Feed: Trap Grease - AggScore: 25.3

If your home has a septic tank it is your responsibility as a homeowner to maintain it. Replacing your septic tank can be a major home improvement project, so keeping it in good working order is to your advantage. A well maintained septic tank system is also a must if you are planning to sell your home in the future. Here are the basics of septic tank systems and what you can do to keep yours in shape.

A normal septic tank system has four major parts. There is the pipe that goes from your home to the septic tank, the septic tank itself, a drainfield, and the soil around your yard and the drainfield. Some people worry about the waste in the wastewater contaminating the soil and drinking water. Microbes in the soil, however, will breakdown and digest most of these contaminates before they reach any water supply.

The pipe from your home carries all of the wastewater from your home out to the septic tank. The septic tank is watertight and made from a variety of materials, and is buried in your yard. Some of the newer septic tanks have risers that are level with the ground and have covers over them. These risers are very nice because they make inspecting and pumping the septic tank a much easier home improvement process.

Basically what a septic tank does is allow the solid material to separate from the liquid waste. Septic tanks usually have a screen or filter of some sort to prevent the solid waste from getting to the drainfield. To keep your septic tank system working efficiently, you must periodically pump out the sludge from the bottom. Doing this is the least expensive way to maintain your septic tank.

The drainfield is a portion of your land that treats the wastewater as it is pumped out of the septic tank. Each time more wastewater is expelled from the septic tank, the partially treated water is pushed farther away. If too much wastewater is pumped out at one time, the drainfield will flood and cause an overflow in your home or on the drainfield. This can be a messy and costly home improvement cleaning job.

The soil is considered a part of your septic tank system because suitable soil is necessary to adequately treat and filter wastewater. The soil will remove any viruses and harmful bacteria from the wastewater so that it does not become harmful to any nearby water supply.

It is imperative that you maintain your septic tank system properly. If you do not provide regular treatment and cleaning, you will be looking at a whole host of other issues. Replacing a septic tank can be a very costly home improvement job both in parts and in labor. If you abuse your drainfield you may be forced to find other ways to treat your wastewater. If you properly take care of your septic tank system though, you will have a reliable and efficient waste treatment system for many years.

If you live in a city or town you probably take your local municipal sewer system for granted. If you are moving out of said city or town to a more rural setting chances are you will need to have a septic tank system. In simple terms this means that all your waste water and sewage waste is treated right on your property instead of flowing down to the local waste water treatment plant. While this may not sound very sanitary there is nothing to worry about because septic tanks have been in use for many years. In fact nearly 25% of all homes in the U.S. use septic tank systems.

A septic tank system is a very simple structure, but for all its simplicity it is very efficient at what it does. The tank itself can be anywhere from one thousand gallons or higher and is usually placed a good distance away from the house. The main sewer pipe from the house is attached to one end of the septic tank while another pipe exits the far side and is buried in what is called the leech field.

The liquid and solid waste enters the first chamber in septic tank through the pipe connected to your house. The solids are trapped in this first chamber and are broken down by anaerobic bacteria. This reduces the amount of solid waste in the septic system allowing the liquid wastes to flow into the second chamber which then flows out the end pipe and into the leech or septic field. In most cases this is all accomplished with the help of gravity as we all know that poop flow downhill. In some cases the septic tank cannot be placed downhill from the house so a pump will need to be used in order for the system to work properly.

The liquid waste that flows into the leech field is relatively benign and will create a nutrient rich growing area. Any plants growing over it will thrive and many septic fields can be located just by finding the patch of land that is greener then the surrounding area.

As efficient as a septic tank system is there will always be solid waste that is not fully decomposed. This will eventually fill up the septic tank and require that you contact a septic tank cleaning service to pump out your system. Worst case would be to have this done every year but most systems can go up to two years before needing to be cleaned out. Properly taken care of a septic tank system will do its job efficiently with few problems to worry about.