Seeking Plumbing/ Utilities Advice For Living on Land

Hello,
My partner and I are just starting to plan our build for a piece of land we recently purchased. This heavily forested piece of land has a well, septic, grid power (that needs to be reconnected), as well as one 12x20 shed and a 12x8 shed. The interesting thing is that none of these utilities are hooked up or really plumbed in any way, in fact the septic system has never been used before. The well does not have a pipe connecting anywhere, but there is a pipe that goes into the septic from above which we could use to pour buckets of dish water, etc. The power is another thing entirely, as we are going to need to get the system put back into service, I don't think it will be too hard, but I am also prepared to just run a generator for the initial stages of the project.

So the structure we are thinking of living in, the 12x20 shed, is not near the septic, but is fairly close to the well. The septic is a good bit uphill from the shed, and the easiest way I can see to get this to work would be to move a shed closer to the septic, and plumb in lines as necessary for comfort while I am building the main house.

Another HOWEVER, we are planning to move to the property fairly soon and before we can even really think about moving the shed, there are several other projects that are going to need to be finished first, primarily the reconstruction of our bridge in order to allow vehicles to the main portion of our property.

So I guess what I am really getting at here is, how can we live on the land full time in its current state? So far I am thinking of just a generator and a small storage tank for our water. As well as a composting toilet which we can either convert to compost or just pour straight into the septic. I can definitely see these options getting old fast, however they can definitely work in the short term future.

Does anyone have any advice for this situation? Maybe something I'm not seeing? We are located in Washington County, Maine, and as such I will also be needing to consider what will need to be done to ensure the property is habitable during our winter months.

Thanks for any input, or just for reading this far. We definitely have a huge project in front of us!

I would contact the utilities company and see about getting a temporary power pole on the property. It will save time and money and the headache of a generator.

It might be a good idea to call a few plumbers and ask how much a consult is. Some are cheap and a few companies will do it for free in hopes of future business.

The composting toilet is great for the time being and you can even look into building your own willow feeder. Composting toilets with the collection dug out below your shed in the hillside might even be something you find is worth the effort and it can be much more luxurious than just a bucket with saw dust in the corner.

Once you find out about the plumbing possible to utilize the septic then you can know where your house is going to be and contact the utility company to ask how much it will be and get on the waiting list to have them come out before you are ready to get power connected make sure you are ready you might have some requirements such as an inspection or a panel signed off by a licensed electrician.

Also you can often save money and unsightly Poles on your property by digging in your own  conduits to their Poles just ask what they need to be able to get that done. If you do choose the underground method make sure you put in an extra conduit  or two with a pull string incase you want cable internet or some other service from the road!

Good luck! Don't skimp on insulation and put in more outlets than you think you need!

Hey fellow Mainer...

I think you can work on both. If you already HAD power on site then it should be a simple matter for Versant Power to hook you back up. A call should get that in process...

As for the well, I was not sure if you have a well but no pump, or a well and pump. There is a huge difference. I would get the water working though ASAP as it is 2023 and we as humans have just become accustomed to having water. You can always power your small arrangement in the short term with a cheap generator, but go without water and you will be hating life.

Kind of hard figuring out about moving sheds and all that without a map or pictures to go by. I have moved a ton of buildings, but it is never easy and best to find workarounds if you can leave them in place. This is Maine, winter is coming soon even though it may not seem like it. You got plenty to do already I would imagine.

My school chum's Grandmother raised 6 kids in a small house in Nova Scotia with a two-seater outhouse (with pretty flowered wallpaper) and a well they had to walk down the hill to and use a bucket to get the water out of (it took a neat little flick of the wrist to get the bucket on its side with out stirring up too much sand).

Yes, we're used to *all* the creature comforts, but many in Nova Scotia lost power for over a week after the remnants of a hurricane trashed parts of the province. Part of your challenge is to look at this like the adventure that it is and accept that many people as little as 100 years ago considered this normal life.

Good luck on getting everything organized and focus on the important things - like working safely!

In many areas, an approved septic system is absolutely required before a property can be sold or subdivided. It doesn't have to be used, or connected unless there is a permanent residence. But it's an expensive check box that must be ticked off.

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:In many areas, an approved septic system is absolutely required before a property can be sold or subdivided. It doesn't have to be used, or connected unless there is a permanent residence. But it's an expensive check box that must be ticked off.

This is very true, and especially so in Maine.

Most towns here, do not have any building codes, but environmental laws are strictly enforced on the state level. I once built a 30 x 48 foot barn without a permit built 4 feet on center and not a word was said, but there was heck to pay for having a kitchen sink not plumbed to my septic system. It has to do with our clean waters and forests for all the tourists that come here.

Steve Zoma wrote:Hey fellow Mainer...

I think you can work on both. If you already HAD power on site then it should be a simple matter for Versant Power to hook you back up. A call should get that in process...

As for the well, I was not sure if you have a well but no pump, or a well and pump. There is a huge difference. I would get the water working though ASAP as it is 2023 and we as humans have just become accustomed to having water. You can always power your small arrangement in the short term with a cheap generator, but go without water and you will be hating life.

Kind of hard figuring out about moving sheds and all that without a map or pictures to go by. I have moved a ton of buildings, but it is never easy and best to find workarounds if you can leave them in place. This is Maine, winter is coming soon even though it may not seem like it. You got plenty to do already I would imagine.

Power is on site, and there is a meter as well but it is not hooked up due to inactivity. The well has a pump, and overall the water is good to drink besides slightly high iron contents (We are thinking it may lessen over time since the well has not been in service for 20 years...) Having spoken to Versant, I know the poles are privately owned by me as well, not entire sure what that stipulates however. Yep we definitely have our hands full!

As far as plumbing in the actual well, what kind of considerations are we going to need to take into consideration in order to keep it operating throughout the winter? A well house has popped up on my ever growing 'to-build' list, but other than that will I need to be putting all my pipes below the frost line? (Yes I did not grow up in the cold, lol)

Thanks for your advice!

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:In many areas, an approved septic system is absolutely required before a property can be sold or subdivided. It doesn't have to be used, or connected unless there is a permanent residence. But it's an expensive check box that must be ticked off.

Yes we ran into that about 3 years ago when trying to buy a property right before covid happened... Hearing that we needed to have a septic before we could develop basically put us off until right now when we found a spot which already had well and septic. It can be a tough rule at times, but I guess it helps keep people accountable. Thanks for your reply.

Hi Vincent,
It is nice to see another Mainer on Permies.

I agree that the electrical will probably be the easier thing to get going, and that you want to get going on that asap. If you can get it connected to your well pump and some outlets for the shed/house, you could do a lot.

In a perfect world, you would bury the water pipes at least 4ft below ground level up here to avoid freezing, but there is a product people use for under houses and where that is not possible. It is called heat tape. It comes in many different lengths, and is just a long braided wire that plugs into power and gets wrapped around the pipe. It produces enough heat to keep the pipe from freezing (usually). It cannot be used where it would get wet, but in a crawl space it could be a big help.

In a perfect world, you would move the shed/house higher than the septic system, so that gravity can do its work, and you can flush toilets even without power. However, there are special septic pumps for situations where the septic system is higher than the house. It would need electricity, obviously, but could save you having to move the shed/house, so I wanted you to know that they exist.