By DON DARE
6 On Your Side Reporter
CROSSVILLE (WATE) - A Cumberland County couple called 6 On Your Side because they're fed up with the septic system they've had trouble with for six years at their retirement home.
Leon and Sheila Danley have a sewage mess in their back yard in Lake Tansi Village. "You have to stay out pretty far. If you don't, you'll be right in the middle of it," he advised when 6 On Your Side visited.
Nearly one in four households in Tennessee depends on an individual septic system.
The way the system works is simple. The wastewater a home produces flows from the house into a watertight, underground septic tank. The tank is connected to pipes that spread into what's called the septic drain field.
All this is environmentally safe if the soil is conducive for a septic system. A groundwater specialist must determine that.
If the soil is determined to be loamy (with equal amounts of clay, silt, and sand), a septic system is okay to use. The tank needs to be drained every few years.
However, if the soil becomes wet and there's an odor even after the tank is emptied, that means there's trouble.
Leon estimates 60 percent of the back yard was wet recently, a combination of water and waste from his septic system.
"That's sewage coming up, yes," he pointed out. "It's been with us every since we been here."
The Danleys moved into their home in Lake Tansi Village six years ago to retire. Now they regret it. "It's maddening," Sheila said. "I just want to scream."
Sheila spoke with us on her back porch. Due to her weakened immune system, she's afraid to walk in her backyard since it's full of bacteria. She says she noticed problems "three months after we moved in."
Leon says they've spent thousands of dollars trying several ways to get their septic system to work. Their efforts have failed. "We're just sick. Well actually, we're ready to give up, Don."
I asked if anyone told them five or six years ago the soil was no good. "No, no," Sheila said. "It was never disclosed to us."
That's true, according to a December 2011 report from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. A soil map of the Danley's yard prepared in 2002 by a private consultant identified the soil as loamy, and a permit was issued.
But after state examiners checked the yard, their report says the permit "should not have been issued." It says there's not enough slope to discharge the water it collects, and the soil will continue to be prone to over saturation.
"It smells like we have pigs, a hog farm," Sheila said. "It's terrible."
"We get the smell from here," said their neighbor, Barbara LaFlew. "It can get pretty bad."
LaFlew says she also had drainage problems in her back yard when they moved into their home. Since she owns a double lot, her drain field was extended.
Leon says in 2006 with permission from the state, he was allowed to tie into his neighbor's septic system. Plus, a French drain was added around both lots, but the fix didn't work. Sixty percent of the Danley's back yard is unusable.
The state suggested the couple buy an empty lot behind their house, but that doesn't help either. There's no sewer line along the road where they live and there likely won't be one for a while because community politics has entered into the picture.
In 2009, the Lake Tansi Village Homeowners Association and Cumberland County formed a special utility district to bring sewer lines into the village.
Some of the soil near the golf course and by the lake was similar to what the Danley's are experiencing.
But a group 6 News reported on called Stop Tansi Sewer halted development of the sewer lines. They didn't like the added expense.
Sheila says attorneys tell them too much time has elapsed so they can't sue the private soil consultant or their home builder.
The best remedy, a sewer line, would cost $6,000. But the issued is tied up in court and the couple is stuck with a messy, bacteria-filled yard that smells.
"If we had wanted to buy a house next door to the city dump, we would have bought a house next to the city dump," Sheila said.
The Danleys say there does not appear to be a quick, inexpensive remedy to their problem. The size of their lot and the soil conditions are very limiting. The couple is open to any suggestions.
They've tried contacting the home's builder, but have had no success.
If you have a consumer issue, call the 6 On Your Side Hotline at 865-633-5974 or email ddare@wate.com.
Leon Danley estimates 60 percent of the back yard was wet recently.
Leon and Sheila look out at their problem yard.
