Septic Tank Service in Alcoa, TN

Septic tank pumping in Alcoa

Pumping is the most common septic job. Most household tanks in Alcoa need it every three to five years, sooner with a small tank or a full house. Work out your own interval with the septic pumping calculator, or see what a septic tank pumping visit involves.

Sewer or septic in Alcoa?

The City of Alcoa provides sewer inside the city, (865) 380-4700, and its wastewater is treated at Maryville's plant. Septic work around Alcoa is mostly in the unincorporated parts of Blount County, where Blount County Environmental Health issues the permit.

Who issues septic permits in Blount County

Blount County runs its own septic program under contract with the state, so you apply to the county office, not to TDEC. The rules are still Tennessee's, and a construction permit is good for three years from the day it is issued.

The ground around Alcoa

Alcoa sits in the foothills with Chilhowee Mountain to the south, and the Little River runs along the east side of the city on its way to the Tennessee.

The soils around Alcoa are a mix: Sequoia and Dewey on the higher ground, Litz and Farragut on the slopes, and Hamblen in the bottoms along the creeks. Hamblen floods and stays wet, and Sequoia and Litz are shallow to rock. The USDA rates most of them very limited for septic fields. Those are general ratings from the USDA soil survey. Your permit depends on a soil evaluation of your own lot.

What that means for the cost

Slow soil means a bigger drain field for the same house. A three-bedroom house needs about 2,250 sq ft of field on clay (typically $16,000 to $22,000 installed) against 375 sq ft on sand ($5,000 to $6,500). See the full breakdown on septic installation cost in Knox County.

Why the perc test comes first

Under Tennessee's septic rules, a new system is not permitted until the lot's soil has been evaluated, usually with a soil map drawn by a licensed soil consultant. That evaluation sets your field size and your price. Read more about perc testing near Alcoa, or try the numbers below.

How far we are from Alcoa

Alcoa is about 20 minutes' drive from our yard at 801 E 5th Ave in Knoxville, depending on traffic.