I read somewhere that a septic system can get clogged with lint from your clothes washer.
Makes sense if you look at the label on most clothing - mostly synthetic fibers. Septic system repair
for this condition is costly and not guaranteed to work. There is a company that makes an inline lint
trap for the washing machine - not sure who. A friend of mine avoids this problem by disposing of his
washing machine water directly on the surface away from his drainage field. Sounds like a good idea
to me.
The aerobic system is a steady state system and when it sets for a long time the "bugs" die off and when you put a large load on it you may be spraying out effluent that has not been completely treated. I also do not like the thought of expensive maintenance designed into the system. In Texas a maintenance contract is required by law and eventually electrical pumps must be replaced. There was a recent study performed on aerobic systems around Lake Livingston and if I remember correctly more than half were not operating properly. One of the problems was no chlorine tablets or the wrong kind of chlorine tablets (swimming pool) and besides chlorine will not kill everything in the effluent that could infect you.
There are some viable alternatives, I am looking at a subsurface contructed wetlands. If you have room and a slope you could have a system that is good for a 100 years. Here in Texas it does require a PE or register sanitarian to design it before a permit will be issued.
<font color="red">There are some viable alternatives, I am looking at a subsurface contructed wetlands. If you have room and a slope you could have a system that is good for a 100 years. Here in Texas it does require a PE or register sanitarian to design it before a permit will be issued. </font color>
I am looking to build on a piece of land that will not support a conventional system. What is the above system that you are looking into?
It has a conventional septic tank, and then the effluent flow from the tank to a lined pit filled with sized gravel about 18 inches deep. The pit has a 3 to 1 length to width ratio. Say 10 feet wide by 30 feet long. Actual size depends upon flow rates. The effluent level is kept about 2 inches below the surface so you do not see any open water. The pit is planted with aquatic plants such as bull rush, cat tails and the bacterial lives on the root of the plants and provides finishing treament for the effluent. The plants transpirate much of the water and the effluent then flows into a conventional leach field or another pit that is not lined. I will look up the Texas A&M fact sheet and post the link on this system. The thing I like about it is that it is a passive system requiring only a good engineering design and proper construction techniques. NO pumps, aerators, no electricity at all and gravity hasn't failed yet [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] .
Of couse there are some soils that are extremely difficult to dispose of the water. Most regulatory agencies still look at it as disposal and not water reuse. But that is slowly changing as water becomes more of a comodity.
Here is the link Constructed Wetlands you will need the Adobe Reader to view.
I'm not sure of the term SAND MOUND. We have sand about 3' deep with trenches with pea rock around the pipes nice green lawn above. Just keep the trees away.
That system will not get by the powers in Upstate New York. Sounds like a workable system if you have the right land and climate. What happens when the temperature is below zero every night for weeks like this year?
There has been some testing on the wetland system by the state of Wisconsin, and even though there was some degradation in treatment it was still meeting federal guidelines. A proper design would still effective treat the effluent. OF course you get far enough north (upstate New York) and the ground could be froze to China [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img] .
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