Home and Garden: Maintenance crucial to avoid septic problems

Proper septic maintenance is a must in the Santa Cruz Mountains to ensure a long life for both septic tanks and leach fields.
Many homes in the San Lorenzo Valley and Scotts Valley are on septic systems, and it’s important to keep them up to reduce risks that could threaten your family’s health and pocketbook, from well-water contamination to foul odors.
In addition, proper septic system maintenance extends the life of the system and may prevent the need for costly septic repairs or replacement.
These tips can help maintain a septic system for the long haul:
Conserve water
Excess water in a septic system will not give the beneficial bacterial flora time to do their job. Check for and fix any drips or leaks in the system.
A simple way to check for a leaky toilet is by adding a few drops of food coloring to the tank. If the color spreads to the water in the toilet bowl, there’s a leak that will need to be addressed.
While you’re at it, a water displacer in the toilet tank is an easy way to reduce the amount of water in each flush. Installing an aerator also reduces water consumption.
When it’s time to replace old equipment, it helps to use only low-flow-style toilets and fixtures. Local water districts often have rebates to help out with the costs.
Plan ahead
Overloading is a primary cause of septic system failures. Most soils in the Santa Cruz Mountains can handle only a small amount of percolation as an effective leach field.
The early morning and bedtime tend to be peak water-use times in a home, so it’s helpful to run dishwashers and washing machines at other times during the day, for example.
Spreading the family’s laundry over the course of the week — one load here, another there — is another way to avoid pumping too much water into the system all at once.
Remember what (not) to flush
In a home with a septic system, use an in-sink garbage disposal prudently, if at all. Using the disposal will increase the solids in the septic tank, requiring more frequent pumping of the system. A great alternative is to compost food waste for an added boost to your garden.
Those who do use a disposal should choose a top-level model that will grind the garbage into smaller pieces, giving the bacteria in the septic system a head start to break them down thoroughly.
Likewise, don’t dump coffee grounds in the sink or flush kitty litter, plastic, cloth or unnecessary paper products. Put paper towels, tissue, cigarette butts, disposable diapers, sanitary napkins, tampons and other materials in the trash, never down the toilet.
Baby wipes, even if they are marketed as “flushable,” clog septic systems quickly. Instead, throw them away.
And discarding grease, fats and oils through a sink or toilet can damage the system by clogging the septic tank pipes and leach field soil.
Know what’s needed
Most experts agree that it often unnecessary to add any commercial products or yeast to a septic system system. The bacteria needed for the system to operate occur naturally in waste, courtesy of the human digestive tract, and usually are plentiful for the job at hand.
Commercial additives can damage a septic system by breaking up the sludge and scum layers. That could cause those layers to flush out of the septic tank and clog the infiltration beds and leach fields.
Go easy on chemicals
Use normal amounts of detergents, bleaches, drain cleaners, household cleaners and other products. Avoid dumping heavy-duty or toxic chemicals into drains.
Solvents like dry-cleaning fluid, pesticides, photography chemicals, paint thinner and auto products and motor oils can kill the bacteria that keep the septic system running effectively and can possibly clog drains. In addition, these hazardous materials could eventually reach the well water and contaminate it, creating a serious health threat for you and your family.
When to check your septic
A properly functioning septic tank and leach field can go decades without needing pumping as long as the drainage in the soils will allow it. If the system is not draining, you can check the clean outs for backfill. Another indicator that it is time for pumping can be either visual sewage or the odor of sewage. During the rainy season in the redwoods, the percolation beds can over fill with water or sediment, clogging them and forcing waste to the surface. Simply pumping out your tank in these situations will not remedy the need for functional drainage. Additionally roots and sludge can be major clog factors that can only be discovered manually.
For this story, reporter Nathan Beck spoke with his father, Randy Beck, about septic systems. Randy Beck ran buildings and grounds maintenance for Mount Hermon for 35 years.