Buy power and sewer or else

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...dependent-on-the-system-to-partially-plug-in/


Dits since this is Florida want to chime in?

 

I saw this said they were concerned about her water supply ! WTF ? They are not drinking it and the rain water is probably safer than the municipal water !

 

They should probably just send the swat team over there to kill her.




I'm only partly joking. There was a story not long ago about some people growing their own food in a backyard greenhouse. An "anonymous tip" said they were growing drugs so the swat teams busted in and city workers destroyed their entire hydroponic garden with weed whackers.

 

Most municipalities require city water for potable water use in the dwelling/establishment by statute or ordinance. No potable water supply = no occupancy permit.

In the west, it gets more difficult to run your own water system (well), in that unless you have an actual water right for that use, that water does not belong to you. It can even go as far as harvesting rainwater. In Utah, up until the "Mark Miller Toyota" case a few years ago, it was actually illegal to harvest and reuse rainwater (although not widely enforced).

 

More entertaining than the story.... the comments. Wow.

 

Not as dramatic, but similar things occur in my neighborhood. The area used to be on its own with wells and septic systems. 8-10 yrs ago the county utility brought water and sewer down my street. All but one homeowner hooked up. The neighbor who didn't hook up has been "renovating" his house since to avoid hooking up. The utility folks just gave him the "get on or come to court" notice last week.

 

"You have to let us help you or else we will force you to."

More government intervention where it is not needed.

 

Buncha

 

I did a search and read the State of Utah allows up 2,500 gallons of harvested rainwater but you need to register your system,at no charge.

You can harvest to to 200 gallons without being registering in dual containers of not than 100 gallons each.

I know someone who I believe has a 1,000 gallon system that came with the recently purchased home so I'll need to let them know they may have to register the system in their name just in case they want to remain on the legal side of the law.

 

It's in Cape Coral, FL...this is a place that makes people pay for city water and sewer connections and make you pay for it with no choice of staying on your well and septic. The choices for payment? Come up with $20-25k by either having it saved and paying, getting a loan or putting it on a payment program with your taxes. Otherwise, they put a lien on your house. They've been doing it block by block for over 10 years. The city sucks, there's absolutely nothing worth living there for.

On the flip side, if any of you are looking for a warm, sunny place to live with the Gulf 20 minutes away and lots of fishing and gulf, I have a 2400sq ft house for you to buy in SW Cape Coral. Water and sewage assessments are paid.

 

I am assuming the regulations are designed to prevent slumlords from renting out properties that are not adequately equipped for human habitation.

With that said, I'm surprised this is being pursued. The lady must have done something to piss off somebody. If there were/are kids in the house, I could see that being a concern for Child Protective Services as well, but there was no mention of that in the article.

 

Two parts of this equation. Incoming and outgoing. She may not have been using the water coming INTO her house but she was using the drains leading OUT to the sewer system she wasnt paying for.

 

The issue was/is that under western (ie; Utah) water law, harvesting rainwater could reduce the supply to downstream water users, thus causing them harm. You guys in the East will eventually have to deal with this issue, with the droughts and increased population you're seeing.

The issue with someone not wanting to connect to the public system, and the body politic's response is not as evil as it may seem on face value. Usually, some election is held to decide whether or not a public system will be constructed and implemented. Then the project is bonded and one of the conditions of funding is to ensure that the system is financially viable - that the bond will be paid off. Then a bond referendum is passed. The whole process is pretty democratic, with the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few. Most areas that go to public systems actually benefit the residents in that: Fire protection is usually part of the deal, so homeowner insurance goes down, many private wells are less than 100' deep and are often contaminated as a result of septic systems, the water supply still works during power outages, water quality is frequently tested, etc.

I have no issue with someone wanting to stay off the grid - hell, if I could afford it, I'd have my own power, water, sewer, and heating systems. In her case, it was probably set up some time ago that everyone in the area had to hook up (by democratic process), she wants to buck the system and the system sez NO.

 

Speaking as a slumlord, city sewer and water are a big advantage in a rental property. Tenants will not exercise due care with septic systems and water wells. As a homeowner, the maintenance costs on a septic system are almost nothing compared to a monthly sewer bill.

 

That's largely true, except for the up-front costs of the septic system - which can be a chunk of money, especially if the soils on site are not suitable (too much clay or rock). A well designed and maintained septic system can work well for decades. Mess it up, and you have to rebuild the whole system at $20K or so - not to mention ripping up your yard. Amortize that cost over roughly 20-30 years, and the public sewer gets more reasonable in comparison. Nitrates (or even fecal coliform) leaching into the well is sometimes a result when the septic system fails. Now your well is junk, too.

 

I usually just hop on the tractor and replace field lines myself. A complete new septic system is about $3K here. Most of our soil is fairly sandy. With a bit of care, field line life can be almost indefinite.

 

I did the same as well, rented a backhoe from Home Depot for the day and dug the trench
city inspector approved
purchased 80 tons of gravel and had it dumped in yard area (I own almost an acre) rented front loader and filled in I think it was 1' then the sewer line, then 2' of gravel on top. Inspector again, again approved,
rented front loader again and filled in dirt. some sod, and mine was about 4.5K for a very well designed septic field.

I do forget what the perk cost was. That was above the 4.5K total cost for all the rest. My septic tank was fine, so just replaced the line

 

You guys are lucky. A lot of jurisdictions require perc test and design by Registered Engineer and installation by approved Contractor. You can save big bucks if you DIY fo sho.

 

Couldn't she just sign up, run up a tab, never pay it and let them shut it back off?

 

Probably, but then it would circle back around to Code Enforcement again - no approved water supply = not approved for habitation. She's basically screwed, but if she hooks up (and I bet the fee is not pocket change), at least that'll buy her a few months before she's back to where she is now.