The Pumper's Wife

Today I will elaborate on the septic system drainfield and the best way to care for it. In the diagram above, you can see all the components of a septic system.  There is a tank and a leachfield/drainfield.  When I talk to customers, many of them are confused as to what makes up a septic system.  I would say many think that all they have is a tank and that is it.  However, the bigger portion of the septic system (and also the most expensive part) is the leachfield/drainfield/lateral field.  This part of the septic system is where the final treatment takes place and where all the water from your house is eventually absorbed.  The laterals can be looked at as one giant sponge that cleans up as it soaks up the wastewater.  For this reason, it is very important to know where your lateral field is located.  If this portion of your system becomes damaged or inhibited in any way, it will ruin the functionality of your septic system. Below are two examples of what is being installed

This week we will talk about TOILET PAPER!! Yay!  What fun?! What fun?!  Who doesn’t LOVE talking about the substance we use to wipe the most disgusting items from our body?! Hip hip hooray!! I know I have you going on a toilet-paper-celebrating-frenzy, but to be honest, toilet paper is no laughing matter when it comes to your septic system.  Believe it or not, using the wrong toilet paper can clog your system and leave you with a HUGE mess.  So, how do you know if you’re using the wrong toilet paper?   Let me help…  Unfortunately, all toilet papers claim to be “septic safe.”  This can be really confusing to the “new to septic” homeowner.  I’m sure all toilet papers will eventually break down once they get to the tank, but here’s the problem – if they are thicker, 3 ply, quilted toilet paper, they struggle to make it to the tank. Here’s why… When you use cheap, single ply toilet paper, the minute it hits the water and gets even the slightest agitation, it will star

So, if you read my previous ever-so-eloquently-written-wastewater-post from last week…You’ll notice the first thing I mentioned when avoiding septic system “messes” was WATER USAGE.  Today, I’m going to elaborate on that.     I had written how septic systems are sized according to the number of bedrooms.  It is assumed that there is at least one person per bedroom using approximately 100 gallons of water a day when sizing a system.  Obviously, there is no way to know exactly how much water will be used in the home, but to date this is the most logical way to assume approximate water usage. One thing septic systems are good at, is showing you when you’ve used too much water.  (Think about trying to fit 20 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket…)  Typically, you’ll see standing water over your drainfield first, but sometimes too much water can lead to a back-up in the house as well.  Below, I have listed the most common areas that lead to or can cause standing water over

HAPPY JANUARY!!  Oh the joys of new beginnings!  Or if you're like me, you can more closely relate to the meme below.... No matter what your opinion on January or resolutions, one thing that I would recommend to put on your list of "things to do" or "goals of 2020" is to learn more about your septic system! The more you know, the better it will serve you in the long run...I promise!    As I have stated before in previous posts/blogs/articles, so many people don’t really know how their wastewater systems work.     Because they don’t know how they work, they don’t understand simple “dos” and “don’ts” of a septic system.       I totally get it!     Until I got drug....ahem....I mean, happily invited into this business I never pondered what happened every time I flushed.     I doubt you do either.     However, when it comes to your own on-site wastewater system (i.e. septic systems) if you don’t ponder it just a little bit, it can lead to big, messy, g