Most people don’t pay attention to their septic system until they suddenly have a problem. If you have a septic tank problem, you will be unable to use the toilet, take a shower, or even run the dishwasher. The inconveniences that you go through while you wait for professional help to arrive can be enough to motivate you to read up on what could have happened. In this article, you’ll discover common septic tank problems and how you can prevent slow drain septic problems from occurring. Tureks Plumbing Services suggests that you pay special attention to the following common septic tank problems.
Septic Tank Problems: Excess Water in the Septic Tank
One of the septic tank problems that plumbers from Tureks Plumbing Services are called out to fix is excess water in the septic tank. Before you rush to condemn the weather in your area for this problem, examine the water use habits of your household.
For example, do you run several cycles in the washing machine each day? Do you indulge in lengthy showers? How often do you fill and empty the bathtub each week? These things may be causing lots of water to flow down the drains and into the septic tank.
If the tank isn’t sized appropriately for your household or water usage habits, then that tank could overflow and mess up your yard.
Ask a Fox Valley Plumber to inspect the tank and pump it in case solids had accumulated in the space that should be holding water. Otherwise, adjust your water use habits so that less water ends up in the septic tank each day. For example, instead of keeping all your laundry and running several cycles in one day of the week, you could run one cycle each day. This approach will allow the septic tank to deal with the smaller amounts of water that flow in instead of being inundated with huge volumes of water on a single day.
Septic Tank Problems: Tree Root Infiltration
Tree roots can sense the proximity of water and other nutrients, and they will grow towards that location. If the tiniest of leaks develop in your septic system, nearby tree roots will grow towards the leak and eventually penetrate the pipe through the leaky section.
Over time, these roots will grow bigger and cause significant clog or damage to the septic system. This is a tough problem to fix on your own, so you need to enlist the help of an Appleton plumber to cut out those roots and repair the damage to the septic pipe.
You can avoid this problem by planting trees far from the septic system so that you reduce the likelihood that the tree roots will damage your septic pipes years later.
Septic Tank Problems: Non-Biodegradables in the System
The plumbing professionals at Tureks Plumbing Services remind homeowners that everything that goes down a plumbing drain will eventually find its way into the septic tank.
It is therefore vital to avoid disposing of non-biodegradables in the drainage system. Since these items can cause clogs or fill the septic tank with solids that necessitate more frequent septic tank pumping. The items to avoid include sanitary towels and tampons, cat litter, coffee grounds, dental floss, paper towels, and cotton swabs.
Experienced plumbers in Appleton, WI urge you not to flush sanitary wipes even if they are labelled as “flushable” because most take long to break down and will, therefore, cause clogs. If these non-biodegradables have already found their way into the septic system, then the tank may need to be pumped, and the pipes unclogged.
Septic Tank Problems: Use of Harsh Chemicals
Slow drain septic problems can also result from your use of harsh chemicals, such as chemical drain cleaners. These chemicals can gradually damage the drainage and spring leaks in drainage pipes.
If the leak occurs in an underground septic pipe, soil from the vicinity can enter the pipe and cause slow drainage in your plumbing fixtures.
Additionally, many of those chemicals kill the bacteria responsible for breaking down the solids that are flushed down the drains in your home. Without this bacteria, the septic tank will quickly fill up, and the drain field will be overwhelmed by the solids leaking out of the septic tank.
Avoid these potentially severe and costly problems by keeping your use of harsh chemicals minimal. Ask a Fox Valley plumber for advice on which particular cleaners are septic-tank friendly.
Septic Tank Problems: Strong Odors
The entire septic system should not give off strong odors that are noticeable by your family members. If you sense these odors coming from any of the drains in your home or the vicinity of the septic tank, then something is wrong.
For example, the beneficial bacteria in the septic tank may have been killed by the chemicals you use in your household. As a result, wastes may accumulate in the septic tank without being decomposed. This creates noticeable odors coming from the tank.
The drain field (the area where liquids from the septic tank seep into) may no longer be capable of doing its work due to soil compaction and other factors.
Septic Tank Ground Movements
The ground around your septic tank may have moved, and that is why you are experiencing slow drain septic problems. For example, the soil could have moved upwards and forced the tank to be at a higher level than the septic system requires it to be. When that happens, you will notice that the drainage is slow throughout your home due to the changed position of the septic tank.
In some cases, sewage will even start backing up into the toilet, shower drain and other ground or floor-level drains in your home. The only way to fix such a problem is by getting expert help from Tureks Plumbing Services.
As you can see, the causes of slow drain septic problems are many and seem to be unrelated. The best way to protect your septic system from those problems is by asking Tureks Plumbing Services to take charge of the routine maintenance of the entire system. During the scheduled maintenance visits, our plumbers will share any concerns they have. In this way, problems will be caught early and rectified before they worsen and become more costly to fix. Give us a call today!