Chihuahua Floyd
Happy to be here
My dad and mom raised four kids. House built in 1960, tank pumped in 2000. Only needed to be pumped when the inlet clogged up. I don't recommend pumping one unless th e re is trouble.
CF
CF
Hi friends,
I live on 30 acres, in the country, outside of Raleigh.
We have 3 adults and 2 kids pooping into a Double tank with 3 risers, 3 lids, and field lines going out into the wood .
We have been living here for 3 years. The septic tank has never been pumped and the alarm has never gone off.
The previous owners said that the tank was installed in 1997 and it has never been pumped out even since then...
Today, I called a septic tank guy and said, "Will you come look at my tank and see if it needs to be pumped, because it has never been pumped before. "
He said, "I'm not driving out there to look at it... If you been there for 3 years and it's never been pumped then it needs it. If I drive out there, I'm pumping it, and you're paying me $450. And $450 is cheap! "
I didn't like his tone, so I said, "No thanks. Don't come. "
What do y'all think?
Any recommendations for taking care of the root mat over the access hole? Already did 2 lbs of copper sulfate and was considering some rock salt to try and kill them off.Please listen guys- 35 years in septic and plumbing - A lot of what has been said is good. To the OP, what concerns me more than anything is you said your leach ran down in the woods. If trees have grown up near the leach, get rid of them!!! The roots are disaster coming! Once those lines are root bound, you are talking replacement. If you can see the outline of the tank, or it is extra green around the tank it is leaking and/or overflowing in ground -GET IT PUMPED! Once a tank fills with solid waste, it can pass over the secondary chamber and end up in the distribution box and even leach- bad news!!! My rule of thumb is 5-10 years -check it. If you can poke with a stick in the primary (1st) chamber and it moves and is not thick sludge it can go awhile longer. If it is closer than 4" below the inlet pipe -get it pumped! If you have a low pressure system, look in pumping chamber with a flashlight, it you see ANY solids, GET IT PUMPED!! It's not a grinder pump and not designed to pump solid waste. Any questions you can PM me -I'm happy to help. It's a dirty job but somebody's got to do it!
Please listen guys- 35 years in septic and plumbing - A lot of what has been said is good. To the OP, what concerns me more than anything is you said your leach ran down in the woods. If trees have grown up near the leach, get rid of them!!! The roots are disaster coming! Once those lines are root bound, you are talking replacement. If you can see the outline of the tank, or it is extra green around the tank it is leaking and/or overflowing in ground -GET IT PUMPED! Once a tank fills with solid waste, it can pass over the secondary chamber and end up in the distribution box and even leach- bad news!!! My rule of thumb is 5-10 years -check it. If you can poke with a stick in the primary (1st) chamber and it moves and is not thick sludge it can go awhile longer. If it is closer than 4" below the inlet pipe -get it pumped! If you have a low pressure system, look in pumping chamber with a flashlight, it you see ANY solids, GET IT PUMPED!! It's not a grinder pump and not designed to pump solid waste. Any questions you can PM me -I'm happy to help. It's a dirty job but somebody's got to do it!
Any recommendations for taking care of the root mat over the access hole? Already did 2 lbs of copper sulfate and was considering some rock salt to try and kill them off.
The best remedy is going to be digging out the inlet to tank on outside and getting some hydraulic cement to seal -often the seal to tank was not done well and needs to be repairedAny recommendations for taking care of the root mat over the access hole? Already did 2 lbs of copper sulfate and was considering some rock salt to try and kill them off.
CUT TREES NEAR LEACH!!!!!I'd like second this question and add - any thoughts or opinions on preventative treatments/additives specifically to prevent root problems? Our field is wedged between lots of mature hardwood trees and some smaller ones mixed in. 22 year old system and no issues yet, but I'd like to keep it that way.
I've dropped RootX into the main drain line a couple times over the past three years, but I suspect I'm doing more for my own peace of mind than actually helping to prevent any potential intrusion.
CUT TREES NEAR LEACH!!!!!
I plan on pumping it every 8-10 years whether it needs it or not. $300 over ten years is not that bad of a price to pay.