What You Always Wanted to Know About Septics
by Cile Downs
Here in a region where sewer networks are unknown and likely to remain so, everybody with a house also has a septic system. But, strangely, few people have more than a foggy notion of what that system is and what goes on in it. As you can imagine, this doesn’t lead to the best care and upkeep. A faulty system can endanger both groundwater and the closest water body, be it creek or bay, and cause you a whole lot of trouble.
The usual septic arrangement consists of a 1000- or 1500-gallon septic tank, where breakdown of wastewater by bacterial action begins. This tank is connected to several leaching rings, their number and size determined by the number of bedrooms in the house and how many feet there are between surface and groundwater. In the septic tank, solids sink to the bottom as sludge, fats and soaps float on top as scum and the water between (the effluent) continually overflows into the leaching rings. All three undergo “digestion” by bacteria during this process. From the rings, the effluent seeps out into the soil, which is supposed to filter all solids and bacteria out of it before it reaches groundwater. In our area, the soil is mostly sand, an excellent filter. And don’t forget — groundwater also moves through this sandy soil, so everything not actually water-soluble is filtered out and left behind.
County inspection and approval are required for all new septic systems; in the HPOD area, the Town may impose even stricter standards. We in the APC should be very grateful for this, since bacterial or chemical contamination is extremely dangerous to our creek. When a simple upgrade to an already existing system is done, the Town oversees it.
There are alternative septic systems, for instance fields instead of rings. Newer ones are made of recycled plastic, light and easy to handle. These have the advantage of being shorter vertically, leaving an extra foot between system and groundwater, for more filtration. One disadvantage can be the need for a wider area of ground, so very small lots ca enough distance from one’s own or a neighbor’s well. It is also probably useless at present to try to get County approval for them in new construction: the traditional leaching rings arrangement enjoys a “cookie-cutter” approval process, and the County is loath to entertain new ideas. We can only hope that they will eventually learn.
Meanwhile, do consider a field if you plan to upgrade.
We constantly hear advice to pump out septic tanks every two to four years. Some even recommend pumping twice a year, though it’s doubtful this extreme is ever necessary except for a system that is utterly failing. Naturally, if your tub drains sluggishly or the toilet refuses to flush, you call for pump-out at once. But if this happens again, the whole system is probably clogged and needs to be replaced, not repeatedly pumped out.
Also remember that the Town’s waste treatment facility has limited capacity and trucking waste out of town costs money. We should find better methods of determining how often – if ever – pumping is really needed. Pumping company folks naturally have a bit of conflict of interest about this and are not the ones to ask.
There’s one clear conclusion: we all should be careful to do nothing to harm the operation of our system. A septic tank should contain thriving bacteria continually at work, breaking down waste. To promote bacteria, all you have to do is refrain from killing them. Many household products contain bacteria-killing chemicals, so you must be vigilant. Anything “antiseptic” is obviously working against your septic process.
One of the worst offenders is chlorine, common in bleach and cleanser. Non-chlorine bleaches are available online from Seventh Generation and in health food stores and some supermarkets. With cleanser, if you insist on the chlorine, here’s an idea. Scrub your sink or tub when you have time to leave the chlorinated powder on it until it dries. This gives plenty of time to disinfect the surface and allow the chlorine to evaporate away. Then the powder can be safely washed down the drain.
Limit the amount of detergent you use, or use a relatively harmless one (available from the same sources as non-chlorine bleach). If you need fabric softener, you are probably using too much detergent.
Never put anything down the drain that is so caustic or poisonous you should avoid getting it on your skin. Certainly, nothing designed to kill tree roots should go into your septic system. An herbicide that wound up in the creek could kill plant life there; for the same reason, also avoid using chemicals on your lawn. Never flush any drug down the drain; drugs are increasingly common and very disturbing contaminants in groundwater. Drugs and herbicides may not affect the operation of your septic, but your septic is how they can end up in groundwater, with bad results.
Bacteria can’t digest real solids — cigarette butts, paper towels, sand or coffee grounds — so do not put them down the drain. A garbage disposal is another bad idea. Never pour grease down the drain; instead, wipe out greasy pans before washing them and add the greasy paper towel to your compost heap.
It’s an inescapable conclusion. “Out of sight, out of mind” won’t do with septic systems. They work the way they are designed to — if we use our heads, learn how they work and take care of them.
