How Kernow Septic works
Kernow Septic is an independent guide to septic tanks and off-mains drainage for Cornwall — the farms, villages and coastal parishes where homes look after their own drainage rather than connecting to the mains sewer. We explain the rules, put honest numbers on the costs, and when you need the work done, we put your enquiry in front of firms that cover your area.
How we make money
Local firms may pay us for qualified enquiries. You pay nothing, and no markup is added to any price you're quoted. That model only stays reasonable if it is stated plainly rather than buried in a footer, so: that is the model. It also means our incentive is to be useful — a homeowner told honestly that their tank just needs emptying, not replacing, is one who comes back when it doesn't.
What we are not
- Not a tanker firm or installer. We do not empty tanks, dig soakaways or fit treatment plants ourselves. When we describe the work, we are describing the work — not advertising our own. One practical consequence worth knowing: anyone who empties your tank must be a registered waste carrier, so whoever you use, ask for the waste transfer note.
- Not the Environment Agency. Our free compliance checker is built from the EA's published General Binding Rules and cited back to them, but it is guidance, not a determination. The EA decides permits; we help you work out which questions apply to you.
How we get to our numbers
Every price range on this site is indicative and dated, assembled from published pricing and what Cornwall homeowners report actually paying — not invented. Where a figure is our own estimate rather than a sourced one, we say so. The rules content is written against the published GOV.UK guidance for England and linked to it; Wales and Scotland have their own regimes.
Local coverage
We cover 20 towns across Cornwall and the rural parishes around them — from the Lizard to the Tamar. Find your nearest area on our areas page.
Corrections
If something here is wrong, we want to know — prices move and rules change, and a guide that isn't corrected stops being one. Get in touch through the contact page.