the hole could have been easily used for a privy, has anyone ever found a privy made into a septic tank? I know our house has been hooked up to the public sewer for a long time; in fact, we just had to replace it in January! I'm dying to dig the whole thing out, empty the pit and do some searching; who knows what might have gone down a drain decades ago?

yes we have dug privies that have been converted into septic tanks on several occasions. Usually the original fill/use layer was removed when it was converted, at least the ones we've dug; what this means is NO BOTTLES OR OTHER ARTIFACTS. If it has a stone or brick lined bottom, you MIGHT be in luck; remove a few bricks or stones from the bottom and probe it and see if any layers are below the floor and if they are, dig it down. As for finding treasure that may have gone down the drain, hmmmm... is it worth the effort? Let us know what you find. -Rob
 

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halfdime

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I've gently pushed a shovel down into the muck and haven't hit any bottles. It would make sense, if converting to a septic system, to empty the privy first. Still, I'm intrigued by what might have gone into the septic tank; I've talked to guys who pump septic systems and they've told me of some pretty nice finds. Rings would seem to be the most likely, and even coins, but I'd be happy to find marbles or any other man-made artifacts. Now, I have to decide if it's worth it.
 

moundbuilder

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halfdime said:
I've gently pushed a shovel down into the muck and haven't hit any bottles. It would make sense, if converting to a septic system, to empty the privy first. Still, I'm intrigued by what might have gone into the septic tank; I've talked to guys who pump septic systems and they've told me of some pretty nice finds. Rings would seem to be the most likely, and even coins, but I'd be happy to find marbles or any other man-made artifacts. Now, I have to decide if it's worth it.

halfdime, what year was your house built? Is it a city or country lot? Have you probed the entire yard yet? Septic tanks and cisterns are most always nearer to the house than the outhouse(s). I just noticed that you said the hole was 1.5-2' in diameter... that would have never been a privy, especially if it is lined in stone! Based on experience 3-4' is the minimum diameter for a stone liner; most are even larger than that. Usually the first privy was in the back corner or along the back property line, especially in urban areas. You might want to exhaust your chances of finding a dry pit before ripping into a mucky "iffy" one... good luck!
 

jgas

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Hey Halfdime, like the thread. It's great learning about privy digging... Maybe someone could answer this question. I am at two different sites. One a C. 1860, the other a C. 1881 Home. Both with field stone foundations. Both with what appear to be cement lined privies. Is this right? Thought maybe the older privies would be brick lined. What would I expect to find at the bottom of a cement lined one? just cement or a dirt floor or what? Thanks for any answers here...

HalfDime, not sure if I would jump right in on a septic or not, but maybe... :thumbsup: jgas
 

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halfdime

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Mother nature made the decision for me; I went out today and discovered that there were 30 more gallons of water in the pit. Any further work would have been fruitless, so I filled the pit in with dirt; at least I won't have to worry about collapse in the future. As the whole thing settles, I'll add topsoil and reseed. I'll always wonder, though, if there was any thing worth pursuing down there!
 

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It would be a cold day before I would go digging in a septic tank. But I do have a goofy friend who said he once dropped a dime in the urinal in the mens room. He said he had to throw a quarter in so it would be worth sticking his hand in to get the dime! M :laughing9: nty
 

Cal_Cobra

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For some odd reason, a quote from Shawshank Redemption comes to mind:

"In 1966, Andy Dufresne escaped from Shawshank prison. All they found of him was a muddy set of prison clothes, a bar of soap, and an old rock hammer, damn near worn down to the nub. I remember thinking it would take a man six hundred years to tunnel through the wall with it. Old Andy did it in less than twenty. Oh, Andy loved geology. I imagine it appealed to his meticulous nature. An ice age here, million years of mountain building there. Geology is the study of pressure and time. That's all it takes really, pressure, and time. That, and a big goddamn poster. Like I said, in prison a man will do most anything to keep his mind occupied. Turns out Andy's favorite hobby was totin' his wall out into the exercise yard, a handful at a time. I guess after Tommy was killed, Andy decided he'd been here just about long enough. Andy did like he was told, buffed those shoes to a high mirror shine. The guards simply didn't notice. Neither did I... I mean, seriously, how often do you really look at a mans shoes? Andy crawled to freedom through five hundred yards of shi! smelling foulness I can't even imagine, or maybe I just don't want to. Five hundred yards... that's the length of five football fields, just shy of half a mile. "
 

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halfdime

halfdime

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moundbuilder said:
halfdime said:
I've gently pushed a shovel down into the muck and haven't hit any bottles. It would make sense, if converting to a septic system, to empty the privy first. Still, I'm intrigued by what might have gone into the septic tank; I've talked to guys who pump septic systems and they've told me of some pretty nice finds. Rings would seem to be the most likely, and even coins, but I'd be happy to find marbles or any other man-made artifacts. Now, I have to decide if it's worth it.

halfdime, what year was your house built? Is it a city or country lot? Have you probed the entire yard yet? Septic tanks and cisterns are most always nearer to the house than the outhouse(s). I just noticed that you said the hole was 1.5-2' in diameter... that would have never been a privy, especially if it is lined in stone! Based on experience 3-4' is the minimum diameter for a stone liner; most are even larger than that. Usually the first privy was in the back corner or along the back property line, especially in urban areas. You might want to exhaust your chances of finding a dry pit before ripping into a mucky "iffy" one... good luck!
I missed this when you posted it yesterday. My house is early 1900's in the heart of a residential town.. I've done no other probing. When we moved in, there was a big (2-3') pipe on top of a well or cistern right beside the house, covered by a concrete slab. I took off the pipe, put the slab back down and covered it. I now have an azalea growing in the pipe. The "tank" I found yesterday is the typical distance for privies, maybe 40' from the house. What you're saying is that this probably wasn't a privy? Why would someone make such a primitive septic tank? The way it filled overnight (30+ gallons, makes me wonder if it was a well first. Anyway, I filled in what I found yesterday.
 

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