A septic tank is a tank that is usually installed in the ground to take the entire wet waste from the property. It can be made from brick, concrete or fibreglass and the outlet allows the waste effluence to escape through to a soakaway. However, with age and poor maintenance this type of system can easily silt up causing real problems to the pipework and tank itself such as: overflowing or you may find that you have rather unpleasant wet patches in the lawned/garden area.
What can be done to prevent these problems arising?
Firstly, and most importantly the septic tank should be cleaned out regularly once a year.
Check dip-pipe is working correctly to ensure and prevent the floating solids entering the soakaway and as a consequence decrease its working life.
Replace soakaway - Porosity test the soil of the site to see if the ground is suitable.
Install a pump well within or just outside of the tank – this will separate the tank from the soakaway and force (under pressure) the wastewater through the ground.
To install a unit to clean the effluence so it can discharge into a watercourse (ditch/dyke) or a high-level soakaway.
Cesspools
Cesspools are a tank without an outlet, which means that they have to be emptied regularly, every two to three months. This type of installation can be converted into a treatment unit to ensure that the cleaned effluence only goes into a watercourse – if applicable.
