Addressing the needs of a septic system is a dirty job that someone has to do—thankfully, it’s often left to a professional septic system service in Ohio, like Gullett Sanitation Services, Inc. But, aside from the big jobs—like septic system tank pumping and jet aeration—there are some do’s and don’ts that every homeowner should familiarize themselves with, to ensure that the functionality of your septic system is maintained to its highest degree in between these services. Take a look at five key tips to avoiding unnecessary septic system services between your regularly scheduled maintenance:
- Watch your water usage. Septic system tanks do a great job at managing your effluent when they’re not under more strain then they have to be. Consider that your home’s current septic system was designed to support a specific threshold of use on a daily or weekly basis—anything above this threshold is going to cause capacity issues for your system. This means that it’s a good idea to watch how much water you’re using at any given time and making sure not to overload your system if you can help it. Good tips to remember here are installing efficient fixtures (sinks and toilets) and making sure to address any leaks that may be causing excess water waste.
- Direct downspouts away from your drain field. A flooded drain field is a drain field that’s going to cause some issues! You see, when wastewater is passed to your drain field, it’s going to be dispersed appropriately—eventually evaporating, being absorbed by the soil or even the roots of nearby plants. If your drain field is flooded because downspouts direct water onto it, however, it’s going to cause costly problems for your drain field that will require attention from a septic system service in Ohio.
- Keep chemicals out of your septic system tank. Chemicals throw off the entire septic system environment because they kill off the natural bacteria that work to facilitate breakdowns in your septic system. When you pour chemicals down the drain, they wreck havoc on the septic system environment and are often the cause for backups or improper breakdowns that could cause buildups within the tank itself. Use phosphate-free detergents and other chemically safe cleaning materials if you absolutely have to put them down the drain.
- Don’t build on your drain field. Your drain field is the all-important last step of the septic system process for waste water—however, if you build on your drain field, it can severely muck up the process. Building compacts the soil, creating dispersal problems and can also prevent wastewater from being properly handled by the earth. It’s also important to mention that parking cars on top of the drain field is also a poor idea, for these same reasons.
- Don’t landscape your drain field. Many people want to landscape their drain field in order to improve their property’s aesthetic, however this isn’t a good idea, since plants can interfere with the air exchange necessary within the drain field. Planting a veggie garden or laying down planting fabric and deep-rooting flowers will cause issues with your drain field that will quickly become apparent. If you must landscape your drain field, stick to shallow-rooting plants and native grasses.
Remember, these are just five key tips that you should consider—the list of do’s and don’ts is much longer and more encompassing than this. Keep checking back with our blog to learn more about septic system and drain field maintenance from our trusted professional septic system service in Ohio.