Hi everyone!

My partner and I are in the process of negotiating the purchase of an old, fixer upper house on Bonaire, and we have just found out that the house has a cesspool for a sanitation system. (The Dutch word used to describe the system was "beerput.")
Does anyone know how common it is for older houses on Bonaire to have a cesspool? Is this a major problematic issue? Do you know whether we will have to upgrade to a septic system, and how much time and money would this would involve?

Please note that we have asked our realtor these questions, but we would love your advice and feedback as well. The problem is we are off-island now, and we are trying to figure out how serious this issue is without having to fly out to have another look at the property. What would you do in this situation? Would you hire an inspector?

Thanks so much in advance for your thoughts!

Best regards,
-- Anke

Beerput does mean septic tank (not cesspool). All houses have them, as far as I know, both old & new. Our house was built in the 40's, and the system that was in use then is still what we use today.

Ruth is correct. We do not have a sewer on Bonaire yet.
When the sewer comes, it will only be for the resorts plus all homes in Belnem which are within 500 yards of the water (which covers most Belnem homes).
Since you cannot buy a home that is on a sewer line, the existence of a septic tank on your property is not an issue.
Is this what your realtor told you?
Neither Ruth nor I can guarantee that your prospective home has a septic tank, of course. But they are standard on Bonaire. We pay a fee to have them pumped out by the sanitation department.

Hi Ruth and Tish,

Thank you so much for your responses! However, there is now some confusion because my realtor has just confirmed that the system is indeed a cesspool, and that the waste leaches into the ground (the waste is *not* pumped). It sounds like you both have a septic system, but I fear this property has a more primitive system.

I really like and trust my realtor (she is with Re/Max), but I am concerned about the environmental implications of this type of system, not to mention the potential resale value of the house, and the possible smell (??) during the hot summer months. I was hoping to avoid an inspector, but I now think this may be unavoidable. Or else, one of us will have to make a special trip to Bonaire to check it out for ourselves. This, of course, is not a bad thing (any excuse to visit Bonaire works for me!), but it is added expense.

Thanks so much again to you both for your feedback. One way or another my boyfriend and I will figure it out and resolve this!
: -)

I am surprised to hear that any house on Bonaire has a cesspool. Homes here are supposed to have septic systems.
I would not buy a Bonaire home with a cesspool. I would not take on such a liability.
The potential damage to the protected Bonaire marine environment is enormous.
Good luck to you!

Anke,
Many mountain homes here in Colorado (not located in Cities) have Septic Systems (Septic Tank with Leach Field). In the '70s I had a brand new home with this system and it worked great. I poured dry yeast in the toilet once a month. We never had a problem on the surface as the leach field is down a few feet. There was never a smell and we had lots of green grass and shrubs.

If it is indeed a cesspool (which I still doubt), you can have a septic "tank" built/installed. I have no idea what this would cost. This still might be a translation error of your realtor. Have her take a pix of it.

Hi all,
I agree that this might be a translation issue. I will try to have my realtor take a picture. My boyfriend Hans is also trying to contact the Sanitation department to see if there are any records on whether there is a septic system on this property. I will keep you updated!

-- Anke

ReMax is owned by an American. Ask to speak to Bob. He should be able to tell you what an American would call it.
The people who would pump the septic tank if one exists on the property are called Selibon.
e-mail: selibon@selibon.an
phone: 599 717-8159
fax: 599 717-7339
Before those numbers, from the US you must dial 011.
If you give Selibon the street address of the property they might be able to check whether they have pumped there before.
On the other hand, if the property has been unoccupied for a while, they might find no record, yet that would not confirm the absence of a septic tank.
Anke, I sure do hope this purchase will work out for you!!

Anke,
There are a number of companies that pump septic tanks on Bonaire. Your realtor should be able to give you the information you seek or do the research if they don't have it on hand.
Susan

Most of the systems I see here are ones that an American would call a holding tank, not a cesspool or a septic tank.

A septic tank has a small containment tank, and a series of pipes leaving the tank that have holes drilled in them. Those pipes are run through a large area (the "leach field") that is made of porous soil (frequently gravel and sand) that filters the water being returned to the environment. Bacteria takes care of eating the solid waste and converting it to liquid. These systems rarely, if ever, need pumped. My last septic tanks were in Phoenix, AZ. They were about 500 liter capacity and only needed pumped once every 5 years.

A cesspool has a porous tank. It collects solids and liquids, and leaks the liquid out of holes in the sides of the tank. I've never had one of these.

The ones I have here need pumped more frequently, as there isn't a pipe and leach field system or a porous tank. So far as I know, the ones I have here in the hotel can only be pumped: they don't leach waste or water into the soil at all.

There are good pictures of the two at http://www.moving.com/living_and_shopping/LAS_Article/SepticCesspoolSystemBasics.asp

Kevin,
You are right, my terminology is incorrect. Our tank at this house needs to be pumped every 6-7 months. The house we lived at in Playa was never pumped in the 4+ years we lived there although I know there was not an intentional leach field. Susan

C'mon, I know we have some professional sanitation engineers on the board, step up the the plate!

I work for a garden business on Bonaire and get many questions about this issue. We have 2 systems here for household use and might indeed use wrong terminology. The old system, used at almost al the older houses and still the most common, is the dutch "beerput" which is a cesspool as kevin describes. So "It collects solids and liquids, and leaks the liquid out of holes in the sides of the tank."
The other system is what we call a septic tank, but as i understand from kevin's description is not called so in the US. It is a holding tank, most commonly with 3 chambers. Solids and liquids go into the first, then liquid flows into second chamber, and then flow into third. Liquid in the last chamber is clean enough (After going through a fine filter) to use for a drip-system in the garden.
So Anke, don't worry, it is indeed very common for older houses on Bonaire to have a cesspool.
It depends on the size how often it has to be pumped. The house I rented before building our own was pumped every 10-15 years, as the owner told me.
Tish, I'm with you about your concern about "the potential damage to the protected Bonaire marine environment" especially from the ones near shore, but this is how it is (for households).
As I understand from Kevin, hotels use holdingtanks which are emptied regularly, same as cruise ship systems. But then where does it go, for we don't have a sewer-system yet????

Hi everyone,

Thanks so much for all the helpful information that has been posted here. Bonaire Talk is truly a wonderful and supportive community.

An update: Hans (my partner) called Selibon, and they do not have a record of ever having pumped the tank at the property. The Selibon rep also said that Bonaire residents each have their own way of managing sanitation, i.e. there is some variation in sanitation systems on Bonaire, and that a cesspool is not uncommon, or cause for concern.

At this point, Hans and I have decided that, while having a cesspool is not exactly what we had in mind when considering this property, we figure we can deal with it in the following ways:

(1) we will have the tank pumped on a regular basis;
(2) if there are ANY problems at all, we will install a leach field;
(3) ideally, we won't use the system at all, and just install a composting toilet (which costs about $800). This last solution is most ideal because it dramatically reduces water consumption.

Hans and I are committed to environmentally responsible living. If our property deal goes through, we plan to install solar panels on the house and upgrade the water collection system. As for the cesspool, since the house is not located near the coast, there is no chance that the contents of the tank would wash onto the beach or spoil the reefs. Also, as long as human waste is the only thing that goes into the tank (which is, after all, organic matter), there shouldn't be too much of an environmental problem with the cesspool, even if Hans and I have to make do with that system in the short run.

I will provide more details as they develop. Thanks so much again to everyone!!! -- Anke

Anke,
I believe Susan said that other companies besides Selibon pump septic tanks on Bonaire.
Is the house in the kunuku? If so, you can use solar panels because your house presumably will be off the grid.
But if WEB provides your electricity, I have heard that they will not permit you to produce energy from another source such as solar panels. So before investing in solar panels, if your house is on the grid, check into this.

I have a septic pump installed by Capt. Don and Janet. I use the water from the third chamber to water my garden. What fun!!

You have to have a WEB connection if you are able to connect to the power grid, and have to pay WEB the minimum fee. You can produce your own power if you want, but windmills need permits and licenses that essentially aren't granted if you live in town. Once you get away from town it's much easier.

I lived in the florida keys with a septic tank & leeching field for a few years. I never had to get this pumped. As far as environmental concerns go, I lived right on a swimming canal, and there were never any problems about septic tanks polluting the water. In fact, I was informed by a professor at the college that it is impossible for the septic water to leech into the canal/sea water because the pressure of the large mass (sea water) is much greater than the leeching field. So if anything, you will have salt-water intrusion into your septic system. This is unlikely however, because of the elaborate network of the leeching pipes.

As far as cuise ships go, they dump all of their waste into the ocean. American standards, I believe, are 3 miles out for dumping grey water (which often includes harsh cleansers, film developing chemicals, etc.) and about 5 miles out for raw sewage.

The ocean conservancy has filed reports on the acts of cruise ship, which i'm sure you can find through google. Many of them (American ships, anyway) dump their waste wherever they want, and simply pay the fines (which are minimal) if they get caught.

I am surprised to see that there are no aerobic treatment systems on the island. Aerobic systems are installed on site and actually treat the water to a clear odorless liquid. The treated effluent can be discharged through drip irrigation, to water gardens or lawns. I install and service these systems, and find them to be very dependable, and environmentally safe.

Kevin,
Many of the large & small hotels have septic systems that go thru many chambers etc. They are used for the drip systems. I am also sure that therer are many private homes that are similar.