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Thread: Septic system woes...

  1. #1
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    Septic system woes...

    OK....I have water coming to the surface of my yard over the top of my field lines. I have had the tank pumped twice in the past 14 months. What is my problem and how can I fix it without spending a ba-zillion dollars to get this resolved. Family of 6 and live in the "kuntry".
    Thanks & Happy Wood Chips,
    Dennis -
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  2. #2
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    A number of years ago, I had problems with our septic. A local guy suggested a product called Bio-Sure before we resorted to digging up everything. That was 26 years ago. I still use it and I haven't dug it up yet! You can buy it from their web site. It has worked well for us!

    Lee
    Lee Schierer
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  3. #3
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    Dennis, I'm by no means a plumbing kind of guy, but I'm afraid it may not be good. If it were backing up into the house, I'd say it could be as simple as a clogged or possibly broken pipe between the tank and the drain field. In your case, it sounds like it's getting as far as the drain field. If it's coming back up over there, your drain field may not be perking. Ouch! That's not a good thing. No easy or cheap fix, that I'm aware of, anyway. If that is indeed the case, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I just thought you should be prepared for what may be coming. Good luck!
    Cheers,
    John K. Miliunas

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  4. #4
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    Dennis,

    When we moved in to our house it was on septic. The house hadn’t been lived in for about 6 months and so it back up once we started using everything. The little critters that love to dine in the tank just up and left when know one was using it. We ended up pumping it out a couple of times and that’s when the guy said we would have to pressurize the drain lines out to the yard. He hooked up one of the expanding rubber bladders to the end of the garden hose and feed it into the exit hole to the drain field. Turned on the hose and let it go for a little while. That worked for a couple of years and it happened again. So I went out and bought one of those things from Wal-Mart and did it myself. It was cheaper then having them come back out. But I sure know why they get paid as well as they do. Not fun. It has worked ever since.

    Good luck
    Dick

    No Pain-No Gain- Not!
    No Pain-Good

  5. #5
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    Dennis, unfortunately, I have to agree with John. I had a field that went bad on a friend. The field stopped perking for whatever reason (they gave a lot of reasons why it could have happened). The local septic guy came out and took a core sample from the field to help in diagnosing the problem. When all was said and done, a whole new field had to be put in (local ordinance prohibited reusing the same area). I'd call in the pros on this one, it could be bad. Best of luck.

    Be well,

    Doc

  6. #6
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    Lee,

    I've tried almost any and everything. Still the problem.

    John,

    I don't know who paid who....but the original owner/builder of this place put this thing in and it passed the local health inspection. I don't see how it did and there is not a single piece of gravel in any trench that a septic field line is laying in. Needless to say....I'm a little bit upset.
    Thanks & Happy Wood Chips,
    Dennis -
    Get the Benefits of Being an SMC Contributor..!
    ....DEBT is nothing more than yesterday's spending taken from tomorrow's income.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Don Abele
    Dennis, unfortunately, I have to agree with John. I had a field that went bad on a friend. The field stopped perking for whatever reason (they gave a lot of reasons why it could have happened). The local septic guy came out and took a core sample from the field to help in diagnosing the problem. When all was said and done, a whole new field had to be put in (local ordinance prohibited reusing the same area). I'd call in the pros on this one, it could be bad. Best of luck.

    Be well,

    Doc
    Doc,

    I can't get the local septic pro's out here. Every one of them that I call come out and unless a Septic System Engineer has been there, inspected it and drew up his own conclusion, they won't even attempt to give me a solution or cost estimate. The cost is around $400 just to get the SSE out here to say that my septic system is broke and to call one of the septic guys to come and fix it.

    I am frustrated over this as I have been calling and trying to talk to the local folks here for over 18 months now....and I still can't get anyone to tell me anything without providing them a LOT of money and some kind of "alcohol" (dry county) to persuade them to work instead of just sit in the truck. Sure ain't this way in Alabama.......If I still lived in Alabama, I would have had this resolved 17 months ago.!!!!!!
    Thanks & Happy Wood Chips,
    Dennis -
    Get the Benefits of Being an SMC Contributor..!
    ....DEBT is nothing more than yesterday's spending taken from tomorrow's income.

  8. #8
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    The real solution

    Quote Originally Posted by Dennis Peacock
    Lee,

    I've tried almost any and everything. Still the problem.

    John,

    I don't know who paid who....but the original owner/builder of this place put this thing in and it passed the local health inspection. I don't see how it did and there is not a single piece of gravel in any trench that a septic field line is laying in. Needless to say....I'm a little bit upset.
    Dennis,

    Looks like you have a real dilemma on your hands - sorry buddy. I recommend you call a pro.


    Another option is you can always select one or more of the following models. You might need to get the "honey bucket" version in case Terry comes to visit
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  9. #9
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    Dennis,

    Sorry to hear about your problem. I dealt with these types of issues when I was with my previous engineering firm. It sounds like your field was not constructed to meet current standards. My guess is that all the pore spaces in the soil immediately adjacent to the outlet holes in your pipes are plugged. The proper bedding material and procedures would have avoided this. Unfortunately, there is no practical way to unplug them. It could also be another problem but there is no way to be sure without doing the coring effort.

    I recommend you bite the bullet, pay for the local engineer and needed testing, and get his/her recommendation as it pertains to your specific situation. Unfortunately, the most likely fix is a new field.
    Kent Cori

    Half a bubble off plumb

  10. #10
    Dennis:

    I had my septic system replaced 3 years ago . What happened was when I bought the house, the previous owners pumped the septic tank out a couple of days before the health department came out to check and see if the septic system was working properly. Because the septic tank was pumped out, the septic system passed inspection by the health department. We did not find out that they had pumped the septic tank untill after we purchased the house. Well, about a year had passed when the problems started. First, the french drain in the basement kept filling up and no longer would work. Then we installed a sump pump in the basement. Well, the next thing that happened was that the sump pump kept going on and off. I bought a 100 foot long snake to try and clean out the drain pipe leading from the house to the tank. Nothing happened. Next I tried running the snake from the vent at the other end of the yard back up to the septic tank. My thought was maybe I could somehow unclog the pipe running throught the leach field. Went all the way up to the septic tank and nothing happened. Finally gave up and decided that the septic system needed to be replaced. When the man came out to replace the septic system, he replaced the tank with a 1500 gallon tank and put in a new sand filter system. The origional drain pipe lead from the house to the tank was made of clay. And as for the old sand filter, it measured no more than a half sheet of plywood in size. I later found out that the health department did not have a record of who put the first septic system in the house.

    Bob

  11. #11
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    Dennis,

    We had a similar problem a few years back, with the gray water sitting atop the drain field. We had the tank pumped several times.. We were told the leech field needed to be replaced.

    Snaked out the pipes from inside to no avail- Finally, after everything:

    Turned out a local plumber down the street came out and snaked the top of the lines from the distribution box--- hasn't had a problem since.

    _Aaron_

  12. #12
    Dennis, I had a similar problem years ago except mine backed up into the house. I found the tail end of one of my drain-lines, dug a hole and exposed the end of the drainpipe. Water gushed out into the hole, percolated down and disappeared. This told me that the pipes were open but I had insufficient percolation. I purchased two lengths of infiltrator, dug a trench and installed them as an addition to the end of my drain-field. Covered it up and have had no problem since. That was at least six - seven years ago. The infiltrator sections were about $35 each, the end-piece was extra, but for about $100 bucks and full day of hand digging it solved my problem.

    http://www.infiltratorsystems.com/pr...c_standard.htm

    I have no affiliation with this company or their product except that it successfully solved my problem.

    Also, If you can separate your washing machine and put put it into a separate drain-field that will help ease the load on your septic system.
    Last edited by Tony Falotico; 01-05-2004 at 7:23 PM.
    Tony

  13. #13

    ok , no expert here but my $0.02

    Dennis,

    We have a home with a septic, and went through a few things when we were buying the house that may be helpful.

    First, I am assuming that your field is rated for as many people you have on it? Ours is only for a 3 bedroom house, which implies 2 adults and max 4 kids, but I know there are smaller and larger.

    Second, to me it sounds like the baffel is shot and letting solids out into your field. If this is the case, you may be able to have the field water jetted so it will perk, and then replace the baffel.

    Most home inspectors can check septic systems (at least in my area), and some even have camera systems that the send down the field to check for problems. May be worth a call.

    good luck,

    -dan

  14. #14
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    Dennis:

    I had the same problem in an older house I use to own.
    DON'T TELL ANYBODY But I was able to reroute my drain from the washing machine and pipe it to a field in the back of the property to releive the "water" from the washer to the septic tank. Another way is to burry a 55 gal with a lots of rock around it and run the washer water there.

    KEN
    RUSTYNAIL

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