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CAYUGA COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT INSTRUCTIONS FOR REPAIR/REPLACEMENT OF AN EXISTING SEPTIC SYSTEM The Cayuga County Sanitary Code Article V Section VII requires that any repair or replacement of septic systems shall be reviewed and accepted by the Cayuga County Health Department before the work is performed. The following guidelines shall apply to obtain acceptance: 1. Only contractors who are registered with the Cayuga County Health Department may be hired to repair or modify septic systems. (Homeowners may perform the work themselves.) 2. Homeowners and or their contractor may excavate portions of the system to diagnose the problem before obtaining Health Department approval. 3. If the septic tank alone needs to be replaced, submit the attached form to the Health Department. No fee is charged for a tank replacement only. The contractor shall submit a certificate of construction after the installation is made. 4. If new leach lines or an entire new system are needed, a contractor or homeowner must submit a written proposal to the Health Department prior to performing the work, using the attached form. A percolation test should be done by the homeowner or contractor and results reported with the repair proposal to the Health Department. A review fee of $100.00 payable to the Cayuga County Health Department must accompany applications for conventional absorption trench systems. A fee of $150.00 is required for other types of systems. Please note: if the system is located within the Owasco Lake or Little Sodus Bay Watersheds, the Health Department requires that a design professional (Licensed Professional Engineer of Registered Architect) prepare the plans for the repair or modification. (The Health Department also reserves the right to require that a design professional prepare plans if the property has problem soils or is located adjacent to a stream, lake or other environmentally sensitive area.) 5. Once the Health Department accepts the repair or modification, the modification proposal is signed by the Health Department and returned to the homeowner. 6. The Health Department requires that the repair/modification be inspected by a design professional (Licensed Professional Engineer or Registered Architect) to verify construction before it is backfilled and submit a certificate of construction letter to the Cayuga County Health Department. In addition, homeowners in the Skaneateles Watershed need to also contact the City of Syracuse Watershed Inspector at 685-6486 for their inspection of the work prior to it being backfilled. 7. The contractor must also submit a certificate of construction compliance form to the Health Department upon completion of the installation. 8. A letter will be sent by the Health Department to the homeowner when the engineer’s certificate of construction and contractor’s certificate of construction have been received. Environmental Health Division 253-1405