Upfront Septic provides septic services in University Place, Washington and throughout Pierce County: septic tank pumping at a standard published price, 24-hour emergency septic service, inspections, repairs, septic system troubleshooting, new system and tank installation, ongoing maintenance, and commercial grease trap cleaning and pumping.
University Place doesn't run its own sewer system — the city says so plainly on its own website — and by the city's own count, roughly 1,800 properties, about 23 percent of everything in University Place, are still on an on-site septic system rather than connected to municipal sewer. That's a meaningfully large share for a fully incorporated Puget Sound city, and it means a lot of University Place homeowners are responsible for equipment the city itself has no hand in maintaining. If your house is one of them, it helps to know who actually regulates it, what keeps it running, and what happens if it doesn't.
Call (253) 364-7416 or book service online — you'll get a straight answer about what your system needs, before any work starts.
University Place is unusual among Pierce County's incorporated cities in exactly how it handles wastewater: it doesn't. According to the city's own Sewer & Septic Services page, "Pierce County Utilities provides the majority of sewer services to the City of University Place. The City itself does not provide sewer services." City Hall acts only as a facilitator when a resident has a sewer problem — the actual utility, the pipes, and the pump stations belong to Pierce County.
Septic systems are a separate matter entirely. The same city page states directly that the roughly 1,800 properties not connected to municipal sewer "have on-site septic systems governed by the Tacoma Pierce County Health Department" — TPCHD, not the city and not Pierce County Utilities. That split matters practically: a sewer question goes to the county utility, a septic question goes to the health department, and neither one is a University Place city department.
Twenty-three percent on septic is not a fringe case. It means septic ownership in University Place cuts across the city rather than sitting only in one obviously rural corner, and a homeowner who assumes their neighborhood is "all sewered" because much of the city is built up can still turn out to be wrong about their own parcel.
Septic status in University Place is a property-by-property fact, not a neighborhood label, and the only way to know for certain is to check the record for your own address. That said, a few patterns line up with what the city has actually published or is actively working on.
None of this means a specific address is on septic — only that these are the situations where it turns out to be true more often. Verify rather than assume. Pierce County Utilities can confirm sewer availability for a specific parcel at (253) 798-4050, and TPCHD can look up existing septic records for your address at (253) 798-6470. A septic lid, riser or drainfield in the yard, combined with no sewer charge on your utility bill, is a good practical sign until the records confirm it.
Two separate agencies govern wastewater for a University Place homeowner, and neither one is University Place City Hall. Pierce County Utilities decides whether public sewer is available to a parcel and operates the sewer system itself. The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department regulates the septic system itself, under its Environmental Health Code Chapter 2 and state rules in WAC 246-272A.
Connection is mandatory near existing sewer. Under Pierce County Code 13.04.030, the owner of a lot within a Utility Local Improvement District, or within 300 feet of an existing permanent sewer main, is required — at the owner's expense — to connect to public sewer rather than remain on septic. That rule applies wherever Pierce County Utilities provides service, University Place included, and it's the reason the city's active sewer extension projects (67th Avenue, 57th Avenue, the ARPA areas) come with a hookup obligation for the properties they reach, not just an option.
Routine inspections. Outside that mandatory-connection radius, septic systems in University Place follow the same countywide TPCHD schedule as the rest of Pierce County: an operational evaluation by a certified operation and maintenance provider every three years for a standard gravity or pressure system, annually for a complex system (community, aerobic treatment or proprietary), and again whenever the property changes hands. Some owner-occupied gravity systems can qualify for a reduced five-year interval, but shoreline properties are excluded from that option — worth noting given how much of University Place sits along Puget Sound.
Selling a home. A septic property in Pierce County, University Place included, generally can't close a real estate sale without a Report of System Status (RSS) from TPCHD — an inspection with all tanks pumped, followed by department review. An RSS is valid for one year and can't be renewed, so it needs to be timed against your actual closing date.
Repairs and installation. Tank replacement work goes through a certified installation firm, and full repairs or new system design need a licensed designer or professional engineer. TPCHD permits and reviews the work; some minor repairs don't need a formal permit but still have to be reported to the department.
Where sewer is involved, the county gets the first word. Because so much of University Place still sits within reach of an actively expanding sewer network, a septic repair or replacement here often turns on a question TPCHD alone can't answer: whether Pierce County Utilities considers sewer available to that specific parcel. Where it is, the mandatory-connection rule generally controls what happens next, not a straightforward septic permit.
Upfront Septic works inside that structure rather than around it. We pump and inspect your system, tell you plainly what condition it's in, and flag early when a job is going to need a TPCHD permit, a designer, or a call to Pierce County Utilities to check on sewer availability — before you're committed to a repair that might not be approvable.
Watch for slow drains throughout the house rather than at one fixture, gurgling toilets, sewage backing up indoors, standing water or unusually green grass over the drainfield, odors outdoors, or an alarm sounding on a pump system. Stop adding water to the system — no laundry, no dishwasher, minimal flushing — and call for service.
A failure can force the connection decision. Where an existing home's septic system fails and public sewer is available under Pierce County's 300-foot/ULID rule, the property owner is generally required to connect to sewer rather than repair the septic system, at the owner's expense. If sewer isn't available to that parcel, TPCHD can permit a repair or full replacement instead. In a city with several active sewer extension projects, "is sewer available here right now" is a question worth asking before assuming your options — the answer can change from one year to the next as a project like the 67th Avenue or ARPA extensions reaches a new block.
If a septic failure forces a sewer connection, the old tank has to be decommissioned to Health Department standards, not simply abandoned in the ground — the city publishes its own Septic/Pump Tank Decommissioning Guide for exactly this situation, alongside a Residential Sewer Guide and checklist for connecting to a newly available main.
If your home is already on public sewer and sewage is backing up while no water is running in the house, the problem is more likely in the public main than your own plumbing; Pierce County Utilities' line for sewer service issues is (253) 798-4050.
When it's urgent, don't try to work through it alone — see our emergency septic services, or read more about septic service and repair in University Place.
The city's own sewer expansion is actively changing septic status. University Place is unusual in that its sewer network is still visibly growing — the 67th Avenue, 57th Avenue and 2025 ARPA area projects are all extending Pierce County sewer mains into blocks that didn't have them before. If your street is anywhere near one of these projects, it's worth checking the city's project map and contacting Engineering at jmartin@cityofup.com rather than assuming your septic system's status won't change.
Age works against some of the city's older systems. University Place incorporated in 1995, decades after much of its housing was already built as unincorporated Pierce County. A septic system installed well before incorporation, even one that's been pumped regularly, is a different piece of equipment than one built to modern standards, and is more likely to be undersized for a house that has since added bedrooms or bathrooms.
Shoreline property carries a stricter inspection schedule. TPCHD's reduced five-year inspection interval excludes shoreline parcels. If your home sits along Chambers Bay, on Day Island, or elsewhere on University Place's Puget Sound frontage, plan on the standard three-year inspection cycle rather than assuming the longer interval applies.
Wet season versus dry season. A drainfield that performs fine through a dry Pacific Northwest summer can start showing problems once fall rains raise the water table. Slow drains or odors that appear in winter and seem to ease up by spring are a sign the system is near its limit, not a weather problem that resolves on its own.
Decommissioning isn't optional once sewer arrives. Once a septic system can legally be replaced by a sewer connection — whether because of a new extension project or because a failure forced the issue — the old tank has to be properly decommissioned under Health Department standards, not simply capped and left in place. Ask your installer or the city's Engineering Department what that involves before you're mid-project.
Commercial grease traps. Restaurants and other food-service businesses in University Place need their grease interceptors pumped on a regular schedule to stay compliant, separate from anything happening with septic. We handle grease trap cleaning and pumping alongside our septic work.
Check your utility bill for a Pierce County sewer charge, and look for a septic lid, riser or drainfield in the yard. For a parcel-specific answer, call Pierce County Utilities at (253) 798-4050 about sewer availability, or TPCHD at (253) 798-6470 for existing septic records.
No. The city's own website states that Pierce County Utilities provides the majority of sewer service inside University Place and that the city itself does not operate a sewer system — City Hall only facilitates when residents have a sewer problem. Septic systems, separately, are regulated by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, under its Environmental Health Code Chapter 2 and state rules in WAC 246-272A. TPCHD handles permitting, inspection and recordkeeping for the septic system itself; Pierce County Utilities separately decides whether public sewer is available to a given parcel, and that decision affects what TPCHD will approve for an existing system.
Yes, under the same countywide TPCHD schedule used across Pierce County: standard gravity or pressure systems every three years, complex systems annually, and a fresh inspection whenever the property changes hands. Some owner-occupied gravity systems qualify for a five-year interval instead, though shoreline properties are excluded from that option.
Once a permanent sewer main reaches within 300 feet of your property, or your lot falls inside a Utility Local Improvement District, Pierce County Code generally requires connection at the owner's expense rather than continued septic use. Check the specific timeline and stub location with the city's Engineering Department or the project contractor.
It depends on the tank's size, household size, and how quickly solids build up — a routine inspection is what actually tells you where your system stands. When we pump a tank, we tell you what we found and give you a realistic estimate of when to expect us back.
Yes. A septic property in Pierce County can't typically close a sale without a Report of System Status from TPCHD, which requires an inspection with all tanks pumped first. The RSS is valid for one year and can't be renewed, so time it against your closing date. We provide septic inspections in University Place, including inspections ahead of a sale.
Usually not. Where sewer is available — inside a ULID, or within 300 feet of a permanent main — Pierce County Code requires connection rather than continued septic use. If sewer isn't available to your specific parcel, a permitted repair or replacement through TPCHD is the normal path.
Stop adding water to the system, watch for backups, slow drains or odors, and call for service. If public sewer is available to your property, county code generally requires connecting rather than repairing the septic system; if it isn't available, TPCHD can permit a repair or full replacement instead. Don't wait on either path — a failing system gets worse while you decide.
If it's been three or more years since your last pumping and nothing seems wrong, that's routine pumping with inspection. If drains are slow throughout the house or you smell sewage outdoors, that's a service call to diagnose the problem first. If you're selling, it's a Report of System Status. Tell us what you're seeing when you call and we'll tell you which one fits.
Upfront Septic is a septic company serving University Place, WA and the surrounding Pierce County communities, including Tacoma, Lakewood, Fircrest and Fife. We handle:
Call (253) 364-7416 or book service online. You'll get a full price before we start, and a straight answer about what your system actually needs.
A homeowner in University Place recently scheduled a routine septic tank pumping for their 1,000-gallon septic tank, which serves a three-person household. Our technicians located the tank, removed the access lids, and performed a visual inspection before pumping out the accumulated sludge and scum. Routine maintenance like this helps ensure the septic system continues operating […]
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