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If you live in a rural area, you're familiar with vacuum and septic trucks,
as they're currently the only way to service a septic tank. Unlike urban
sewer systems which connect directly to your wastewater pipes and spirit it
away like a thief in the night, there's really no way of shielding yourself
from having to deal with waste when you live in the country. Your septic tanks
sits underneath your yard collecting waste until it's full, at which point
you're forced to either pump it or run the risk of it overflowing and
stinking up your yard.
If you're a private homeowner, it makes no sense to buy your own used
septic tank truck, since your tank only needs to be pumped every three to five
years depending on its size and the number of people living in your house. It
would take longer than the average number of years a family lives in the same
house to pay off the cost of the truck. However, for a business, especially
one concerned with septic tank pumping and maintenance, we can raise the issue
of whether it would be better to rent or buy the septic trucks needed for these
operations.
Septic businesses don't have to be rural. The existence of portable toilets
makes it economically viable to run a septic business in the city as well. Whether
the business is in the country or the city, how big the business is, the size
of your business consumer base, and what other duties or services your
business provides will all come into play when you calculate the feasibility
of buying your own septic truck. If you're located in a city where there's
a lot of construction or public events, and are primarily concerned with waste
disposal from home healthcare products like portable toilets, it might make
sense to own a truck, since it will be in such constant use.
For other businesses that have an expanded service base, it might be more budget-friendly
to rent a truck from a wholesaler. If your business also does plumbing, installs
Aurora water pumps, and services swimming pools, it only makes sense to rent
a vacuum truck for a certain period of time and make the rounds of needy septic
tanks during that period. As long as you make sure your customers know septic
cleanings can only be scheduled for May or October, or whatever month you choose,
there shouldn't be a problem.
Obviously the decision to rent or buy is up to the individual company. Sit
down and take a careful inventory of money spent on renting trucks, and balance
it by how much is taken in by your business pumping services. If you
think the truck is likely to pay for itself after a few years, or you've
recently gotten some network marketing leads and are expecting your client base
to expand a lot in the coming years, go for it. Otherwise, play it safe and
rent the truck. At least that way if the business goes under you're not
stuck trying to get rid of a smelly old truck.
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