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Septic System-Problem
You may be just over the edge of the systems capacity (causing big problems) reduction of water use may push it back to being workable. Consider doing the following: Make temp repairs to the septic system and drastically reduce your water usage. Buy a water friendly front loading washing machine and a water saver dishwasher amongst other water saving devices, think about how much water you use every time you use it. You could probably get by with limited expense.
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Septic System-Problem
I plan to clear the dirt around the the perf pipes and put some gravel around it so the water has some place to go. What size gravel would i order, and is there defined amount to place around a 12 foot length??
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Septic System-Problem
When my system went bad I put in a drywell and routed all gray water to the drywell (which was 80% of the water). I put a rock drainage field on the downhill side of the drywell. Got me by for the remaining time I spent at the house.
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Septic System-Problem
Generally speaking you do NOT want to put stone around the leach field (perf.) pipes. The system will work the best if there is heavy soil below the pipes and sand then light sandy topsoil planted in short grass over the pipes.
The water is supposed to go up out of the pipes not down. When it goes down there is the opportunity for contaminating the ground-water, when it goes upwards the water evapourates and the plants digest the nutrients.
As was already stated, if you can divert a lot of the water away from the system completely that will be a BIG help.
Also be careful putting material down the drain which could serilize the 'good' bacteria in the tank, things like soap, bleach, etc. should be only allowed in REALLY minute quantities.
A lot of the old timers around here saythe best way to kick-start a septic system is to buy a quart of buttermilk and leave it on the counter for a few days then pour it down the drain, apparently the bacteria in sour milk is the same as hwtais needed for your septic to work.
Best of luck.
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Septic System-Problem
I 'm a plumber by trade. You need to cut a 18"- wide ditch put 6"- of 1-1/2" gravel below the pipe, 6"- above it then use straw to cover the gravel and a sandy loam finish.This is the proper way to install the system.
Tommy
Affordable Tractor Sales Co
Bellville,Texas
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Septic System-Problem
bmlekki You do not show where in Upstate. But almost all of the watersheds in the fingerlakes region REQUIRE a complete septic inspection before the property transfer can take place.
Me thinks the Deleware basin is in the same boat.
You make have a legal recourse. Either from the previous owner or the orginazation that inspected it.
However I like to keep other out of my business and would bite the bullet and fix it my self by installing a new field either down from existing or rigth on it.
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Septic System-Problem
Although the idea of a grey water system is great, not all codes allow them. We wanted to put one in here (Washington County, Oregon) and the code wouldn't allow it (bureaucratic stupidity). If you plan on going this route it would be a good idea to see if it's allowed.
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Septic System-Problem
I'm sure this isn't a cure for the system nor would you want to buy one,BUT, an Asko washing machine uses 5.7 gallons of water per load compared to 50 to 55 gallons in a regular washer. In the spin cycle they spin 1200 rpm so when the clothes come out they don't take long in the dryer, saving money. They also only use about a teaspoon of detergent per load. When you first buy one and run your clothes through the first time, they recomend not to use detergent because there will be enough left in your clothes from the old machine to suds the machine right up. They also heat their own water saving money,for whites it heats the water to 210 degrees compared to 120 on a regular machine, so no bleach is needed.They are Swedish made and made to last a long time.
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Septic System-Problem
The specs for the approved gray water pit at our camp were: a 6' x 12' pit allowing for stone on the bottom. The pit has a central open-bottomed cube of approximately 4' built from cement blocks facing outward and capped with a cement slab. The pit is filled with stone. Untreated building paper is placed over the top and it's covered with top-soil. The paper prevents soil intrusion until it firms and plants start growing and then deteriorates. It is rated for 1,500 liters daily in our sandy soil.
In our case only 1' of the pit is below grade due to a high spring water table. That's Murf's point about ground water contamination. It's an issue even for gray water. What works depends both on the soil's perc rate and minimum water table depth. I don't think codes allow both a septic and a gray water system.
Some of the codes make sense and some don't. It might be good if gray water pits were encouraged and then adequate septic systems might be smaller. Since the government decided that frequent pumping is good but spreading is bad, maybe smaller systems might make sense. Not withstanding the requirements of 'offadumb,' there are quite a few open bottomed 55-gallon drums down slope from houses that seem to be adequate for laundry and dishwater sized volume. They are more prone to freezing though.
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When I put in the drywell in I was told they were NOT allowed when installing a new septic, however, they were allowed as an after-the-fact addition. In other words, a new septic system had to be rated to handle ALL of the waste water from the home. The tank was a preformed (1000 gallon?) concrete tank installed with lots of rock around it. The black spots in my leech field went away quickly but it didn't take long before I had problems with the drywell since so much water was going there. I then had to bring someone else in to add a 2'x2' trench about 75 feet long filled with rock and covered with straw on the downside of the drywell tank to help get rid of the gray water. Obviously this was not to code. I went several years to the sale of this house without problems.
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Gas Generator Weather Protecti
07-07-2004, 11:24 
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