Household sewage needs a place to settle when it leaves your house. The waste products need to settle below ground to break down before drainage-this is where your septic tank comes in.
The organic matter which settles in your septic tank needs time to break down into liquid form and deodorise. This can only happen with a colony of bacteria present as the process is entirely biological.
Bacteria required for the break down process may not be present in your septic tank due to popular forms of cleaning product which we use today. Bleaches and disinfectants are designed to kill bacteria in all forms-even the ‘friendly’ kinds, which are needed for many forms of biological process. We use these cleaning products very often and they pass through our drainage systems into our septic tank, killing the colony of bacteria that should be breaking down waste products. Temperature extremes can also cause this loss of bacteria.
Once this process is complete the sewage needs to drain in order for the septic tank to start the process again. This part of the process is called drain-away or soak-away, as that is literally what the waste does. It usually drains away through a porous layer to the surrounding ground, through distribution pipes, or by integrating with groundwater. Septic tank soak-aways have to be able to deal with large amounts of waste water and so does the soil surrounding them, so it must be porous. If a problem arises at this point the land may get too saturated, or the waste may not be drawn into the soil adequately. This means that the septic tank will not empty properly and may get blocked and stop functioning.
When we think of a septic tank being clogged we do not always realise what type of blockage will occur and how it should be treated. Soakaway chambers can get blocked with fat build up and the main septic tank chambers can be blocked by a build up of sludge from the waste. In order to keep the biological balance a septic tank needs to be cleared of all sludge once a year to avoid a harmful build up.
If your tank becomes blocked you must act quickly and have it drained. Usually, with a build up of fat or grease, there are substances blocking soak-aways which need to be broken down. The best method of doing this is by introducing bacteria specially cultivated for this job, so that no more unnatural products and chemicals are introduced to the tank. Using biological means to unblock a tank will deodorise it and not upset the balance of bacteria colonising the tank. After drainage the ground surrounding will recover from any over-saturation and the tank will be operational again.
It’s important to know how your septic tank works and know the problems that may arise so that you can act quickly to correct issues and prevent long term problems.
By: Michael C. Smyth
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Septic Tank Maintenance and Septic Tank Treatment are service offered by CleveBio.
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