Maintaining Your Septic Tank: What Tenants Should Know

Out of sight and out of mind—does this describe your relationship with your septic system? If you are like most homeowners, you probably never give much thought to what happens to what goes down your drain. But if you rely on a septic system to treat and dispose of your household waste water, what you don’t know can hurt you. Proper operation and maintenance of your septic system can have a significant impact on how well it works and how long it lasts. 

Why Maintain Your System?

The most important reason to maintain your system is to protect the health of your family, your community, and the environment. When septic systems fail, inadequately treated household waste water is released into the environment. Any contact with untreated human waste can pose significant health risks, and untreated waste water from failing septic systems can contaminate nearby wells, groundwater, and drinking water sources. Also, failed septic systems can contribute to the pollution of local rivers, lakes, and shorelines that your community uses for recreational activities. 

Chemicals improperly released through a septic system also can pollute local water sources and can contribute to system failures. For this reason it is important for tenants to educate themselves about what should and should not be disposed of through a septic system.

How Septic Systems Work

There are two main parts to the basic septic system: the septic tank and the drainfield.

The Septic Tank

Household waste water first flows into the septic tank where it should stay for at least a day. In the tank, heavy solids in the waste water settle to the bottom forming a layer of sludge, and grease and light solids float to the top forming a layer of scum. The sludge and scum remain in the tank where naturally occurring bacteria work to break them down. The bacteria cannot completely break down all of the sludge and scum, however, and this is why septic tanks need to be pumped periodically.

The separated waste water in the middle layer of the tank is pushed out into the drainfield as more waste water enters the septic tank from the house. If too much water is flushed into the septic tank in a short period of time, the waste water flows out of the tank before it has had time to separate. This can happen on days when water use is unusually high (laundry day, for example), or more often if the septic tank is too small for the needs of the household.

The Drainfield

When waste water leaves a septic tank too soon, solids can be carried with it to the drainfield. Drainfields provide additional treatment for the waste water by allowing it to trickle from a series of perforated pipes, through a layer of gravel, and down through the soil. The soil acts as a natural filter and contains organisms that help treat the waste. Solids damage the drainfield by clogging the small holes in the drainfield pipes and the surrounding gravel, and excess water strains the system unnecessarily.

How to Care for Your System as a Tenant

Know What Not to Flush

What you put into your septic system greatly affects its ability to do its job. As a general rule of thumb, do not dispose of anything in your septic system that can just as easily be put in the trash. Remember that your system is not designed to be a garbage disposal, and that solids build up in the septic tank and eventually need to be pumped out.

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In the kitchen, avoid washing food scraps, coffee grinds, and other food items down the drain. Grease and cooking oils contribute to the layer of scum in the tank and also should not be put down the drain. The same common-sense approach used in the kitchen should be used in the bathroom. Don’t use the toilet to dispose of plastics, paper towels, tampons, disposable diapers, dental floss, condoms, kitty litter, cotton swabs, cigarette butts, etc. This includes baby wipes or any other form of flushable cleaning wipes or cleaning cloths. Most of these products provide clearly marked user instructions on the packaging that warn against flushing, and none are approved for use with a septic system. The only things that should be flushed down the toilet are waste water and toilet paper.

Avoid Hazardous Chemicals

To avoid disrupting or permanently damaging your septic system, do not use it to dispose of hazardous household chemicals. Even small amounts of paints, varnishes, thinners, waste oil, photographic solutions, pesticides, and other organic chemicals can destroy helpful bacteria and the biological digestion taking place within your system. These chemicals also pollute the groundwater. Household cleaners, such as bleach, disinfectants, and drain and toilet bowl cleaners should be used in moderation and only in accordance with product labels. Overuse of these products can harm your system. It makes sense to try to keep all toxic and hazardous chemicals out of your septic tank system when possible.

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When used as recommended by the manufacturer, most household cleaning products will not adversely affect the operation of your septic tank. Drain cleaners are an exception, however, and only a small amount of these products can kill the bacteria and temporarily disrupt the operation of the tank. Household cleaners, such as bleach, disinfectants, and drain and toilet bowl cleaners should be used in moderation and only in accordance with product labels. Overuse of these products can harm your system. It makes sense to try to keep all toxic and hazardous chemicals out of your septic tank system when possible.

Use Water Wisely

Water conservation is very important for septic systems because continual saturation of the soil in the drainfield can affect the quality of the soil and its ability to naturally remove toxins, bacteria, viruses, and other pollutants from the waste water.

The most effective way to conserve water around the house is to first take stock of how it is being wasted. Immediately report any leaking faucets or running toilets to management so they can be repaired, and use washing machines and dishwashers only when full.

In a typical household, most of the water used indoors is used in the bathroom, and there are a lot of little things that can be done to conserve water there. For example, try to avoid letting water run while washing hands and brushing teeth and avoid taking long showers.

It is also important to avoid overtaxing your system by using a lot of water in a short time period. Try to space out activities requiring heavy water use (like laundry) over several days.

Inspections and Pumping of the Tank

Yearly septic tank inspections and pumping of the system is usually something your landlord or management company will handle. Never inspect or pump your system yourself and notify your landlord or property manager immediately if you suspect an issue.

Information reproduced above was originally published by the National Small Flows Clearinghouse. View their full septic tank publication here.

Please note that we do not receive commission in anyway for the promotion of content from other websites/blogs. The intent and purpose of all information in this post is merely for reference.