High ground water septic

[nsa162]

Originally Posted by numsgal

Our effluent gets discharged by three different sprinklers. The high water table isn't a problem in those areas as they have better drainage than our leach field had.


We paid $7K for a completely new aerobic system: four tanks and three sprinklers. We could have used a smaller tank and two sprinklers, but thought at the time we'd have four people living in the house instead of two. Our annual fee is $20 per year as DH took the class to do the annual and quarterly certification on our system. I don't know what the cost is to hire someone to do it.


ETA: You will also use chlorine or bleach to treat your discharge from the sprinklers to kill all the bacteria. So, while I wouldn't take a shower in it, the water is supposed to be clean.

7k sounds cheap for my area, New Jersey. Where are you located? Can sprinklers be used in cold climates? Will they freeze in the winter time?

[numsgal]

I'm in TX. I'd guess in NJ it would probably run you about double due to mark ups and labor costs. Our sprinklers have never frozen, even with the horrific cold snap we had this winter with several days of sub 20 degree weather.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by numsgal

Our effluent gets discharged by three different sprinklers. The high water table isn't a problem in those areas as they have better drainage than our leach field had.


We paid $7K for a completely new aerobic system: four tanks and three sprinklers. We could have used a smaller tank and two sprinklers, but thought at the time we'd have four people living in the house instead of two. Our annual fee is $20 per year as DH took the class to do the annual and quarterly certification on our system. I don't know what the cost is to hire someone to do it.


ETA: You will also use chlorine or bleach to treat your discharge from the sprinklers to kill all the bacteria. So, while I wouldn't take a shower in it, the water is supposed to be clean.

So basically, you're operating a tiny waste treatment plant in your back yard. My childhood best friend made his living bringing failed municipal waste treatment systems back to spec and flew all over the world doing it. From years of me doing Q&A about it, I don't see how "taking a class" gets the job done when the system invariably goes off the rails.