Septic Systems: How does my mound septic system work?

I have found through meeting thousands of customers, that septic systems are generally a huge mystery to most everyone. People have a vague notion that their waste goes somewhere, but they’re not quite sure what happens after that. Because of this, septic systems are often ignored and neglected, but this will only lead to troubles down the road. Today we’re going to explore the dreaded mound system and how it works.

Mound systems, or pump systems differ from traditional gravity systems in several ways. All septic systems consist (or should consist) of a septic tank to hold and treat the raw sewage, and a drainage area that filters and cleans the water before it enters the ground. A mound system differs slightly by having a dosing tank, a pump, and a mound.  How this basically works is, when you flush your toilet, the water and waste collects in the septic tank. This tank will hold the solids (t.p., poo, grease, action figures, matchbox cars, etc.) All septic tanks should have a baffle on the outlet end. A baffle lets the “clean water” from the middle layer of the septic tank flow to the next step, while keeping the solids from making their way through. As you use water, the water in the septic tank will now flow to the dosing tank. This tank holds the pump. As the water rises in this tank, a float switch of some sort will eventually activate the pump, thus forcing the water up to the mound where it will now filter back into the ground water.

Some people aren’t sure what type of system they have.  Do you have a mound system? Generally, if you have a mound system, you will notice (wait for it……)  a giant mound in your yard! This is a pretty clear indicator. Often mound systems will also have an electrical outlet on a post with wires plugged into it.  Sometimes the post will also have a light or buzzer to alert you if the water in the dosing tank has gotten too high. If you’re still not sure, and if you live in the fine state of Michigan on the West side near Holland/Grand Haven, call the good people at Miller Pumping, (616) 393-0099 (Shameless plug) and I can help you out.

Why a mound system, and did you call it a “dreaded” mound system? Mound systems are installed in areas with either a high water table, or in areas with poor draining soil like clay. Mound systems are pricey to install and maintain. The pumps are pretty expensive to replace, they usually last around 5-7 years  depending on the quality. I’ve seen them last 20+ years or as little as one year.

Different companies have different ways of wiring and installing the pumps.  The pumps should always be placed up on a cement block to keep it off the bottom of the tank. This will help keep the pump from pumping sludge to your mound. If this is not the case with your pump, have it changed immediately. The pipe leaving the pump should have a check valve to prevent the water from coming back into the tank. Like I said earlier, some have a light or buzzer to alert you if the water has gotten too high. Why is the water too high you may ask? Usually this either means a bad pump, or a bad float switch……or the piping has come apart and the pump is just cycling water in the tank, or your kid unplugged the plug, or you nicked the wire with your weed whacker. On most good pumps, the float will be independent of the pump. You may notice there is a plug plugged into a plug, plugged into an outlet. To test your pump, you, or I will first make sure that there is power to the outlet. Then, plug the pump plug into the outlet. if the pump runs, then the problem is the float switch which is an easy and less expensive fix. If the pump does not run, wellllllll…… that will cost you. There are more variations, but this is a stripped down version of what is common. Hope it was helpful and you enjoyed!

Why is my shower gurgling and what is that smell?

There are several issues that customers call about all the time that I would like to discuss.  These questions usually have to do with venting, drain clogs, and septic backups. All equally exciting and intellectually stimulating topics that I’m sure you will enjoy immensely.

Let’s start with venting problems. If you look on the roof of your house, you will see at least one PVC or ABS pipe sticking up through your roof. The purpose of these pipes are to vent sewer gasses that build up in the septic tank, and to allow air to be drawn in as the water is exiting the pipes. A simple illustration of the latter is to put your finger over the end of a drinking straw that is in a cup of water. Lift the straw out of the cup and the water stays. Remove your finger and the water flows. The same concept applies in the plumbing of your house. If you have trees, curious squirrels, unlucky birds, wasps, or any number of other things that enjoy getting into vents, these will restrict the air flow and cause draining problems. You may notice that when you flush a toilet, you suddenly hear water flowing in the bath tub drain. “What in the world was that?” Air displacement has to come from somewhere, and if your vent is clogged, it will pull the water out of the p trap to suck air. Also with a dry p trap, the sewer gas will exit through the dry tub drain. Not a great smell to have in your house! Smelling sewer gas doesn’t always mean a clogged vent. It can just mean that a drain hasn’t been used in a long time. If the drain hasn’t been used, then the water in the trap evaporates, allowing sewer gas (and sewer flies!) to come into your house. Gross! If you have a drain that you don’t use very often, pour some mineral or vegetable oil in the drain. This simple trick really helps with evaporation. (This happens a lot in seasonal cottages.) If you continually have venting issues, or problems with smelling sewer gas, There are a couple things you can do. You can start by placing screens over the vents to reduce debris getting into the pipes, or you can have a qualified person add an elbow with a short piece of pipe to the inlet pipe in the septic tank. This really lessens the amount of sewer gas that vents through your home.

Drain clogs, like people,  come in a large variety of forms, shapes, colors and sizes. Clogs can be caused by baby wipes, hair, grease, soap, toilet paper, feminine products, dental floss, roots, collapsed pipes, action figures, food, and too many other things to mention. People tend to freak out when they have a clog that can’t be pushed through with their $5.00 plunger. Stay calm. It can be fixed. Bathroom sinks and showers are usually hair clogs (with soap mixed in). These clogs are usually pretty gross. These can be improved with plunging the drains, but there is a cheap(about $2.50), plastic tool with barbs on the sides that does a terrific job of yanking out all the accumulated hair. This can be found at most of your large home improvement box stores. If you can find it at your local hardware, I would definitely recommend buying it there. Root clogs and pipe collapse needs a pro to either replace the line, or cut out the roots. I would recommend just replacing the line with sch. 40 PVC, and the root problem will be solved. Drain cleaning every year adds up! Toilet clogs are funny things, because people would rather try to flush things that they drop in the toilet rather than reach in and get it out. Sometimes this works, and sometimes you have to call and get guys like me to snake your toilet, line, or sometimes even pull off your toilet. Many times people think that their drain field has failed, but it is usually just a simple clog in the line, or the solids in the tank have piled up in front of the inlet pipe. When this happens, the solids have nowhere else to go but back up the pipe. I can usually tell right away if it is a clog or if the field has gone bad. The water should stay at a certain height in the septic tank. If it is above that level, then the water isn’t dispersing into the ground like it should anymore. If I look into your septic tank and the water is at normal level, then it is usually a clog. One tricky thing that happens is, customers may be complaining of backups, I get there and water level is normal and the pipes are clear. Earlier, when a lot of water was being used, the water level got too high in the septic tank, then it slowly dispersed throughout the day. This is usually an indication, that the drain field is aging and on the way out. At this point, try to use water at a more even rate, rather than 6 loads of wash at once. You may also try adding some bacteria at this point.(Refer back to dead chicken blog!)

These are just a few tips for questions that I get a lot. I hope you found them helpful. I will leave you with a great tip. If you own a Summer cottage, or are leaving home for an extended period of time, before you leave, flush all your toilets a few times. Solids don’t always make it to the tank on one flush. When you’re gone a few months, these solids harden in the pipe and make a great place for solids to get caught up on and cause clogs. Don’t start out your Summer fun with a clogged line, not fun! Also get your septic tanks cleaned every 3-4 years, and if you live in West Michigan, call Miller Pumping! (616)990-7215. Thanks! If you have any questions, let me know and I’d be happy to answer them.

Should I throw a chicken carcass in my septic tank? Are septic additives worth the cost?

Should I throw a chicken carcass in my septic tank? Are septic additives worth the cost?.

Should I throw a chicken carcass in my septic tank? Are septic additives worth the cost?

When discussing septic system maintenance with customers, the subject of bacteria always comes up. People want to know about whether bacteria is doing its thing and breaking down the solids in their septic tank. Customers want to know if additives are worth the cost, if they are effective, and what they can be doing to promote a healthy environment for optimum bacteria growth.

First, there are different varieties of bacteria that occur naturally in a septic system. The bacteria that resides in the septic tank help to process waste and organic matter. This is the first stage of waste treatment. Liquid that has been partially treated in the septic tank is called effluent. Effluent entering the drain field is then treated while passing through the biomat. What is a biomat you say?

The biomat is a naturally occurring gooey black substance that collects on the bottoms around your drainage area. The biomat is made up of living anaerobic (existing without oxygen) bacteria, which feed on organic matter in the effluent. The older your drain field, the thicker this biomat becomes, slowing down the flow of effluent to the surrounding soil. As the effluent passes through the biomat pathogenic organisms and viruses are removed. On the outside of the drainage area, past the biomat where the soil is not saturated, are living colonies of aerobic (existing with oxygen) bacteria. These aerobic bacteria colonies feed on the excess biomat as it matures, they keep it from becoming so thick that wastewater will no longer pass through.

When soil floods, aerobic bacteria colonies will die off and no longer keep the biomat in check. The biomat will grow too thick and drainage will stop. Further, as these colonies die off they leave behind sulfides, which over time will clog soil passages stopping the flow of water. So, basically bacteria…….good, No bacteria……bad!

So, what does this have to do with dead chickens? A great place where bacteria growth happens rapidly is in rotting carcasses. Sometimes customers want to throw whole (dead) chickens in the septic tank to promote bacteria growth after the septic tank has been cleaned. This is a perfectly acceptable practice. I’ve had people throw in any number of things including a dead raccoon. Most times, however, there is enough bacteria remaining in the septic tank to restart the colony.

So, are additives worth it? That depends on the home. Some places that use excessive bleach, antibacterial soaps, or that have a water softener that drains into the septic, I would recommend the use of additives like Rid-Ex. Most places, it is a waste of money and can actually disrupt the beneficial bacteria that are already thriving in your septic tank. I have actually seen instances where the additives that were added disrupted the distinct layers in the septic tank. So, instead of relatively clean effluent exiting through the outlet baffle, it looked as if the contents of the tank had been stirred by a blender. So, this foamy, bubbly mess was exiting to the drain field!

A large majority of the septic tanks I see, the bacteria that is naturally occurring is doing more than enough to break down the solids and maintain a healthy septic system. Every household is different, so make sure when you get your septic tank serviced, that you speak with the technician and see what will work best for you.

Where Miller Pumping takes your septic tank waste after we pump it.

Where Miller Pumping takes your septic tank waste after we pump it.

Weird things I’ve encountered while cleaning out septic tanks.

Miller Pumping Holland, Mi

Hello. I am that guy that cleans out your septic tank. People always ask me how I got into this line of work. Well, to be honest, this is all I’ve ever wanted to do. I worked really hard, made a lot of great decisions, planned really well, and here I am with a job most people only dream of having. But seriously, I do really like my job and look forward to meeting new people and having new adventures each and every day. Most days are pretty much the same, and after cleaning out thousands of septic tanks,  I have seen all kinds of things and situations. Here are a few stories and encounters that are mostly true with a few unintentional embellishments for the betterment of the stories.

People like to flush all kinds of things down the toilet and then deny it. This is a fact of life I guess. I’m often asked by customers how their tank looked and if I say something like, “It had more grease than normal.” I am always 100% of the time met with the answer. “Well, actually, we NEVER put ANY grease down our drains, so you must be mistaken.” This also applies to ping pong balls, baby wipes, rubbers, feminine products, fast food wrappers, action heroes, paint, and kitty litter. I once pumped a tank that was COMPLETELY packed top to bottom with kitty litter. There were cats everywhere I looked. I told the customer that it would probably be better if she did something else with her kitty litter other than flush it down the toilet, and she replied, “We don’t put kitty litter down the toilet.” I smiled, said,”OK” and went on to the next job. Sometimes however, I wish people would ignore what is in their septic tanks.  I was at a nice old lady’s house one day and she was watching me work. She looked in the tank and it was covered in condoms. I felt a little uncomfortable, but she relieved the situation by saying, “Are those what I think they are?” I nodded and she said, “Oh Dear, I have a grandson that lives with me, do you think that they are his?” I just shrugged, but she kept pressing the issue. That was a job that I couldn’t leave fast enough. I’ve had all kinds of stories like this one. So don’t flush your comdoms down the toilet. They don’t biodegrade, and/or you  will get busted by your grandma. Awkward.

Dogs and other animals. You know, I love dogs. I really do. I never get bit by a loose cat, but I get bit by dogs about once a year. Most dogs are great, but every now and then they are not. One time I arrived at a property and started searching for the septic tank. I had my hook and prod with me and I went around the back of the house.  I looked up just in time to see a great big dog running at me full tilt. We had a long standoff as I held it at bay with my hook. It took me about a half an hour to back up to the septic truck. By this point the dog was totally enraged.  As I climbed into the truck and shut the door, The dog went into convulsions and died…….just as the owners came home. yikes! Another dog story happened when I went to a home, there was a dog in a kennel just going berserk. I prodded the whole yard and couldn’t find the tank. Guess where it was? Under the very kennel in which the dog was caged. Did I mention that there was also another dog that was loose that kept nipping at my leg whenever I had to go to my truck? Well, with a little elbow grease, a piece of plywood, and some doggie treats, I got the job done. On we move to Elk. I once worked at an old house that bordered an Elk farm. I thought it was pretty neat until I realized that the septic tank was on the scary side of the fence. Did you know that male Elk are really unfriendly during mating season? I do. Cows are my favorites. I like pumping septic tanks by dairy farms because the cows are always really curious about what’s going on. They crowd the fence as close as they can get and stare with their big, sad eyes. I can only imagine what they are saying to each other.

I’ll be writing other stories and tips on maintaining your septic system. Some posts will be general information that everybody with a septic system can use, and others will be specific to the West Michigan area of Holland, Grand Haven, and Muskegon.

Hope you enjoy and have a great day! Andy Miller-Owner/Operator Miller Pumping LLC.