Re: OT septic tank maintenance.

Posted by Mark - IN. on October 12, 2012 at 17:27:43 from (24.15.151.102):

In Reply to: OT septic tank maintenance. posted by Fred from MO on October 12, 2012 at 08:33:34:

This is my experience, and how we do it and have forever.

One, get your tank pumped every handful of years because you do not want sewage itself moving beyond the septic tank into any of the fingers AFTER the tank, if you have any of them, which is common here for the water drainage. You don't want to plug them up. And your septic guy is not going to want to pump a tank where the sewage is packed like concrete. Every handful of years, a couple hundred $$$, have it pumped.

Two, some use Ridex that you can pickup at the grocery store near the household items like brooms, mops, etc. A box a month or so keeps the bacteria going that breaks down the sludge, which is crucial to a septic tank system. We use Ridex, and periodically flush a container of raw beef liver which works very well. I prefer the beef liver because I hate beef liver, and the septic tank is the best place for it, before cooked, to keep my tank in good shape. Septic tanks don't just hold septic, they break it down and NEED bacteria to do it. Someone said put raw chickens in it? New to me, but sounds good.

Three, as others have mentioned, bleach and detergent kill septic tank bacteria, so use plenty of Ridex or beef liver, or better yet, run your gray (sink, washer) water outside onto the lawn a few feet from the foundation, which helps water the lawn, and the soap imulsifies (breaks down) the dirt, which is great for growing grass. There might be a trap (like 2'x2') box buried between your house in line before the septic tank that is supposed to help filter out detergents and bleaches, but I have never figured out how that is supposed to happen. If you're running bleaches and soaps into your septic system, which is common, feed it Ridex and/or raw liver to create/replentish the bacteria.

Four, try not to drive heavy stuff like cars, trucks, tractors over the tank or tiles. All of them are shallow. These days the clay tiles that break easily, are often plasitic drain pipe that is pretty durable, but that concrete tank isn't, and its very shallow. Ever hear that expression "The grass is always greenest over the septic tank"? That's why. And in the winter time, the snow always melts first over you septic tank and tiles feeding it as a reminder that they are there.

Five, if you don't have drainage tiles AFTER the septic tank to drain the waste water off as I menetioned in Point One, its a good idea to put some in, the kind that come with 1/2" holes drilled in them every few inches that run out a good 50' minimum. The reason for that, is that some older septic systems did not have them, came with small 1,500 gallon tanks that filled with sewage and waste water, and the ground so saturates from tank drains that it will not absorb the waste water, and you find yourself having to pump the tank too often, and not because of the raw sewage, but because of the waste water, and that CAN get expensive.

Six, some septic tank guys will ask to dump their trucks in farm fields, which some farmers accept as good fertilizer, not me. Duck manure in the garden, ok. Human munure? I know it has to go somewhere, not ON my fields.

Seven, when the guy puts a new roof on your house, and he decides to take a break as we all do when working, do not let him take a newspaper or magazine up there with him, because he might use the big vent, mostly found over the bathroom that vents your plumbing as a holder for his rolled up newspaper or magazine, and when his next break comes and he reaches for is paper or magazine, it won't be there. It will have slipped down into the vent, and over time, with the help of rain water, it will become plyable enough to make the bends, and work its way into your septic tank, but it will get stopped by the baffle just inside your tank, and clog up the feed from your house. And you know what that means? Stopped up poopies from the house that build up over time back towards the house, requiring a the septic pumper guy to come out, and ask "How did this get in here, and how old is your roof?" as he unjams the clog for a couple hundred $$$ too soon.

None of this stuff costs much. Ridex or beef liver once a month? Not expensive. Pump your tank every handful of years? Couple hundred $$$, not that expensive. Don't drive over the tiles with heavy stuff? Not that expensive. Finger tiles for waste water drainage on the far side of the tank? Not that expensive, good exercise with a shovel digging the ditches on a downward slope away from the top exit on the far side of the tank. Running gray water onto your lawn? Not so expensive either.

Not taking simple, common sense, cheap care of your septic system? Expensive. I'm a telephone man by trade, but have always had septic systems and understand them. I've helped friends repair them that didn't understand or take care of them. Stinky job. That show "Dirtiest Jobs"? That has to be one of them.

Good luck.

Mark

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