Septic Systems (Miami, Vero Beach, Sebastian: how much, new house, inspection)

[Mr IPSC]

Hi Everyone,

My wife and I are retiring to Florida, and we are interested in the Sebastian area. We understand that most, if not all, houses in Sebastian are on septic systems. We have never lived in a house with a septic system, but we have heard horror stories about them; such as you can't take long showers, or flush the toilet too often,have to use the right kind of thin toilet tissue, can't use certain sink or toilet cleaners. Can anyone give us some feedback as to whether this is true or not? We like the area but don't want to have to worry about expensive repairs to a septic system. Thanks!

[bgrasser]

I'm in the next city from Sebastian, been living with our septic system
for a couple of years. When we moved into our new house we had the tank pumped
because we didn't know when it was pumped last. The pumper told me with two people
living in the house we should be good for a couple of years. We treat the system with Rid-X
once a month, all the conditions that you heard are not true, we conduct our lives as when
we were living on public sewer.

[smitten]

Originally Posted by Mr IPSC

Hi Everyone,

My wife and I are retiring to Florida, and we are interested in the Sebastian area. We understand that most, if not all, houses in Sebastian are on septic systems. We have never lived in a house with a septic system, but we have heard horror stories about them; such as you can't take long showers, or flush the toilet too often,have to use the right kind of thin toilet tissue, can't use certain sink or toilet cleaners. Can anyone give us some feedback as to whether this is true or not? We like the area but don't want to have to worry about expensive repairs to a septic system. Thanks!

These things you mention are all symptoms of a septic tank already in trouble. Maybe the house has a clogged main line, a full tank that should be pumped out or possibly the homeowner needs a new drain field. Taking short showers and using less water, etc. are how some people choose to deal with the symptoms rather than fixing the real problem. Septic tanks are designed to handle regular toilet paper. They are designed to last for decades. So I say, "Not True".

That being said, all mechanical things have a life span and that span will be shortened by misuse. Who knows what previous owners have sent down the drain that might come back to haunt a new owner? Even roots can shorten/damage a septic field. Also, a home in a low-lying area that is perpetually wet from pooling rain that doesn't drain off might have these problems. The good news is that if there is a problem, it's something that can be fixed and it's usually not the most expensive fix homeowners have to deal with. Often it's as simple as a minor clog somewhere in the main drain line.

[Mr IPSC]

Thanks for the info. Mostly I think one tends to hear from people who are complaining about something; people who are satisfied seem to stay quiet about it. There's nothing like first-hand information.

[Restrain]

Our system was installed in the 1970's, just keeps on truckin'. Don't dump a bunch of stuff down the disposal if you have one. Use Rid-X regularly. Alternately, Fleshmans live yeast works great. The sand down here 'perks' great.

[aridon]

While I wouldn't want a home with septic if city was right at the street I wouldn't shy away from a septic home over just the septic system. If they are well maintained they can last a very long time and you can have zero problems. Obviously, if you abuse them, the consequences are expensive and smelly.

[Travelassie]

We have lived in houses with septic tanks for years with minimum problems. Actually, those in the business recommend that Rid-X and similar products NOT be put into septic tanks, they are not necessary as all the bacteria you need for proper breakdown of the solids in the tank are added with the #2 that is flushed into the tank. The recommended maintenance is having the septic tank pumped out every three to five years.

There are some precautions with septic tanks, but nothing you can't easily live with. They recommend that garbage disposals not be used, as these can overload the tank with hard to dissolve solids, don't pour oil or excessive amounts of grease down the drains, and don't as a routine flush paper products such as wipies, tampons or other products even if they say they are flushable. Actually, flushing grease, oil and excessive "flushable" paper products even into a municipal sewage system can cause blockages and other problems, it's just that this will cause the water and sewer department the headaches instead of you as a septic system owner with these problems. But sooner or later, I figure, those municipal problems will become the problem of the users as well, in the form of increases taxes or assessments to fix the problems, or interruption of services.

[Rabflmom]

Originally Posted by Travelassie

We have lived in houses with septic tanks for years with minimum problems. Actually, those in the business recommend that Rid-X and similar products NOT be put into septic tanks, they are not necessary as all the bacteria you need for proper breakdown of the solids in the tank are added with the #2 that is flushed into the tank. The recommended maintenance is having the septic tank pumped out every three to five years.

There are some precautions with septic tanks, but nothing you can't easily live with. They recommend that garbage disposals not be used, as these can overload the tank with hard to dissolve solids, don't pour oil or excessive amounts of grease down the drains, and don't as a routine flush paper products such as wipies, tampons or other products even if they say they are flushable. Actually, flushing grease, oil and excessive "flushable" paper products even into a municipal sewage system can cause blockages and other problems, it's just that this will cause the water and sewer department the headaches instead of you as a septic system owner with these problems. But sooner or later, I figure, those municipal problems will become the problem of the users as well, in the form of increases taxes or assessments to fix the problems, or interruption of services.

That is what we were told too, so we actually removed the garbage disposal and use a strainer in the drain of the kitchen sink(amazing how much food just in rinsing dishes gets in it). You also are not supposed to use bleach for cleaning or washing clothes when you have a septic.

Our original papers when we bought the house in 2006 also said to try and space using the dishwasher and washing machine out. It is not wise to do 5 loads of clothes, the dishwasher, and 4 or 5 showers all in the morning for example.

You do have to have it pumped-some people let it go for 20 years and say no problems. But with a family of 4 probably every 4 or 5 years is good. Sometimes with the amount of rain we get our back yard gets saturated and the drainfield can't do its job as well. We actually have 2 tanks on this house so we have to pay double for the pumping so it runs almost $500.

[Travelassie]

Originally Posted by Rabflmom

That is what we were told too, so we actually removed the garbage disposal and use a strainer in the drain of the kitchen sink(amazing how much food just in rinsing dishes gets in it). You also are not supposed to use bleach for cleaning or washing clothes when you have a septic.

Our original papers when we bought the house in 2006 also said to try and space using the dishwasher and washing machine out. It is not wise to do 5 loads of clothes, the dishwasher, and 4 or 5 showers all in the morning for example.

You do have to have it pumped-some people let it go for 20 years and say no problems. But with a family of 4 probably every 4 or 5 years is good. Sometimes with the amount of rain we get our back yard gets saturated and the drainfield can't do its job as well. We actually have 2 tanks on this house so we have to pay double for the pumping so it runs almost $500.

We still have our garbage disposal-they put it in when they built the house-, but we don't use it, we have a strainer over that drain too. We do run the disposal occasionally to get rid of the little slivers of food that get through the strainer, but that is it. And we are careful about putting as little grease as possible into the system too.

They do advise not overloading the rank with water with multiple loads of laundry, as you mention, but that has never been an issue, we don't have a large family so two loads a week or 10 days is just fine here. I had always used some bleach in with the light clothes, but quit doing that when we got one of those "HE" washers and figured I would let the oxidizers and whatever it is they put in those little laundry packets do the job. I still use a cleaner with some bleach in it for cleaning, I suppose I shouldn't, but I figure we renew the bacteria in the septic tank on a very regular basis here

So a tale of two septic tanks. The septic system we had at the house in Miami was the original one put in when the house was built in 1958. We didn't know anything about septic tanks and never did anything with it, and it worked just fine for years. We never had any issues with it till we had the house rebuilt after it was about half destroyed in Hurricane Andrew. It backed up (naturally, with a house full of company) in 1994, and the septic tank folks determined to be the tank was about half full of packed dirt, which greatly decreased the capacity of the tank. Apparently the lid to the tank was broken, we think from the folks who rebuilt the house parking a bulldoser right over the tank, and this allowed the dirt to fall into the tank. The guy pumped out the liquid, dug out the dirt, the lid was replaced, and we were good to go, LOL. We never had any issues with the septic tank after that, although we did have some plumbing issues related to teenage girls flushing waaaay too many paper products. We had the tank pumped a couple times in the next 16 years or so we lived there, basically just in case. And when we sold that house in 2012, the septic inspection showed that the "solids deflector" (whatever that is) was not functioning, so we replaced that, the inspection passed. This was an old septic tank, basically a 700 gallon tank with a drain field still working well after all these years. I can tell you we breathed a sigh of relief when it passed inspection, because replacing a septic system is big bucks.

Then there is the "new, improved" septic system put in when we had our new house built (2008). This has a 1000 gallon tank, but apparently it is divided into two compartments, one for the solids and the other for the liquids, and it requires some more maintenance than the system at our old house did. There is a solids filter that needs to be yanked out of the ground and hosed off about once a year or so, and the tank needs to be pumped without fail every three years or so. But the septic guy tells us that the way these new systems are built, it is almost impossible to contaminate the drain field, and that is always the expensive part of the fix in septic system failure. We know that it's getting to be time for either the solids filter to be cleaned, or the tank pumped out when the toilet nearest the septic tank starts not flushing well.

Wow, two tanks to be pumped out @ $500? That is a chunk of change, hopefully you don't have to do it too often.

[CajunSurveyor]

All the horror stories you have heard are not true. I owned and operated a surveying and engineering firm in Vero Beach. I lived in Sebastian for about 15 years. Never did I have one problem with the septic system. You can take long showers for sure. Hope this helps.