It's SepticSmart Week

This week is the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fourth annual SepticSmart Week to encourage the more than 26 million homeowners and communities with septic systems to properly maintain their septic systems.

When homeowners flush and don’t think about their home’s septic system, it can lead to system back-ups and overflows, surfacing sewage in your yard which can be expensive to fix, polluted local waterways, and risks to public health and the environment. Yet, Virginia like many states has struggled to get homeowners to consistently maintain their septic systems.

Homeowners fail to see or simply ignore signs that their septic systems may be failing, do not pump their tanks often enought and do not comply with inspection and maintenance regulation for alternative systems. While the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) holds meetings and struggles for solutions, the EPA launched the annual SepticSmart Week, to encourage homeowners to get “SepticSmart.”

The United States has made tremendous advances in the past 35 years to clean up our rivers and streams under the Clean Water Act by controlling pollution from industry and sewage treatment plants. In order to continue to make progress in cleaning up our rivers and streams EPA has turned their focus to controlling pollution from diffuse, or nonpoint, sources. Things like stormwater runoff and septic systems. According to EPA, these nonpoint source pollution are the largest remaining source of water quality problems. However, these are the most difficult sources of pollution to address, because eliminating them involves changing the behavior of millions of people. Unfortunately, we did not do enough to control pollution from diffuse, or nonpoint, sources- from our homes and living.

Non-point source contamination has always been under the oversight of the states, and the nature of the sources of this contamination make it very challenging for even state and local regulatory agencies to make any progress. More people need to understand their responsibility to control their own sources of nonpoint source pollution starting with the most basic maintenance and care of their septic systems.

Simply pumping out your septic tank would be a good start at reducing nonpoint pollution. EPA and the Virginia Department of the Environment (through the VDH) have struggled with the challenges of better management of septic systems. It is assumed that in Virginia a fairly rural state that at least a quarter of households use a septic system to treat their wastewater. Proper septic system care and maintenance is vital to protecting public health and preserving valuable water resources that provide drinking water to our rural residences and communities and the environment, but has been difficult to achieve.

Taking the steps recommended by the EPA for SepticSmart Week would be a great start at reducing nonpoint pollution of our waters. Homeowners can do their part by following these SepticSmart tips:

1. Protect It and Inspect It: In general, homeowners should have their traditional septic system inspected every three years and their alternative system inspected annually by a licensed contractor and have their tank pumped when necessary, generally every three to five years.
2. Think at the Sink: Avoid pouring fats, grease, and solids down the drain, which can clog a system’s pipes and drainfield.
3. Don’t Overload the Commode: Ask guests to only to put things in the drain or toilet that belong there. For example, coffee grounds, dental floss, disposable diapers and wipes, feminine hygiene products, cigarette butts, and cat litter can all clog and potentially damage septic systems. Flushable wipes are not flushable and do not break down in a septic tank.
4. Don’t Strain Your Drain: Be water efficient and spread out water use. Fix plumbing leaks, install faucet aerators and water-efficient products, and spread out laundry and dishwasher loads throughout the day and week. Too much water at once can overload a system if it hasn’t been pumped recently.
5. Shield Your Field: Remind guests not to park or drive on a system’s drainfield, where the vehicle’s weight could damage buried pipes or disrupt underground flow.

The Rules for Septic Systems

My septic tanks

A lot of the rule of thumb advice on septic systems available in brochures from various government entities was developed for basic or “typical” septic systems that are the most common systems out there. These rules assume typical systems and average household water use. Really, you can’t go wrong following the sensible and conservative rules of septic management generally offered up. These days there are vast differences in system design and sizing, the age of systems as well as how systems are used to make many of the old rules of living with a septic system not applicable to all systems and all households. However, if all you want is the basic rules, then here you go:

1. Have a traditional septic system inspected at least every 3 years by a professional and your tank pumped as recommended by the inspector. This requires that the access to your tank and inspection ports not be buried. If the bottom of the scum layer is within 6-8 inches of the bottom of the outlet tee or the top of the sludge layer is within 12 inches of the outlet tee, your tank needs to be pumped. How often you really need to pump your septic tank depends primarily on the size of your tank, the number of people in the household, the volume of solids in your wastewater and whether you use a garbage disposal or have a water treatment system and of course local regulations. 
2. Manage your household water use. The septic system does not have unlimited capacity. Practice mindful water use. Doing all the household laundry in one day might over load your septic system. With an alternative system that has a timed pump and level alarms you will get a high water alarm. Doing load after load of laundry or excessive water use (all the relatives are staying with you) does not allow your septic tank time to adequately treat wastes. In an older system the waste will simply flow into the drainfield in a newer system, the system will alarm and then back up into the house (unless you force it to pump). 
3. Dispose of hazardous household wastes at an appropriate waste disposal facility or drop-off. Most landfills and city trash programs have these drop-offs. Do not put hazardous household wastes down the drain or in the toilet EVER. Do not wash paint brushes or containers in the sink they can destroy the biological treatment system. Minimize the use of bleach, chemical disinfectants and antibacterial agents. 
4. Most septic system additives do not have a positive effect on the operation of a septic system, and can contaminate groundwater aquifers, render septic drainfields dysfunctional, and result in costly repairs to homeowners. There is no additive on the market that will eliminate the need to pump a tank and some products can damage septic systems, interfere with treatment of wastewater, and contaminate groundwater.
5. Your septic system is not a trash can. Do not flush dental floss, feminine hygiene products, condoms, diapers, cotton swabs, cigarette butts, coffee grounds, cat litter, paper towels, and other kitchen and bathroom items down the drain. At best they accumulate in the bottom of the tank and shorten the time between pump outs, but they can also damage your septic system. Items that float and are carried over to clog the distribution ports. 
6. Know where your drainfield is. Plant only grass over and near your septic system. Roots from nearby trees or shrubs might clog and damage the drainfield. Also, pay attention to your drainfield, a muddy drainfield is a sign of failure. Septic drainfields and alternative secondary treatments like peat tanks and sand mounds also have a limited life. The life of a septic drainfield is dependent on how the system is managed, the frequency of septic tank pump outs, and the number of people living in a house, but 20-30 years may be the life of those systems- even when well managed.
7. Don’t drive or park vehicles on any part of your septic system. The weight of the equipment will compact the soil in your drainfield or damage the pipes. 
8. Pumping your tank regularly is the single most important thing you can do. The newest rule of thumb from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is to pump every three years. In the Chesapeake Bay watershed many homes are within areas designated resource protected areas that requires pump out at least every five years, but that may not be frequent enough depending primarily on the size of your tank, the number of people in the household contributing to the volume of your wastewater, the volume of solids in your wastewater and whether you use a garbage disposal or have a water treatment system.