Apartment estates, historic low-rise buildings, detached houses and port businesses sit side by side, so the job may be septic tank pumping, a pump station or a connection to the city network. Septic tank pumping costs from €75, and we don't add travel kilometres within Riga.
Groundwater and plastic tanks
In low-lying spots, groundwater pushes on a tank from below. While a plastic septic tank or holding tank is full, its contents hold it down. Groundwater can lift a fully emptied tank, and then the pipes are torn off and the tank body is damaged.
So in Bolderāja, before pumping, we ask what the tank is made of and whether it is anchored. If in doubt, we pump out the sediment and refill the tank with water straight away, or plan the job for a time when the groundwater is lower.
For a new system here, we choose an anchored tank (strapped to a concrete slab or held with ground anchors). If the soil does not allow infiltration, a biological wastewater treatment plant discharging into a ditch is the better option. More detail: septic tank for high groundwater.
A holding tank that fills faster in spring
If a holding tank fills much faster in spring than in summer, even though the same number of people live in the house, groundwater or rainwater is most likely getting in: through the lid seam, a pipe joint or a crack in the wall. Every extra cubic metre has to be taken away and paid for.
After pumping, we look inside for visibly leaking seams or damp patches. A tank that is not watertight can be repaired or replaced: septic tank repair, holding tank installation.
Connecting: Bolderāja now has the general programme
Bolderāja was one of the neighbourhoods where the Cohesion Fund phase 4 co-financing programme applied. It has ended, and residential houses now fall under Riga's general programme. The amount depends on the length of the connection pipe: €1,000 for a short one (up to 5 m), €1,500 for a medium one (5–20 m) and €2,000 for one longer than 20 m. You can apply for three years after construction, addressing the application to Rīgas ūdens (Riga's water utility).
In a low spot, the house may sit lower than the street sewer main; then a gravity pipe won't do, and you need a sewage pump station with a pressure pipe. We build the connection pipe to the control manhole and, after connecting, empty and backfill the old tank. The process as a whole: connecting to the mains sewer.
Sources: Rīgas ūdens announcement on changed co-financing conditions in Bieriņi, Pleskodāle, Katlakalns, Bišumuiža and Bolderāja, LV portāls 06.05.2026; Riga City Council Binding Regulations No. RD-23-207-sn, points 7 and 11 (likumi.lv/ta/id/343520). Checked 30 October 2026.
Estates, the port and businesses
For apartment blocks and businesses, the work is different from detached houses:
- For building managers: pump station maintenance and repair, if sewage from the basement is pumped up.
- For port and industrial areas: pumping services for businesses, meaning domestic holding tanks, a regular schedule and documents.
- For yards and warehouses: drainage well cleaning to remove silt and sand.
- For food businesses: grease trap cleaning from €90.
Entry to the port area may be through a checkpoint. In your request, say who will meet the tanker, where the tank is and at what time the work won't get in the way of cargo traffic. Each removal certificate will show the address, date, volume and the carrier's details, and it is handy to keep them together with the annual declaration.
Historic low-rise housing: one tank for several houses
In older housing, one plot often has several houses or flats with a shared septic tank or holding tank. Then it is important to know how many people use it and who is responsible for registration, because the minimum emptying frequency and the declaration depend on that.
If a shared tank fills too quickly, agree on one person to place the requests and split the costs by the number of residents. We issue one certificate for the address where the tank is located, and after pumping we tell you whether the tank volume still matches the number of users.
Riga rules in Bolderāja
Bolderāja is within Riga, so Riga City Council Binding Regulations No. 66 apply here. A septic tank must have its sludge removed at least once a year. For a holding tank, the minimum frequency is calculated by dividing the annual water consumption by the tank volume; if there is no meter, 9.125 m³ a year is taken for each declared resident.
Removal may only be done by a pumping contractor listed in the Housing and Environment Department's register of pumping contractors; the register is public. Get a certificate for each removal, keep it for at least two years and by 1 May submit to the department a declaration of the volume removed in the previous year.
Sources: Riga City Council Binding Regulations No. 66, points 5.6, 7–9, 23 and 26 (likumi.lv/ta/id/304471); register of pumping contractors (mvd.riga.lv); Cabinet Regulation No. 384, points 7 and 9.1 (likumi.lv/ta/id/291947). Checked 30 October 2026.
The road and the price
Daugavgrīvas šoseja leads to Bolderāja, and it is a long way from the centre, but it is Riga, so we don't add kilometres. The price is set by the volume: up to 4 m³ from €75, up to 6 m³ from €90, up to 10 m³ from €110. If several neighbours in one street need pumping, say so in your request, because several tanks can be emptied in one trip if the total volume fits in the tanker.
Nearest neighbourhoods
In north-west Pārdaugava we also work in Daugavgrīva, Voleri, Kleisti and Spilve. Full list: where we work.