Especially if you are new to owning a home with a septic system – and the septic tank maintenance that comes with it – you’ll want to understand what to do to maintain your septic tank properly.
- Healthy Home Tip # 1: Conserve water. Each septic system is designed to handle only a certain amount of water, but water usage changes throughout each week (such as on laundry day) and even over the years as families go through changes in number of residents and visitors. If you notice that the drain field has puddles or is soggy, you should see improvement by reducing water usage by around 30% to dry things back out again. Learning the habit of conserving water is part of proper septic tank maintenance.
- Healthy Home Tip #2: Be vigilant. Plumbing is something every homeowner has to maintain regularly, but maintenance is especially critical with a septic system. Make sure leaking faucets are replaced and slow drains are addressed promptly. You should also install low-flow appliances. And above all, keep an eye out for water backing up, which can quickly turn from inconvenience to disaster.
- Healthy Home Tip #3: Call us regularly for your septic tank maintenance! Septic tanks need to be pumped more often than you may think or have been told by others. How often pumping is needed depends upon the size of the septic tank for your own home and your current usage. Sometimes you may need the tank pumped every year! While about 50% of the sludge present is broken down by bacteria in the tank, septic tanks are only designed to accommodate being about 30% full of sludge before they need to be pumped to avoid damage to other parts of your septic system or even worse, horrible flood damage to your home! Call us at William Dustin Septic for help maintaining your septic tank and keeping your home healthy.