Hey all,
I have a septic problem and a load of family coming in for the holidays - please help!
We have a septic tank and drain field. The previous owner had an entire second drain field installed with a diverter valve a few years ago. I asked him why, and he told me because it lets one rest. That seemed strange to me - why not then just leave both on?
We've lived in the house 8 months. While in the finished basement after a day of heavy rain, I heard loud "burbs" coming out of the basement toilet, with a slightly foul oder. I panicked of course, and got a septic specialist out. He said I'd need to put something in there to eat it up which might buy some time - or replace the fields (I ended up doing nothing and all has continued to work fine until now).
I called my city. I got copies of the actual septic work that was done in 2008. Along with them came back the original septic field and system layout.
I called the guy who did the new work. He said a "dual system" with a diverter valve was the best way to go - and everyone should do it - if you have the money. He said to switch it about every year. So I'm working one drain field for a year - and another for a year, etc.
OK - so I went outside with a long water main post/tool, found that valve and "switched fields". This was about a 1.5 months ago. I have no way of knowing which field I switched it to.
Now I've read a lot about septic - and did hear that if a field gets inundated - you're screwed. But this guy swears that a year of leaving it alone, even if it's not working right - will most likely allow it to rot away and you can use it again in a year. I saw the receipts - the previous owner paid this guy a lot of money, and he continues to be reputable around town. He also told me that septic isn't perfect. If you have heavy rain for example, you may have some issues likely in the basement, etc. But things should go back to normal if you care for the system.
Now today - we've a problem. I tried to flush the basement toilet and it almost overflowed (clear water). My wife did do a ton of laundry today, and by concidence, we and the kids all had showers/baths. But even during that heavy rain when the basement toilet kept "burping" - it just wouldn't flush - it didn't act like it was clogged and start to overflow.
Worse - I went to our first floor bathroom. I flushed - and it too nearly overflowed. We haven't really had much rain at all recently, if any in the last few days. But I did notice the ground in general everywhere seems moist. So perhaps the (Atlanta) weather is keeping moisture in the ground.
Worth mentioning is that the water in the toilets did go down after a short period of time.
SOOOOO......I'm thinking this is one of four possibilities:
1. I'm screwed. The whole system is jacked and I need all new fields.
2. I'm OK - this is just coincidence that we used a ton of water today and flooded the system, and tomorrow everything will be OK.
3. The "diverter" - when I switched it 1.5 months ago, I switched to the old field which perhaps was jacked and never purged itself. So I should switch back.
4. The septic tank is full.
Any thoughts here? I know there are a lot of possibilities. But I have very little time and I've got to make an informed decision ASAP!
Thanks!
I have a septic problem and a load of family coming in for the holidays - please help!
We have a septic tank and drain field. The previous owner had an entire second drain field installed with a diverter valve a few years ago. I asked him why, and he told me because it lets one rest. That seemed strange to me - why not then just leave both on?
We've lived in the house 8 months. While in the finished basement after a day of heavy rain, I heard loud "burbs" coming out of the basement toilet, with a slightly foul oder. I panicked of course, and got a septic specialist out. He said I'd need to put something in there to eat it up which might buy some time - or replace the fields (I ended up doing nothing and all has continued to work fine until now).
I called my city. I got copies of the actual septic work that was done in 2008. Along with them came back the original septic field and system layout.
I called the guy who did the new work. He said a "dual system" with a diverter valve was the best way to go - and everyone should do it - if you have the money. He said to switch it about every year. So I'm working one drain field for a year - and another for a year, etc.
OK - so I went outside with a long water main post/tool, found that valve and "switched fields". This was about a 1.5 months ago. I have no way of knowing which field I switched it to.
Now I've read a lot about septic - and did hear that if a field gets inundated - you're screwed. But this guy swears that a year of leaving it alone, even if it's not working right - will most likely allow it to rot away and you can use it again in a year. I saw the receipts - the previous owner paid this guy a lot of money, and he continues to be reputable around town. He also told me that septic isn't perfect. If you have heavy rain for example, you may have some issues likely in the basement, etc. But things should go back to normal if you care for the system.
Now today - we've a problem. I tried to flush the basement toilet and it almost overflowed (clear water). My wife did do a ton of laundry today, and by concidence, we and the kids all had showers/baths. But even during that heavy rain when the basement toilet kept "burping" - it just wouldn't flush - it didn't act like it was clogged and start to overflow.
Worse - I went to our first floor bathroom. I flushed - and it too nearly overflowed. We haven't really had much rain at all recently, if any in the last few days. But I did notice the ground in general everywhere seems moist. So perhaps the (Atlanta) weather is keeping moisture in the ground.
Worth mentioning is that the water in the toilets did go down after a short period of time.
SOOOOO......I'm thinking this is one of four possibilities:
1. I'm screwed. The whole system is jacked and I need all new fields.
2. I'm OK - this is just coincidence that we used a ton of water today and flooded the system, and tomorrow everything will be OK.
3. The "diverter" - when I switched it 1.5 months ago, I switched to the old field which perhaps was jacked and never purged itself. So I should switch back.
4. The septic tank is full.
Any thoughts here? I know there are a lot of possibilities. But I have very little time and I've got to make an informed decision ASAP!
Thanks!