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Rain, rain go away. Come again some….wait, no

IMG_0026Last week I posted about the rain and this week I’m going to talk a little more about it.  I know I may seem like a broken record, but this last year I have spent a LOT OF TIME talking to customers about their systems and the effects of Mother Nature in their functionality.  The memes I include today may be funny, but what rain and extra moisture can do to your septic system is definitely NOT a laughing matter.

If you are a faithful reader, you have heard this before, but water coming both inside the house and outside from Mother Nature plays a HUGE role in how your septic system functions.  Since October of 2018, the state of Nebraska has received MASSIVE totals of rainfall and snow.  Heck, we almost broke our snow fall record this year!  We are currently sitting at 10 inches over the normal rainfall totals for 2019.  That’s a LOT of moisture for the soil and though systems are designed to handle a lot from the outside forces of nature, there are always exceptions to the rule…say fall of 2018 to the fall of 2019…maybe even the winter of 2019-20? (If you believe in Farmer’s Almanac reports!)

IMG_0027

So, what can you do as a septic-living-homeowner when these crazy wet seasons occur?  Well, first off, just being mindful of your water usage is always a good idea when living on septic.  Here are some things you can do as a homeowner to help with the water running through or to your system:

1) Do loads of laundry throughout the week instead of all on one day.  This slows the amount of water you’re asking your soil to absorb.

2)  Reduce the length of shower time

3)  Reduce the number of times your water softner re-charges in a week

4)  Try not to run the dishwasher and washing machine at the same time

5)  Divert run-off water or downspouts AWAY from your lateral field

6)  Make sure you don’t have any “running” toilets or other possible water leaks in the house (sometimes whole-house humidifiers can cause a septic system grief too!)

All of these items help in the functionality of your system no matter what time of year it is, but ESPECIALLY during times of excessive precipitation.

Older systems tend to have more struggles with the huge amounts of rain and snow, but it’s always a good idea to be careful of water usage no matter what the age of the system.  When standing water or possible back ups occur, we can come pump your tank, but this will only relieve the situation for a while until the laterals have had a chance to dry out (when the back up or standing water is due to excessive weather conditions).  Our biggest problem this year has been being able to access the tank for customers.  When the ground is wet or soft, we politely refuse to get on fields or yards – we aren’t exactly a light vehicle when we arrive and we are heavier when we leave!  We can run hose some distance, but there have been tanks this year so far away we can’t always pump them – so if we can prevent these issues prematurely with careful water usage that is always a plus!

Hope you find this information helpful! Together we can survive whatever Mother Nature throws at us!

PERCOLATION TESTS — What are they? And why they matter!

Posted by on 8:57 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

If you’re building in the country, something you might not know is when build a new house you also have  to install a wastewater system – or a place for all your wastewater to go.  In town, there is plumbing and city sewers to take care of all that, but if you build in the country you have to provide your own sewer system!  The most popular types of wastewater systems are septic systems. Septic systems work in conjunction with Mother Nature.  The largest part of a septic system is the drain field (also known as a lateral field or...

read more

TOILET PAPER – why cheaper is better

Posted by on 2:38 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

Given the nature of my business, I “get” to talk about poo and toilet paper almost daily.  How lucky am I?Believe it or not, toilet paper causes most of the issues people have when dealing with septic back-ups.  Now hopefully, we won’t have to deal with toilet paper shortages again.  But if we do, and you live on septic, grab the cheap stuff!  Leave the expensive paper for everyone else! Why do I want you grabbing the cheap stuff?   Here’s why…. All toilet papers claim to be “septic...

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PLANNING for your NEW HOME and SEPTIC SYSTEM

Posted by on 2:35 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

You and your spouse just bought some land.  Both of you are so excited about building and looking at floor plans.  You are looking at different flooring and bathroom tiles, while your husband is dreaming about his new shop/outbuilding with built in man-cave.  You find yourself a builder and that’s it!  Right? Well, sort of…. Now I know it isn’t the most exciting thing to consider, but one of the most expensive items in your house when building in the country is your septic system.  You will...

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YOUR SEPTIC and MOTHER NATURE

Posted by on 6:33 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

If you live in Nebraska (or the midwest in general…) you know the weather can change from day to day.  I have lived in both Kansas and Nebraska and the same saying goes, “Don’t like the weather? Stick around, it will change!” I’m guessing if you live remotely close to me, you can appreciate this meme.  While we haven’t seen snow in a while, this week was lovely with 90 degree highs followed by 75 degree high.  I’m a HUGE FAN of the 70 degree weather….I know very few people who...

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WATER USAGE and your LATERAL FIELD

Posted by on 3:29 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

Let’s talk about water usage and your septic system today.  One thing septic systems are good at, is showing you when you’ve used too much water.  (Think about trying to fit 20 gallons of water in a 5 gallon bucket…) When you live on a septic system, water usage is a REALLY BIG DEAL.  Your system was designed for one single household.  It was also designed to only absorb so much water so when you “feed” it more water than it was designed to handle, you’ll see those signs showing up on your...

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Call us to PUMP….YOU OUT!

Posted by on 3:55 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

As I have written several times in this blog, one the best things you can do for your septic system is pump it regularly.  And every time I discuss the subject of septic pumping, my brain always thinks about one of my favorite SNL skits with Hans and Frans….I’m sorry, I’m just that weird.  They wanted to PUMP…..YOU UP!  I want to PUMP…YOU OUT! Anyway… It is recommended that you pump your tank every 3-5 years based on activity levels in your home.  The more people you have living in your...

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SEPTIC SYSTEM 101

Posted by on 8:20 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

Septic system 101 — class is in session!  Over the past 10 years we have more and more people moving to locations where their homes require their own wastewater treatment system.  Though this isn’t typically the first thing new homeowners like to think about (where does the poo go? probably isn’t on your mind…) it is important to understand.  Living on septic isn’t rocket science, but it is different than living in town on city sewer. As I have stated before in previous posts/blogs/articles, so...

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LEAKING LATERALS — what could be the problem?

Posted by on 11:40 am in Uncategorized | 0 comments

It’s that time of year when everyone is calling to either get their tank pumped or discuss issues with their septic systems.  An item that is a biggie with many systems is water usage.  Why?  Septic systems are designed to handle only so much water so, if you go over that amount, your systems will let you know….kinda like Christmas dinner makes the pants tighter?  Too much water will show up in standing water on laterals or sometimes back-ups in the house.  I can’t help you with your...

read more

PERCOLATION TESTS — why they matter!

Posted by on 4:50 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

 If you’re building in the country, something you might not know is when build a new house you also have  to install a wastewater system – or a place for all your wastewater to go.  In town, there is plumbing and city sewers to take care of all that, but if you build in the country you have to provide your own sewer system!  The most popular types of wastewater systems are septic systems. Septic systems work in conjunction with Mother Nature.  The largest part of a septic system is the drain field (also...

read more

PLANNING for your SEPTIC SYSTEM

Posted by on 1:22 pm in Uncategorized | 0 comments

You and your spouse just bought some land.  Both of you are so excited about building and looking at floor plans.  You are looking at different flooring and bathroom tiles, while your husband is dreaming about his new shop/outbuilding with built in man-cave.  You find yourself a builder and that’s it!  Right? Well, sort of…. Now I know it isn’t the most exciting thing to consider, but one of the most expensive items in your house when building in the country is your septic system.  You will...

read more