How a residential septic system works

How A Residential Septic System Works!

Does my house have a septic system?

Not all homes have a septic system. If you live an urban area, you may be connected to a public (city) sewer. Septic systems are typically found for residential homes in more rural areas.

What Are The Components Of My Septic System And How Do They Work?

Your septic tank is a concrete box, with an inlet pipe, outlet pipe, and 2-3 lids on the top. The waste from your house from sinks, toilets and showers (effluent) comes into the inlet pipe through the inlet baffle and fills the tank. The inlet baffles purpose is to avoid big splashes of effluent from the inlet, to allow properly settling of solids and sludge. From there, the tank will fill up nearly all the way, until it reaches what is called “Normal Operating Level” (In which there is about 8-10” of air space between the top of the effluent level and the top of the tank. Once it reaches this level, the effluent will flow out the outlet pipe through the exit baffle to your leach/drain field. Depending on the era the system was built, it may have an exit filter Depending on your system, the outlet pipe may connect to a distribution box (D-Box), which could be concrete or plastic (depending on the era of the system installed), which simply takes 1 outlet pipe and distributes the effluent into 1-3 pipes in your leach/drain field. Septic systems can have as little as 1 D-Box, or as many as 4 or 5 D-Boxes. From the D-Box, it drains through stone or sand (depending on the type of system installed) and purifies on its way back into the groundwater table. This cycle will repeat over and over again.

*Important Note* Although the concept and function of a septic system is the same, not all septic systems are the same design. Systems vary based on the size of the septic tank, most common are 1,000 gallon, 1,250 gallon, & 1,500 gallon concrete septic tank, although some homes in CT could have old metal septic tanks. These tanks are sized off the bedrooms in the home, as the number of bedrooms directly influences the occupancy of a home. Drain/leach fields differ in design too, some homes have old leaching pit systems, while others could have stone-and-pipe systems.

How Often Should I Get My Septic Tank Pumped?

There are many variables to this answer, depending on how many people live in your home, the ages of the occupants of the home, the age of the septic system itself, and the amount of usage, as all households vary on usage. Typically, the average pumping interval for a septic tank is about 2 years.

What Can I Do To Properly Use My Septic System And Ensure Maximum Efficiency?

Some helpful things you can do include, but are not limited to, flushing only waste and toilet paper, that means NO grease, baby wipes (even the flushable ones!), wrappers, paint, etc. Normal conservation of water is another good way to not over-use your septic system and reduce lifespan. Another issue many homeowners run into is running heavy machinery over the components of their system. A lawn mower isn’t heavy enough to cause significant damage, however, a car, or a tree-trimming truck can damage system components. We at Admiral Septic offer locating services so you can avoid unnecessary costly repairs.

We at Admiral Septic hope these visuals and explanations help you better understand the components, concept and function of your septic system!