thegogetter222
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2011
- Messages
- 60
- Reaction score
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Gents,
I need some non-biased advise. I have home that was built in 1995 that I bought on a foreclosure basis. I know the previous family was only 2 parents and maybe 2 kids at the most and even that, the wife and kids were only there for a few years. I purchased the home just shy of 2 years ago and had the tank pumped prior to moving in for inspection purposes. The Septic company passed the tank and said everything looked great. So... here we are a family of 6. Dad, mom, 13yr old, 7yr old twins, and a 4yr old little dude : ) Now, I know that this is a very high demand on any septic system and even a question I asked to the Septic company. They said after pumping it, that to stick to a cleaning schedule of 2yrs at first just to gauge the overall system. $10 per month budget over 2 years gets it cleaned, no big deal.
Heres the problem:
Oct 2012, 3 people came to visit. About 5 days in and after 3 days of rain, the toilet wouldn't flush and the tub backed up. Tell tale sign of a flooded septic tank/field. I immediately called the Septic company and they were there within the hour. Pumped it out and we have had no further problems till now - Jan 2013. The toilet wouldn't flush and I immediately looked out the window and saw the lid of the tank under about 3 inches of water/sewage. I ran out and checked the outlet pipe, sure enough, it was full. Additionally, the snow just melted. Leading me to believe we have another flooded leach field.
What are my honest options here? We are now on stringent water restrictions, but realistically cannot go on like this. Is it possible to dig up and extend the leach lines? They are in the rear of my property and only my garden tractor has ever driven over the downslope area. The actual field is behind the tree-line. Which is mostly weeds and a few small dead trees. Are their any tests I can do to test the field? Can i "clean" the field somehow?
I've scoured this forum reading everything relevant that came under a "septic" search.
thanks in advance for any advice,
gg
I need some non-biased advise. I have home that was built in 1995 that I bought on a foreclosure basis. I know the previous family was only 2 parents and maybe 2 kids at the most and even that, the wife and kids were only there for a few years. I purchased the home just shy of 2 years ago and had the tank pumped prior to moving in for inspection purposes. The Septic company passed the tank and said everything looked great. So... here we are a family of 6. Dad, mom, 13yr old, 7yr old twins, and a 4yr old little dude : ) Now, I know that this is a very high demand on any septic system and even a question I asked to the Septic company. They said after pumping it, that to stick to a cleaning schedule of 2yrs at first just to gauge the overall system. $10 per month budget over 2 years gets it cleaned, no big deal.
Heres the problem:
Oct 2012, 3 people came to visit. About 5 days in and after 3 days of rain, the toilet wouldn't flush and the tub backed up. Tell tale sign of a flooded septic tank/field. I immediately called the Septic company and they were there within the hour. Pumped it out and we have had no further problems till now - Jan 2013. The toilet wouldn't flush and I immediately looked out the window and saw the lid of the tank under about 3 inches of water/sewage. I ran out and checked the outlet pipe, sure enough, it was full. Additionally, the snow just melted. Leading me to believe we have another flooded leach field.
What are my honest options here? We are now on stringent water restrictions, but realistically cannot go on like this. Is it possible to dig up and extend the leach lines? They are in the rear of my property and only my garden tractor has ever driven over the downslope area. The actual field is behind the tree-line. Which is mostly weeds and a few small dead trees. Are their any tests I can do to test the field? Can i "clean" the field somehow?
I've scoured this forum reading everything relevant that came under a "septic" search.
thanks in advance for any advice,
gg