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It depends upon the type you have. We have an aereator type, which is a sort of stirer, and you can't put a tampon or anything fibrous because it will entangle. Other than that, after 15 years, we have never adjusted our lifestyle in anyway as far as laundry behavior or garbage disposal etc.
One question I would like to ask is can one diagnose a septic when it is full? In other words, they didn't empty my septic on friday but freely said it needed to be replaced. Jeannie
One question I would like to ask is can one diagnose a septic when it is full? In other words, they didn't empty my septic on friday but freely said it needed to be replaced. Jeannie
A tank can be inspected but I think a septic would only need replacement if there was a major problem with the tank itself, or the pipes that are underground. Also from what I have read research wise, there are baffles in the tanks too so if something were to go wrong with that, then it would be obvious at some point.
Whomever told you freely that it needed to be replaced is pretty much waiting to make some money from you. I would recommend getting a full inspection first of the septic tank and system before determining if it needs replacement. There have been many septic systems that have been in use for many years and never needed replacement, as long as it was cared for properly. Many people will simply say it needs replacement to try to make you spend money.
When we bought our current house 11 years ago, the septic system failed. They knew this because a septic system consultant that we ourselves asked to come and inspect the system discovered it. In our case the leaching field was not draining properly. The owner did admit that in the 30 years he'd owned the home he had only had the tank emptied once. The owner had to pay to have a new leaching field installed. I would certainly call in your own company to conduct a test. In our case, we could indeed detect a faint odor outside.
Location: Sometimes Maryland, sometimes NoVA. Depends on the day of the week
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The septic on our house failed (and was replaced) before we bought the house. The area we are in has heavy clay and a high water table, so septics here fail about about 20-30 years (note - the average life of a septic system is 40-50 years).
I don't recall if you said how old your house was - I know its not new b/c of the deck footing post. If its old, see my parenthetical note above. And, make sure you have a concrete tank. If you aren't sure of the age of your tank or system, your county permitting and/or health department should have permit information for the last time it was worked on.
I can tell you what our inspector did - dropped some dye into the tank, then ran every faucet. The point being to flush about 400 gallons into the tank and see how is responds. It backed up within 5 minutes (no where near 400 gallons). We had a separate septic addendum on our contract, so we went by the terms of that. Which was that we reported the results (that the septic test indicated a problem) and asked them to have it pumped and checked out. The system had been pumped only 9 months before, so that should *not* have happened. The sellers had the system pumped and checked out by their choice in septic guys. He said the problem was probably tree roots between the tank and the drain field. But he was only a pumper and did not do line work. So the sellers called another company to replace the line between the tank and the drain field distribution box. That guy determined that the whole field was shot. This required the lot to be re-perked and a new system designed. Due to the clay and high water table mentioned, we have something called a dosing system, which has a main tank, and a second tank that holds water and distributed it to the drain field 400 gallons at a time (rather than gallon for gallon as it comes out of the house). All of this cost the sellers $12k.
So, after going through this last summer, a couple of thoughts for you:
(1) Get your own guy out there!
(2) It seems way early to say $20k. The system might not be flowing right, but unless they have run cameras down all the pipes and/or dug up the drain field, I doubt anyone can make a definitive diagnosis of the problem
(3) (you won't like this one) Around here, the seller has the responsibility to delivery a house with a functioning sewage disposal system. There is no as-is clause with that. And, as a buyer, I would not buy a house with a non-functioning septic. I know it will be a massive hit, but I don't think this is something you can refuse to do. But see points 1 & 2 - don't take their word for it, see it for yourself and get your own guy or two to look at it.
Good luck! I hope its nothing major! Maybe just a pumping and a pipe to the distribution box.
I'm actually having a problem with mine. The former owners had the whole system replaced 10 years ago and I just had to have it pumped out after only 2 years. It's a 900 gallon tank and it's only me in the house. The septic guy told me there was probably a root problem with the leech field but I can't swing a $3,000 bill right now. I hoping the latest pumping will settle things down and maybe buy me a year or so before having to dig up the back yard. http://bestsmileys.com/frustrated/9.gif (broken link)
So, after going through this last summer, a couple of thoughts for you:
(1) Get your own guy out there!
(2) It seems way early to say $20k. The system might not be flowing right, but unless they have run cameras down all the pipes and/or dug up the drain field, I doubt anyone can make a definitive diagnosis of the problem
(3) (you won't like this one) Around here, the seller has the responsibility to delivery a house with a functioning sewage disposal system. There is no as-is clause with that. And, as a buyer, I would not buy a house with a non-functioning septic. I know it will be a massive hit, but I don't think this is something you can refuse to do. But see points 1 & 2 - don't take their word for it, see it for yourself and get your own guy or two to look at it.
Good luck! I hope its nothing major! Maybe just a pumping and a pipe to the distribution box.
Thank you. I do understand and I would not want to purchase a home with a non-working septic either. Our system is approximately 15 years old, was pumped 3 years ago and again, we just want to be certain that the diagnosis is correct. They were only here for about 30 minutes and it just seemed awfully fast to assume a new septic was indeed needed. Thanks to everyone for your support. Jeannie
One question I would like to ask is can one diagnose a septic when it is full? In other words, they didn't empty my septic on friday but freely said it needed to be replaced. Jeannie
If a septic system isn't performing, usually the first step in diagnosing the problem is to have the tank itself pumped.
There are numerous locations which can cause septic system failure: a clog in the pipe leading from the house to the tank; a clog in the baffle leading from one tank chamber to the next; a clog at the outlet pipe to the leach field; a clogged header pipe leading to the leach field; or clogged weeping pipes in the leach field itself.
Initally pumping a tank dry allows a service person to determine if water is able to flow freely from the house to the tank. It also allows visual inspection of the baffles between tank chambers. If it's necessary to place a camera down the weeping lines, this is easier to do if the tank is dry.
If your buyer's inspector was on site less than 30 minutes, if kind of makes you wonder what exactly he did.
Quote:
I'm actually having a problem with mine. The former owners had the whole system replaced 10 years ago and I just had to have it pumped out after only 2 years. It's a 900 gallon tank and it's only me in the house. The septic guy told me there was probably a root problem with the leech field but I can't swing a $3,000 bill right now. I hoping the latest pumping will settle things down
Tree roots can raise havoc with a leach field by plugging the pipes with masses of fine hair roots.
The first step of the solution is to deal with the tree(s) causing the problem.
Before digging up your entire leach field, you might want to try various chemical de-rooters that you pour into the second chamber of your septic tank. The theory is that these chemicals make their way out to the leach bed, kill the root mass and encourage the disintregration of the roots.
I've found a powder called copper sulfate is fairly effective at displacing hair roots and discouraging further growth.
Chemical de-rooters take some time to work, but may extend the usable life of your system until you're able to afford replacement.
I had an additional question, I have heard that its best to avoid anti-bacterial dish-washing detergents (like AJAX and such) since they may have the potential of harming the septic system. Is this true?
Yes, it is true... will a little make a noticeable difference... NO, but it does impede Septic Function.
You can have two identical systems in the same neighborhood... one last 30 years without a problem and the other has numerous problems... it really all comes down to how much and what's going into the system.
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The owner had to pay to have a new leaching field installed. I would certainly call in your own company to conduct a test. In our case, we could indeed detect a faint odor outside.
