Septic Maintenance for Homeowners

Have you ever wondered where the wastewater goes when you shower or flush your toilet? Water used in the home and wasted will either be sent off the property to be processed (aka sewer) or treated within your property lines under the ground (aka septic). 

You should be able to contact your local health department or property records that will tell you if you are on septic or sewer.  Perhaps the most glaring way to answer this question is to ask yourself "Do I pay a sewer bill?". 

 With proper care and maintenance, your septic system can provide many years of worry-free service.  You always want to monitor your septic system, both what goes into it as well as what happens on the surface of the area that your drain field is located.   

Septic systems will need periodic maintenance and what type will depend on what type of system you have.  At a minimum, you will need to have the tank pumped.  The septic tank serves as a pretreatment tank by separating the sludge, scum, and effluent.  Over time the sludge and scum layers build up and need to be pumped out to prevent draining into the field and causing premature failure. 

The frequency needed can vary depending on how many people live in the house, the state of MA recommends every 3 years unless you have a garbage grinder.

If your system was installed within the last 20ish years, you may have a septic filter. They are placed on the outlet line of the tank and are designed to prevent solid waste from flowing out to the soil absorption field (aka leach lines) and prolonging the life of your system. Not all systems are designed to have a filter but knowing if you have one or not can save you from a mess. Water/septic will always follow the path of least resistance don’t let that path be inside your house! Sometimes when you have your tank pumped the pumper will clean the filter, sometimes they wont even open all the tanks to see if there is one there; it really just depends on what type of system you have. 

• Be aware of how much water you are feeding your septic system in any given day. For example, don’t do eight loads of laundry back-to-back on days when it is raining heavily. 
• Certain chemicals and some in large proportions can wreak havoc on a septic system. Remember there are good bacteria in your septic system and you don't want to kill it. The antibacterial properties in cleaners like bleach could suppress the bacteria that break down solids in your septic tank.  Over time could reduce the overall life of the system.  
• Other household items like Coffee grounds, drain cleaner, cooking grease, and kitty litter should not be wasted into the drain.  These items can create a different set of issues including clogging your plumbing lines or coating the field lines.
• Garbage grinders have their own set of issues and are generally not recommended with a septic system. 
• Introducing foreign objects into the tank should always be avoided. These include sanitary napkins, cigarette butts, leggos, wet wipes (even if they're "septic safe"), and so much more.  General rule is anything expect toilet paper does not belong in the toilet.  

• Vehicular traffic, including snowmobiles and trail bikes, should not be allowed over the leaching bed area.
• Your tank needs to have regular pumping and possibly an annual filter cleaning, if applicable. You don’t want to build structures (i.e. sheds or decks) that will restrict access to the components.
• Be aware of any plants/trees planted around the components of the system. The roots of the plant life can infiltrate the system and cause premature failure. Also, the weight of plants/tress planted on top of a tank can crush the concrete.
• Roof drains, gutters, basement sump pumps, and surface water should never be routed into a septic system.