When you have recently moved into a house with a septic system, you may not feel as though you are prepared for how to handle the system. While it may seem completely foreign to you, taking care of septic system does not have to be stressful or troublesome. You just need to get to know more about maintaining your septic tank system, and then, you will be able to feel comfortable dealing with any issues that arise in your home.
Be Aware of Your Water Usage
One of the most important steps to take when you are concerned with maintaining your septic system is to be cognizant and aware of your water usage in your home. Your septic tank is only so large and can only hold so much water and waste at once. As such, if you have toilets that run on their own at times or dripping sinks, all of that extra water could add up to big problems in your home. If you notice these issues in your home, have them repaired as soon as possible.
Additionally, you need to keep track of how much water you and your family use on a daily basis and try to minimize that as much as possible. Rather than take hour-long showers, try to pare it down to 20 minutes or less of water running each time. The changes that you make to reduce your water usage will help you to go longer between septic tank pumping and cleaning sessions.
Know Your System Will Need to Be Pumped and Cleaned Periodically
While in an ideal world you would not need to do anything to your septic tank system to keep it up and running, this is not the case. You will need to periodically have your septic tank cleaned and pumped. Septic tank pumping helps to get all of the solid waste out of your tank that would otherwise remain there, building up over time.
Your septic tank is designed to clean and process water out of the system into the drain field, but the solid waste will remain in the tank. As such, depending on the size of your family and your plumbing usage, you will need to have your tank pumped and cleaned every three to five years. To ensure that you do not accidentally go too long without cleaning and pumping your system, you will also want to have a basic inspection of your system performed every one to two years.
Knowing these facts about your septic tank system and the care you need to provide it, you can feel more comfortable managing your home's septic system on your own. For more information on septic tank cleaning, contact your local experts.
