keeping ground from freezing

[zak77]

I'm going to need a septic inspection done in the near future when i sell my house and usually that's no big deal however with freezing temps this time of year the ground can get hard real quick. We're having a thaw right now so i'm hoping to at least dig up the tank and d-box while the ground isnt rock hard. But i dont want empty holes in my back yard for the next 2-4 weeks since i dont know what the temps will be in a week so it's a now or never(really 3 months) kinda thing. So my idea was to dig them out, fill hole with hay/straw then cover with a 4x4 piece of 2" rigid foam. Do you think that'll be good enough to prevent the extreme cold from having any negative effect on the tank or d-box? So far this year it hasnt been extremely cold but that can change so January can bring 30's and 40's or teen's as high temps. Fyi the covers are about 24" down from grade.

 

[larry_g]

Hay/straw makes a great insulator till it gets wet. Consider lining the hole with plastic tarp or something that you can wrap around the straw making a bag that is proud of the surface that will shed water. Then cover with a second tarp that is staked down. No need for the foam in my mind.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Richard Cranium]

I don't know about in your part of the country, But in Washington State, you need to of had your tank pumped and an inspection done with in the last year of selling your home.
Check and see, maybe you can get it done and over with now.

 

[zak77]

I don't know about in your part of the country, But in Washington State, you need to of had your tank pumped and an inspection done with in the last year of selling your home.
Check and see, maybe you can get it done and over with now.

The guy who's the inspector cant get to it for a couple weeks so i want it all ready to go when he's ready. In Mass it doesnt matter, just need it inspected and pumped prior to closing on the house so i want it done before it goes on the market.

 

[willymakeit]

Concrete blankets

 

[Bondo]

So my idea was to dig them out, fill hole with hay/straw then cover with a 4x4 piece of 2" rigid foam.

Ayuh,.... I'd dig 'em out, put the foam board down, 'n stack a few bales of hay on top of the dow board,....
Then tarp the hole thing,....

 

[Ray916MN]

Just spit balling here, but how about covering the area with straw bales 2 or 3 deep to insulate the ground from direct exposure. If the ground gets hard, burn a bale or two over the area you want to dig.

 

[sberry]

Set 2 straw bales over it and cover with a shower curtain.

 

[zak77]

Dug it yup yesterday since it was 50° out and the ground wasnt frozen in the least but there had been a snow cover over that area. My plan is to get the bales today, fill trash bags with the hay so it doesnt get wet then put the bags in the holes and cover with plywood and a trap. This way i have access at any time.

 

[gungatim]

I wouldn't do anything. if your septic is working, it throws off heat from the bacterial action as well as the water entering it. the ground rarely freezes solid above the tank. around here, the snow usually melts and doesn't even accumulate much where the tank is, unless we get more than a foot. then the snow actually insulates the ground and helps hold the heat in unitl it melts...it won't be hard to dig it up, but if you really want to do it now, no reason you can't throw in hay and cover with plywood or whatever...

 

[LS6 Tommy]

How deep is your frost line? If you're not shoveling by hand and it's not too far down, I'd just let it be. We dig all year round here. The frost line is never much more than 6".

Tommy

 

[zak77]

How deep is your frost line? If you're not shoveling by hand and it's not too far down, I'd just let it be. We dig all year round here. The frost line is never much more than 6".

Tommy

If we get a bad year, 4' down can freeze SOLID. I've talked to builders who couldnt dig with an excavator if it was really cold for a long period of time. As said, it's dug up, i got the hay bales in the back of my truck and will be installed when i get home tonight.