Important Tips for Septic System Care and Maintenance

If your home in Cocoa is on a septic tank, it means that you need to take care and maintenance steps that don’t apply to homeowners on the city’s sewer system. The good news is that if your system is properly maintained, it can last for a minimum of 30 years. The bad news is that if you don’t maintain your system properly, it can lead to serious issues, including sewage backing up into your home. What should you know about proper septic maintenance and care?

Regular Pumping

First, let’s address the elephant in the room – pumping. It’s costly and annoying, but it’s an essential consideration. Even with an active and properly working leach field, your tank will eventually fill up with solid waste. To prevent this, it must be pumped out regularly. The frequency will depend on two things – the size of the tank and the number of people in the home. A family of four with a 2,500-gallon tank can go about seven years, but more people or a smaller tank might require that you have it pumped every year.

Drain Line Cleaning

Over time, the sewage lines leading from your showers, toilets and sinks, as well as the main line to the tank can become blocked up. Gunk and waste builds up on the inside of the pipes, slowing down the flow and possibly causing backups. An experienced Brevard plumber can help maintain your pipes with regular cleanings, including sewer line jetting in severe instances.

Inspections Are Important

Another important consideration when it comes to septic tank maintenance is to have inspections performed, particularly if you’ve started to notice that water drains slowly, or toilets are flushing slowly at times. This can be caused by a rapidly filling septic tank, but it could also be a blockage in the drain line (either waste material, or something like tree roots). Any reputable, licensed and insured Brevard plumber can use special cameras to investigate the problem, determine the cause of the slow draining, and then offer repairs. Even if you don’t have your tank pumped this often, you should have the system inspected by professional Brevard plumbers every three years or so.

Cultured Bacteria

Sometimes, not enough solid waste is produced in a household to ensure that bacteria can thrive in the septic tank and leach field. When this happens, waste that’s in the system can harden and begin clogging lines and pipes. Experienced plumbers like Anchor Plumbing can provide treatments with cultured bacteria that help boost system performance and treat or even prevent problems like this from happening.

Whether your septic tank is brand new or you’ve been using it for several years, Anchor Plumbing can provide you with the maintenance and care solutions needed to keep it in good working condition for as long as possible.