More septic system questions..

[Bay Mare]

Didn't want to hijack Ark's thread so I started a new one.

Basics- We have a pump back system and I don't know squat about them.

I mean I know the basics (I think). The line runs from the house to the septic tank. Once the tank reaches a certain level, the pump cuts on and pumps liquid up the hill to the distribution box and into the field drains. There is an alarm box in the house that I assume will sound if the pump fails and the liquid level in the tank is too high. There is a note added on the paperwork I received that says "settling box added for force main." I don't know where that fits in or really what it means.

But with this type of system is there any type of special maintenance needed? Does it need to be pumped out more often? Is there anything that needs to be done to the pump periodically? Is there a way to test the alarm to make sure it is truly working? Anything I am missing?

Are those septic additives (Ridex, etc) really needed or can they be harmful?

I know that you are not supposed to drive over the field drain lines so I am planning to make this area part of the goat pasture. Is this ok both for the goats and the field drains? I assume horses and cows are to heavy to allow in this pasture?

Background - We bought this house in June '06 and the septic was installed & inspected in June '99. The septic tank is 900 gallons. There was a garbage disposal but we removed it. Currently there is just the two of us and DH is gone all week - so really 1.5 We have not done anything to the system in this time and have had no problems. The people that owned the house before us had the system installed and there were 2 adults and 3 children here. They also had some renters for about a year before we bought it. I am planning to have the septic tank pumped out some time this year when/if we get some extra money.

Sorry this ended up so long!

Thanks for any help!
Angela

[rambler]

So likely this system has been running close to 9 years without being pumped out, and it did have a garbage disposal on it for most of those years, as well as renters (who often treat a toilet as a waste basket for non-decomposing stuff) as well as children (ditto).

And you think you might possibly try to find the $150 to get it pumped this year - maybe?

I'd move that _way, way_ up the priority scale! Once it's pumped & you know what your family puts in there, then you can play around & put things off. But right now, you don't know, and if the goo overflows the tank & gets out into your leach field, it is several $1000 to rebuild.

Your money, but that is a _real_ easy one for me to get right. (Unless I misunderstand & the tank was pumped when you bought the property.)


Rid-x and the like don't hurt, but they do not help a working, happy septic system and are just a waste of money. Many swear by the stuff - we had quite a flair-up on this topic back here some years ago - but the septic is really just like your tummy, digests the stuff into ash & liquid and already has all the bacteria it needs to do that. Remove the ash (stuff that doesn't decompose as well as grease) every so often, & it will be fine. Adding extra yeast or bacteria to your tummy really doesn't help your normal digestion - same with the septic. Way too much water, or grease, or hair or non-poo solids will upset either your tummy or your septic, and a little bacteria probably won't solve such problems to either.....

I'll let Cabin address the type of system you have, he'll know more than anyone.

--->Paul

I would get it pumped too. I know 2 guys who install them and 2 who pump them out. Most of the septic tanks they pump because of problems are dead. Anything that kills bacteria will kill your septic tank. Usually it is bleach or cleaners containing bleach. Menthol filter cigarettes will kill it too as will anyone in your family taking antibiotics. The additives do help to revive it as long as you quit putting things down to kill it.

[EDDIE BUCK]

Originally Posted by poppy

I would get it pumped too. I know 2 guys who install them and 2 who pump them out. Most of the septic tanks they pump because of problems are dead. Anything that kills bacteria will kill your septic tank. Usually it is bleach or cleaners containing bleach. Menthol filter cigarettes will kill it too as will anyone in your family taking antibiotics. The additives do help to revive it as long as you quit putting things down to kill it.

I agree. One of the main enemies of a good septic system is chlorine bleach. Keep it as far away from your system as possible even if it means rerouteing the washing machine water. All I know about the septic pump is the one we have at the church has a red light that blinks anytime the pump is running. You say yours has an alarm. You can tell when the pumps not working by how the toilet flushes. It want stop flushing right all at one time. If you notice its not flushing strong as it once was, check the pump and fuses. Eddie

[Bay Mare]

You all are right - I do need to get the system pumped. I will talk with my husband about it.

And Rambler, I apologize for the use of the phrase when/if we get some extra money. You couldn't see the sarcasm with which that was written! I had just been thinking of all the things I need to get done to my truck (well over $1000) and was wondering if I will have any "extra" money for a long time.

Thanks,
Angela

[rambler]

I farm for a living, so I understand the 'if' there is any extra money. In one hand, out the other. Didn't mean to come on too strong, sorry if I did.

Did want to make the impression tho, pumping the tank costs a few dollars; put it off & you won't realize you damaged the leach field until the damage is done, & then you will try pumping the tank a few times, and hope for some miracle additive to work & spend money on that, & then eventually you will replace the leach field for big bucks. All of which you could have saved by pumping the tank on time.

--->Paul

[Ark]

It cost $275 to get ours emptied , because they charge mileage and we are thirty miles from the closest town.

[Ken Scharabok]

As noted, frequent use of a garbage disposal will lead to gulk buildup quicker. Folks like to put things down them like coffee grounds, chicken bones and egg shells. The bacteria in the tank will not work on them, so they just settle to the bottom.

Out dated medications should be disposed on in another manner than flushing. Perhaps put in a glass of water until dissolved and then scatter water on lawn.

Good rule of thumb is, to the extent possible, nothing should go into a septic tank which hasn't passed through the human body. For some that includes toilet paper.

If you can get to the lid take it off. Find a long pole. Tear off a strip of cloth maybe 1 1/2" x 36". Attach one end on the bottom of the polle Attach other higher up the pole so strip is straight. Put down hole until it reaches the bottom and take out. Note water level and then how up on the cloth strip the bottom bunk it. Cabin Fever can provide a link to determine from it when the tank should be pumped.

I am in a mobile home. Next to the washing machine I drilled a 2" hole in the floor and then put in a length of 2" PVC. My washer discharge hose goes in it. It just empties out under the unit, but I could have added extra pipe to move discharge out into lawn area.

[Cabin Fever]

Well, it looks like a got here too late. Most of your issues have been addressed just fine. The table below provides a "guideline" for when a septic tank should be pumped. Ken started to describe the method to determine when your tank MUST be pumped. If that cloth strip shows that the sludge level is within 12" of the bottom of the outlet baffle...get the tank pumped pronto.

As far as testing the alarm on your pump tank. There are several ways of doing it. Attached to the alarm is a float. When this float rises, the alarm should activate. Open the pump tank, find the proper float (there are other floats in there attached to the pump, so make sure you have the right one) and lift the alarm float with a hook made from something like a wire coat hanger or equivalent. The alarm should activate. Another method would be to cut the power to the pump (ie, remove fuse). Add water with a garden hose to the pump tank. The water will rise and should eventually activate the alarm (the alarm and the pump should be on two different electric circuits if wired properly).

[Cabin Fever]

I would also think twice about putting my goats above the drainfield. Many drainfields are relatively close to the surface. Even in Minnesota where soils freeze down to 4 feet or more, we allow the top of the rock trench as close as 6" from the surface. Goats can compact soil (ever hear of "sheepsfoot" rollers?). Manure, urine and traffic can seal the surface soil which will greatly reduce oxygen from entering the soil. Oxygen is necessary for a properly fuctioning drainfield. If you were in a cold climate, the livestock traffic will also drive frost down and can freeze the drainfield.

[Shagbarkmtcatle]

IN response to Cabin Fever's theory about disconnecting the electric to test the alarm, everything is controlled by a control panel which controls all of the electrical componets like the alarm and the pump. So if you turn the electric off, nothing has power to it. So the alarm won't work.
To do his way of testing the alarm, you would have to actually unwire the pump in the pit itself. I do not recommend this. Just raise the float and the alarm would go off if it is working. The alarm float will rise the highest in the tank, but both floats should be attached to a cord.
The sewer injector (pump) will be attached to the lower float. So either one can be tested by raising one or the other float. (the alarm or the sewer injector)
In this type of system, you have very little drain field failure because you pumping liquid to the drainfield, it is not like a conventional septic system where you have baffles in the tank which keep the solids in the tank and let the liquids drain out.
However, neither system requires pumping very often. If you need to pump, you have another problem that needs to be addressed.
It is a good idea to put coffee grounds down the kitche sink, the acid cuts grease buildup. Don't recommend excess but normal daily household use.
YOu are not going to use enough bleach to hurt your system in a normal household. You are diluting this bleach instanstly by at least 1200 gallons of water which is a normal septic tank capacity for an old system.
There is a fly that lives in your septic tank, this is what you're trying not to kill. He lives on the top of the solids and keeps them in a soft state so they can break down.

[Cabin Fever]

Originally Posted by Shagbarkmtcatle

IN response to Cabin Fever's theory about disconnecting the electric to test the alarm, everything is controlled by a control panel which controls all of the electrical componets like the alarm and the pump. So if you turn the electric off, nothing has power to it. So the alarm won't work. To do his way of testing the alarm, you would have to actually unwire the pump in the pit itself.....

I suppose some states will allow that a single circuit from the power supply to be used for both the alarm and effluent pump. The problem with that is if power is ever loss to the control panel, wastewater could flood the pumping chamber without the alarm ever going off.

[rambler]

1. Panel must be in a NEMA 4X, vandal resistant enclosure.....


Friend of mine put in a new septic, and his neighbor's (family) dog is the type that gets excited with nervious energy when a vehicle comes or goes.

Dog expressed his energy by pulling the wires out of the vandal resistant enclosure. Couple of times. Most people blame an obstruction if the sewer backs up. They blame the dog first....

Was kinda funny. Not sure if they call him the crappy dog now.....

--->Paul

[Ken Scharabok]

On Rid-Ex, this is my understanding:

A septic tank is nothing more than a settling tank. Income waste mixes with current contents. Some floats, some sinks. Bacteria work on both. Eventually most of what floats will settle to the bottom after the bacteria are through with it. What leaves the tank should be fairly clear liquid. What is left on the bottom should be a blackish slug.

Rid-Ex works to hold the stage between floating and on the way down, into suspension. As such, the suspended material can be flushed into the line leading into the leach field each time new liquid is added to the tank. Thus, what might have eventually settled to the bottom fairly quickly works its way ito the leach line fields, where it settles, potentially clogging up the drain field.

My understanding is Rid-Ex has been banned for sale in some states.

On anti-biotics, I suspect far more is flushed out of the body through urine than solid. If there are other contributing to the septic tank who aren't on those medications I suspect they would offset the one(s) who were. If this is a big concern, have the male members of the family find a friendly tree when taking anti-biotics.