Septic System Installation in Summerfield, NC

Why Does Summerfield Run on Septic Systems?

The town's long-range plan, approved in 2010, says the town is too spread out for a central sewer system. It favors individual septic systems on large lots, and shared systems where homes cluster around open space. Water comes from wells, and many neighborhoods share community wells run by private water companies.

The town's development ordinance sets the lot sizes. Lots in the RS residential district start at 40,000 square feet, just under an acre. Rural Residential lots start at 60,000 square feet, and Agricultural lots at 3 acres. Each of those minimums can grow when Guilford County Environmental Health needs more land for the septic system.

Guilford County's parcel records put the typical developed lot in town at a little over an acre. Census figures show about 6 in 10 homes here were built in the 1990s and 2000s. Their septic systems went in with them. A replacement now follows the current state rules, 15A NCAC 18E.

Septic Soils in Summerfield: Clifford and Poplar Forest Clay

NRCS soil maps show two soils, Clifford and Poplar Forest, under more than three of every four acres in town. Both are deep, well-drained soils with a red clay subsoil. Clifford covers most of the gentle ground, and Poplar Forest most of the steeper slopes. Poplar Forest formed from rock high in mica, and its clay holds fine mica flakes.

NRCS rates the soils across town as somewhat limited or very limited for septic drain fields. Slow water movement through the clay is the reason it gives almost everywhere. Along the creeks, wetter bottomland soils such as Codorus and Hatboro add flooding and a high water table. Those map ratings are only a guide, and the county's soil evaluation on your lot decides.

North Carolina uses that soil evaluation rather than a perc test. Borings or pits go at least 48 inches deep, or down to rock or wet soil. The result sets the system type, such as a conventional trench system or a low-pressure pipe system with a pump. State rules keep grading and heavy traffic off the drain field and its repair area.

Lake Brandt, Lake Higgins and the Watershed Tiers

Lake Brandt and Lake Higgins, two of Greensboro's water supply lakes, sit along the town's southern edge. The state classes Horsepen Creek and Brush Creek, which feed them, as water supply waters. Summerfield's development ordinance draws a Watershed Critical Area around the lakes. It has four tiers, set by distance from the water.

Tier 1 starts at the water and runs 200 feet out, and it is meant to stay undisturbed. For homes on septic, Tier 2 allows one home per 5 acres, out to 750 feet. Tier 3 allows one per 3 acres, out to 3,000 feet, and Tier 4 allows one per acre. Farther out, in the General Watershed Area, new lots must average 60,000 square feet.

The whole town also sits in the Jordan Lake watershed, so mapped streams carry a 50-foot buffer. The first 30 feet from the bank stays undisturbed. Disturbing more than one acre for clearing or land grading needs an approved erosion control plan first. So does any grading in Tier 1 or Tier 2.

The town's ordinance counts gravel as built-upon area. Guilford County also wants the tier lines and the lot's total built-upon area drawn on a new home's plot plan. Plan a new gravel driveway with that total in mind, and route it around the drain field.

The Drive From Burlington and the Septic Permit Order

Summerfield sits in northwest Guilford County, about 35 road miles from Burlington. The usual drive runs west on I-40 and I-85 to the Greensboro Urban Loop, then north on US 220. I-73 and NC 150 also cross the town, and Summerfield Road follows the old route of US 220.

Permits here follow a set order. Summerfield requires its Development Clearance Certificate before any Guilford County permit, even the soil evaluation. Town staff record the lot's watershed and WCA tier on that form. Guilford County Environmental Health then issues the Improvement Permit and the Construction Authorization, and the building permit follows.

Before any digging, state law calls for an NC811 ticket three full working days ahead. With the Construction Authorization in hand, the installation itself is often a one-day job. The county inspects the system before it is covered with soil, then issues the Operation Permit.