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Septic inspections for buyers, sellers and owners
Condition, performance and paperwork, in one written report.
Nanaimo Septic Systems inspects existing septic systems. We record the condition of your tank, how your disposal field is performing, and whether the paperwork your property should already carry is actually there. Island Health will release the records it already holds on your property for $50, through a Request for Release of Information form.
An inspection answers two separate questions. The first is whether the system works now. The second is whether the system was ever filed, certified and maintained — which is a paper question, and often the harder one on an older rural property.
Inspection scope varies with what is on site and what records exist. A system with a filing, a certification and pump-out history takes far less work to verify than one with no paperwork at all, where the tank and field have to be located before anything can be assessed.
What gets checked
Tank condition and sludge depth, the effluent filter where one is fitted, distribution to the field, and the state of the ground over the disposal area. Standing water over a field, slow fixtures right through a house, and odour after heavy rain are the three signs that most often end in a repair quote.
The paper trail a property should have
Four documents matter: the original filing, the Letter of Certification with its as-built diagram, the maintenance plan filed alongside it, and pump-out records. Island Health holds sewerage records for filed systems and releases them on request. Systems installed before the current regulation may have no filing at all.
Buying or selling a property on septic
We request the existing records from Island Health and inspect the system independently for a buyer. Most tanks need pumping every 3 to 5 years, per Regional District of Nanaimo guidance, and a gap much longer than that on a property with no maintenance history usually shows up in the tank.
Inspection types
Pre-purchase inspection
Condition assessment and records check for a buyer before subjects are removed.
Owner condition check
For a property with no recent pump-out or no known maintenance history.
Records retrieval
Existing filings and certification requested from Island Health for a property.
How an inspection runs
- 1
Records request — existing filings and certification pulled before the site visit where available.
- 2
Tank and component check — access risers, sludge depth, effluent filter, distribution.
- 3
Field walk — surface condition, wet spots, vegetation lines and any breakout.
- 4
Written findings — condition, missing paperwork, and what work is needed.
Why systems fail around here
Four things drive local septic failure here: soil that isn't deep enough, a water table that rises in the wet months, closeness to the ocean, and systems simply getting old. Nanoose Bay carries all four at once in places. A field that looks fine in August can behave differently in February.
A typical case
- Situation
- A 1980s waterfront property at Nanoose Bay, going on the market in late summer.
- Complication
- No filing exists, the tank lid has been buried under a deck addition, and the field position is unknown.
- Resolution
- We trace the field from vegetation lines and probing, fit access risers to bring the lids to grade, and give the buyer a written condition report in place of a filing that was never made.
People also ask
Is a septic inspection required when selling a house in British Columbia?
No. No provincial law requires one. Buyers frequently ask for one anyway, and existing records can be requested from Island Health for $50 per property.
What records does Island Health hold?
Filings and Letters of Certification for systems filed under the Sewerage System Regulation. Older systems may have nothing on file.
Does an inspection include pumping the tank?
Not necessarily. Sludge depth can be measured without emptying a tank, though a pump-out gives a clearer view of the baffles and the outlet. Where a tank is already overdue under its maintenance plan, the two are usually combined into one visit.
What if a system has no filing?
A system with no filing can still be working fine. We assess the condition from what we find on site, and we tell you whether a filing exists.
An inspection connects to three other things: field repairs, tank servicing, and the filing guide.
Find out what the ground will take.
Free site assessments across Nanaimo and surrounding areas.
Text or call (236) 362-1344