 Hi, I'm Jim Michaels and welcome to your new home. The next few minutes are going to be about a very important component of your new home, one to which initially you may not have given too much thought, your septic system. If you've ever lived in a home with a septic system before, a septic system is simply a device designed to handle the wastewater your home generates when city sewers are not available. A septic system breaks down the impurities of the wastewater then allows the water to re-enter the ground. So come on in. Now with us are various experts who will help illustrate what a septic system is, what it does, where it is, and how it got there. And finally we're going to tell you what you can do as the homeowner just to make sure it functions as efficiently as possible. Now at one point your home looked like this, it was probably at this stage of construction that the septic system was installed. System sizing as well as the permit were both obtained from the local health department prior to construction. We're going to start with the house plumbing which is the path to the septic system from the drains to the toilets. And who knows more about drains and toilets than a plumber. Let's go visit one. Joining us now is John Edwards of Edwards Plumbing and Heating. Hello John. Thanks for helping us. We all know John that when we flush a toilet or put things down in the drain it just seemed to go away. Is that a little naive? Well it isn't and isn't Jim. Things do go away but what happens when they do get there can be a problem. How so? Well let me show you, I'm installing this bathroom drain right now. If you follow the drain pipe you'll see it joins up with pipes from all the other drains in the house, sinks, tubs, washing machines, and toilets. They all join up here at the main pipe going out of the house to the septic system. All these drains individually and combined as I'm sure the man outside the house is going to tell you can handle a lot of water which can overload your septic system if you're not careful. Try to space out your water use, don't do your laundry, take a shower, and run the dishwasher all at the same time. All that can overload the septic system and cause problems. Not to mention the fact that that would be one cold shower but I get the point. John, what else do we need to know about what can go into and what should not go into the septic system? These drains can take a lot Jim but just because you can put it down the drain doesn't mean you should. Now take your toilet, you can't flush feminine hygiene products or cotton balls or paper towel or ripped up bills from plumbers. Especially those Jim, it's even a bad idea to flush facial tissue down the toilet once again because it doesn't break down as easily. It's good to know John. Now what about the kitchen sink? Just plain old white toilet paper there too? Very funny Jim, but if the kitchen sink has a garbage disposal that is tricky. I mean the whole purpose of the septic tank is to send wastewater from your home to a place where it can break down quickly. If you're putting things down in your garbage disposal they eventually get into the septic system. Most garbage won't break down rapidly, things like potato peels, bacon grease, or ground up chicken bones, they just sit in the septic tank and begin to build up. You don't want that, so use good judgment. If it doesn't appear to be something that will break down quickly, then just wrap it up and put it in the trash. Got it. Any other advice? Remember it just takes three. Well okay John, listen we're going to let you get back to work now, appreciate your taking the time. No problem Jim, glad it could help. Alright, let's go outside. Okay we're out back now and here to fill us in on what happens outside the wall is Phil Shibano from Earthworks Excavating. Hello Phil. Hi Jim. Phil, your company specializes in putting in septic systems and to me it looks like you dig your work. We sure do. Most septic systems are completely buried under the ground because the soil is such an important part of the system. Now what part of the system are we standing at? This is the first stop out of the house for all wastewater. This is a septic tank. And what's its function? As I said everything flows through here. The solid waste settles to the bottom, begins to break down, and the liquid flows through this pipe into stage two, the distribution box. Now I'm going to take a guess here and figure that the water gets distributed from this distribution box. You're catching on. Distributed to what? To these pipes out here in the yard. They're sometimes called fingers and they make up the next stage of the septic system known as the absorption field. They're supposed to do exactly what they say, absorb. If you'll notice all these pipes have little holes in them that allow water to trickle out into the ground. And the soil itself becomes the final stage of the septic system. The ground then filters the water as it finds its way back into the soil. That sounds pretty simple. Well it is. As a homeowner you have to be careful what you put in your septic system. And it's also important to note that certain soil conditions may require even more treatment or a more complicated system. But for the most part a septic system can be a simple means for getting rid of all wastewater. Right. Now John was just telling us about that and you were saying don't use too many water sources at once and be careful what you flush down the drains in the toilets. Limit your laundry loads and be sure to fix those leaky fixtures because all that stuff contributes the extra water to a septic system may not be able to handle it. Good advice because if you allow too many solids to build up too quickly they'll get out of the septic tank and out into the field where they'll block those little holes that we just looked at. And that's a problem. You also need to be careful when using harsh cleaning agents, chemicals, petroleum products or any other toxins that you put in your drains or your toilets. Why not? I mean they're liquids they're not going to block those little holes. Well for one thing these chemical compounds are poisonous and they may stop or slow down the natural breakdown of the wastewater. It's a fairly delicate balance down in the septic system and if it's poisonous to you it's probably bad for the septic system. Once again if the natural breakdown doesn't occur in the septic tank it may cause problems out in the absorption field which is not a good thing. So Phil what do you recommend people do with this stuff? Well there are a number of household hazardous waste collection points in the area that specialize in the safe disposal of this stuff. Just look up in your phone book contact the county health department or waste management district in your area. So bottom line you take good care of your septic system it'll take good care of you. Very nicely put Jim. Thank you. But can't you just buy one of those septic enzyme additives that they sell at the stores and flush it down the toilet to make the system work better? Many experts don't recommend it. Plain old household wastewater is all that's needed for the natural breakdown process. You're better off to take care and not to mess with the balance that already exists. Let nature take its course, pay attention to proper maintenance. That'll keep your septic system running efficiently. Alright Phil, well I sure appreciate the advice. Now if that's all you've got for us why don't you go back to your installation so the health department can come out and do its inspection. Thanks. Just one more word of advice Jim. What's that? It just takes three. Okay, we've made it through the drains as well as the septic system and now we're going to visit with an expert in the area of septic system maintenance. He's the guy you should call regularly to have your septic tank pumped. Our expert today is Roger Bates from Bates Septic Service and here he is now. Roger how's it going? Great Jim, how you doing? Super. Since we're under construction here let's just do a walkthrough of what your job's all about and then be sure to give us any tips or recommendations you might have. Sure. What my company does is pretty straightforward. Over a period of time, solids will build up in the septic tank system that either won't break down or broken down as far as they can based upon the environment they're in. Just come out, remove the cap or the lid off of the septic tank system, pump out all the contents of the septic tank system with one of our big pump trucks. So how do you know when it's time to drain the septic system? Great question. You know there's really no way to gauge whether or not a septic tank is almost filled to capacity. So what we suggest is that you have it pumped prior to moving into a pre-existing home. Good idea. And one year after that, just to get off for starters. After that, a reputable septic company will come out and give you an idea of how often based upon your water use the tank is filling and predict how often in the future you should have it pumped. So what's typical? Well, you know, let me show you. A number of factors can affect how quickly solids build up. For example? The size of the tank, how old the septic system is, the soil, the number of people in a household, how much water they use. All these things have a direct effect on the septic system. But typically every two years. But if you have a big household and use quite a bit of water and your garbage disposal a lot, now it might be wiser to have it pumped out annually. Roger, the old garbage disposal again. So you're saying that you can have some control over how frequently the septic tank needs to be pumped by being conscientious about what you put down into it and how much water you use? Oh, absolutely. What happens if you just simply forget to have it pumped? Well, over time the septic system solids will fill up backing into the house. You know, through your bathtub, through the drain, it can get to be a real mess. Ew, that does not sound good. There's a lot you wouldn't like about that. Another thing that happens is the solids make their way into the fill system and reduce the ability of the septic system and the soil to disperse the water. What happens there is that the area over the fill septic system becomes wet and soggy. If it gets to that point, it's very expensive damage has been done to the septic fill system. So the old saying is true, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It couldn't be more true. All right, Roger. Thanks for the inside scoop on all this. Let me give you one more bit of advice. What would that be? It only takes three, Jim. All right already. Three what? What are we talking about? It only takes the three simple rules. Ah, got you. Good advice. So that's it in a nutshell. Really it boils down to these three simple rules. One, be careful how much you put into the septic system at one time. Two, be careful what you put into the septic system. And three, keep a regular schedule for having your septic system pumped. It's really that simple. If you have questions we haven't answered or you notice a problem developing with your septic system, the best idea is to call your local health department. A little advice early on can go a long way to preventing major problems. Good luck and enjoy your new home.