Dominion Soil Science, Danny R. Hatch

11/30/2016

Our new web page is live! Please take a look. It is full of information about who we are and what we do.

Welcome To Dominion Soil Science Dominion Soil Science is an established soil science company and specializes in the evaluation of soil for placement of on-site drainfields and alternative on-site sewage disposal systems. We would like to assist you in your future on-site sewage treatment

11/25/2016

Hope everyone has had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

10/28/2016

Did you know that Dominion Soil Science offers free soils map interpretations? If you have obtained a soils map of a property you are interested in, send it our way for a quick review. Danny is a Licensed Professional Soil Scientist and spent the first 30 years of his career mapping soils in Virginia, first for V.P.I (Virginia Tech), then for Fauquier County. He has an uncommon depth of knowledge and experience when it comes to Virginia soils! Just give us a call: 540-737-1003 #1.

10/18/2016

So, we've been out to your property and found your drainfield. What's next? Well, what's actually on the ground has to be mapped out to a Site Plan or Plat. This requires the services of a surveyor. And, you have to decide if you are going to build now or later. At this point, we will need the surveyor's plan to complete the sewer and/or well application permit package or a certification package showing our design. Once this is completed, the package has to find its way to the Environmental Health Department in your county for approval. If you are building now you will submit the permit application package. Once approved, you will receive a permit allowing the designed system to be installed If you are planning on building "some day" or may want to sell, a certification package may be more in order.

What's the difference you say? The building permit is for a finite time period beginning with the permit issue date. Should building be delayed, the permit could expire before your system is installed and you may then find yourself in the position of having to reapply. A certification, however, certifies or "proves" that the property will support a viable system. This certification is on file at the Health Department and does not technically expire. When the time comes, you can then finish the application process and get the permit. Or if you decide to sell, having that certification can be an inducement to a potential buyer.

Any questions? If so please feel free to call our office - 540-737-1003. We're happy to help in any way we can!

10/07/2016

A career that requires you to commune with nature is a gift. However, when it's sweltering hot or frigid cold, you can lose sight of that. Then Mother Nature sends crisp autumn days to remind you how much you love your chosen field!

09/16/2016

Extraordinary customer service is what drives our company. We bend over backwards to help you achieve your dream, whether it is building your new home, finding a cost-saving method of repair, or helping a developer find the best fit for both him and his future purchasers. It sounds so simple, but it's not always easy to keep this forefront in the mind when out in the field during extreme heat or cold, or rushing to get those submission packages put together for delivering, or battling with government officials to help them understand the correctness of the design. However, you, our clients, are why we do it all!!

09/02/2016

Happy Labor Day, everyone. This 3-day break is well-earned!

08/25/2016

Excitement!! After multiple days in the field staking out drainfields in a multi (many!) lot subdivision, 85% of the lots will be conventional drainfields. Just another way to make our clients' dreams come true, whether individuals, or developers. Woot, woot!!

08/16/2016

88 degrees, real feel: 106 degrees. And yes, we work in this!!

08/05/2016

Experts passionate about their work + extraordinary support + careful work product + timeliness + fair pricing = happy customers who pass on your name: this is the secret to success!

07/21/2016

But what does he DO?

Many times a client calls requesting a “perc test” and he has no idea really what he is asking for. It’s just something he knows he needs to build his house. He will then ask , “Well, what does Danny DO?” The short answer? Magic!

After a bit of research and pulling of maps of the property, which Danny, our resident Professional Soil Scientist, studies, he heads out to the property with our mini-excavator and Tim, the Technician/Operator Extraordinaire. This is where the magic begins. The property is visually surveyed to determine the best spot to first “test”. Danny likes to get a feel for the property and determine where he would like to put a house if he were building. Then it is time to start digging. TOE Tim digs a nice, small pit revealing the subsurface layers, just as Mother Nature built them. Danny studies the layers and categorizes them and with his deep knowledge base, he is able to determine the suitability of the soils for drainage. Several small pits are dug to frame the site of the potential drainfield and are flagged so that a surveyor can then come out and get them onto the site plan being developed. At this time, Danny can tell the landowner if he has a viable field and what kind of system will work. Beyond this point, getting the Sewage System and Well Permit is mostly paperwork involving the system design specifications and coordination of a number of other professionals to complete the application for submittal to the landowner’s county.

So that’s it for a perc test!