Congrats new homeowner! The panic and stress of buying a house is wearing off, giving way to the joy of picking out paint colors and finalizing the layout of your new digs. You’re no longer city-living and finally acclimating with the quiet that comes with wide-open spaces. As you settle in and begin to navigate the responsibilities that come with being a homeowner, a few important things need to be considered. Arguably, one of the most important is your septic system.
Living outside the city means no access to a sewage system. Modern septic systems are the best way to manage waste as long as they are well-maintained. Understanding the basics of this new-to-you system and what kind of maintenance is needed will keep you from spending a ton of money and ensure that the water and environment around your home stay clean and safe. Here are some things to keep in mind and watch out for when installing a new septic system or buying one with an existing house.
How to Get Started
Before you get overwhelmed, there is nothing that you can’t learn with a few Google searches, some YouTube videos, and a trained expert. If you didn’t already have a licensed professional inspect your septic system, now is the time. You want to make sure that it’s up to code, and there is nothing that has been dangerously overlooked by the time it’s yours.
There are several different kinds of septic systems out there. If you find that you have one that’s older than 30 years, you will undoubtedly need to replace it. Do a little research, so you are prepared when it comes time for the inspection. Ask questions to ensure that you understand what role you play in the upkeep of the system. Before they leave, you should have a basic understanding of how it cleans your wastewater.
The Components
Knowing the location of each component on your property is vital. Have your inspector show you where each one is, so you can set up the proper precautions. Heavy objects like cars or trailers being pulled or parked over the top of the tank causes too much undue pressure and usually results in costly damage.
Nothing should be built or cover the drainage area either. Access to the control box on your house is important for yourself as well as anyone coming to look at the equipment. Know what your septic alarm sounds like in case of emergencies, and have a number on hand to get someone to you as soon as possible.
The Tank
Your tank is the biggest part of your wastewater system. It has at least two chambers depending on the design. The first one is where heavy solids that can’t be broken down will settle and will become a sludge layer at the bottom of the tank. From there, the lighter clear liquid, or effluent, flows into the next chamber where it is either pumped out or pushed out using gravity into the drainage pipes.
Drainage
Effluent is the liquid waste that comes out of the drainage pipes into surrounding soil. While this may sound gross, the soil plays an important role in waste management too. Microbes in the soils are able to remove pathogens, resulting in clean water running into nearby creeks or your water table below. This is why it’s necessary that this area be free of obstacles. Even tree roots can cause damage to the drainage pipes.
Other Things to Know
How Much Will This Cost?
If you are removing and replacing a septic system, you can expect to pay from $3,000 to $8,000. The initial cost is not cheap, but overall, yearly expenses should stay low as long as it’s been installed correctly. A few hundred dollars a year is generally what homeowners pay for pumping their system and inspections.
How Often Does It Need to Be Inspected?
Remember those solids that settle at the bottom of the tank? Those will need to be pumped every six months to a year depending on the kind of tank you have and how much water is used.
How Much Can Your System Handle?
Make sure you know how big your tank is, so you don’t overwork it. A good rule of thumb is that most septic systems are approved by how many rooms your home has and doubling it. If you have a two bedroom house and six or seven people regularly using plenty of water, you are probably overworking it and should have it checked by a specialist.
What Shouldn’t You Put Down the Plumbing in Your Home?
As kids, most of us were taught not to flush certain items. Now, as adults, we may need to once more have this conversation.
To keep everything functioning, only toilet paper should ever go down the toilet. Feminine products, paper towels, and prescription drugs should never be flushed. The paper products clog baffles, tubes that direct the flow of liquid, and drugs can alter the bacteria in the tank that breaks down other waste. Either one failing is not good for your wallet.
Common household products like paint, grease and oils, and even bleach can cause damage in large quantities. Spread out laundry loads when you need to bleach your towels and try to use all the paint that you can on that brush before washing it in the sink. Everything in moderation is always a good rule, but these things never being in the plumbing is even better.
Has Something Gone Wrong?
Damp soil or flooding over the top of the tank means that there has been a break in the tank or elsewhere. Call your local septic experts immediately. If you hear the alarm coming from your box, there is usually a way to turn it off, but again, call as soon as possible. The earlier you can get someone to check it out, the less likely you’ll be shelling out thousands to fix damage you could have avoided.
Lastly, owning a home means that you never stop learning. That’s ok. Remember how hard you worked to get here, and that you would never trade learning about septic systems and cleaning your vents for being back in a shoebox apartment with neighbors who are learning to tap dance or play the Star Wars theme song on their keyboard all night.