Septic Tank Treatment?

[unDummy]

I forgot to insert the emoticons as needed in my post above.

Also, I don't and won't believe that ANY monthly PM additive will make up for septic abuse. Don't abuse it an no additives are needed.

Genius marketing by that "septic energizer". Too funny. F-lushit! Wrong place for the hyphen! Flus-hit so get your flu shot.

And, if your disco clothes are mostly polyester, polyester fiber does not biodegrade and will, over many many years, clog your leach field. So, install a filter on the effluent of your washing machine. Research the Filtrol 160. Since this is bitog, you can rig up your own equivalent using a filter bag. My friends washing machine drains into a mud sink. And, the sinks screen clogs up all the time with 'lint'. The water sends out as much lint as what your dryer's lint filter catches.

 

[Blaze]

I installed a new drain field last year. I saw someone else down the road using these (domes) or infiltrator system instead of regular drainfield pipe so I just copied thier system to a tee. Installation was a breeze. I had a guy dig the trench and did the installation and backfill myself. Evidently these domes are not prone to clogging. They just snap together.

 

[SevenBizzos]

Originally Posted By: Blaze
I installed a new drain field last year. I saw someone else down the road using these (domes) or infiltrator system instead of regular drainfield pipe so I just copied thier system to a tee. Installation was a breeze. I had a guy dig the trench and did the installation and backfill myself. Evidently these domes are not prone to clogging. They just snap together.


The Infiltrators won't clog and are quite useful. You can even put angles in them to stay on elevation. They also eliminate the need for stone, so that cuts down material cost. You can also add a pressure pipe to the inside of the Infiltrators for a low pressure system. Very versitle overall.

 

[hr1940]

I use Riddex in mine. I use less soap in the washer and the dishwasher. Your clothes and dishes will get just as clean with out a soap build up. My house was built in 1993 and we bought it in 1996. I had the septic tank pumped out last year and the guy said it was in good shape and I could probably wait 8 yo 10 years before I needed it pumped again. I am very careful about the bathroom tissue I use. I use a store brand that dissolves faster in water than some name brands. I checked 3 different brands of tissue to see how quickly they dissolved by placing a piece of each in a container of water.

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: hr1940
I use Riddex in mine. I use less soap in the washer and the dishwasher.

Also its best to use Liquid detergents and also avoid germicidal soaps.
And obviously before using the dishwasher try to remove as mush food as possible from plates.

 

[Cujet]

I have a huge system, in a fairly new house and there are just 2 of us in the house.

Still, upon occasion, the exit filter screen gets clogged (it keeps the drain field from getting clogged with debris). Rather than call out the septic guy, I've been using the liquid Rid-x treatment only when it occurs. It clears up the clog within a day or two. The system continues to work properly after that.

I have it pumped every 3 years and it's never near full.

 

[MarkM66]

My septic installer told me to put a packet of normal baking yeast down the toilet once a month.

 

[snowmaker]

Originally Posted By: MarkM66
My septic installer told me to put a packet of normal baking yeast down the toilet once a month.



bakers yeast is a waste. Read on google about it. PH will kill it etc..but it is great for white lighting!!!!

 

[edhackett]

When I asked the fellow who pumped my tank last what was best, he said a 3 day old road kill rabbit was the best treatment.

UnDummy hit all the points. Doing the following will take you far:

1. No bleach or antibacterial soaps.
2. No garbage disposal(if you have one, remove it).
3. Collect grease to be disposed of in the garbage.
4. Don't do back to back large loads of laundry, spread it out over the week.

Ed

 

[sleddriver]

I've never done anything to mine. It's been pumped once in 28 years. Never had a problem. But there's just one and indoor water usage averages about a 1000ga a month.

I've had a water softener all those years as well which minimizes detergent and soap use.

A few years back, the tank overflowed in the yard a bit. I dug up the cover & pulled it off. Just saw water, no paper, no solids, just water. But obviously there was a clog somewhere.

So I dug up the tank outlet and began excavating my way to the drain field. After about 4', I discovered the 4" thin-wall pvc had been crushed in the middle so it looked like binoculars. In elevation, the pipe looked like a "V". Fine tree roots were everywhere! Beyond this, the pipe sloped uphill a bit. There wasn't any trash in the pipe, but between tree roots, red clay & rock, it wasn't flowing well either.

Then I got the tank pumped!

So I excavated about 22' of pipe that was buried 2' deep. A demo-hammer with a 4" spade was my friend here as the 'soil' is mostly red clay filled with rock.

Whoever installed this never buried the pipe in sand, nor supported it first before dumping all that clay/rock back into the hole. Thin wall shouldn't be used in such conditions.

I replaced it with 4" Sch40 and glued the joints. Also put in a clean out downstream of the tank. Buried the pipe in sand, checked the slope, and threw away most of the clay/rock that I removed.

So I wonder how much of my drain field I've actually been using all these years??? Not much. Frankly I'm surprised it took so long to back up since the 4" pipe was crushed down to two 1" dia pipes.

Ah, the joys of home ownership! Particularly when the builder was an idiot. (All hat and no cattle).

 

[Al]

Originally Posted By: sleddriver

I replaced it with 4" Sch40 and glued the joints. Also put in a clean out downstream of the tank. Buried the pipe in sand, checked the slope, and threw away most of the clay/rock that I removed.


You are lucky you were allowed to do this (Or didn't get caught)

Normally digging up drain field is not allowed you have to go to a sand mound. Just keep quiet.