Top Seven Signs Your Septic Drain Field Is Failing

Households hooked up to a private septic tank know the importance of regular maintenance. The tank needs to be pumped on a schedule—typically every three to five years, depending on usage—and the drain field needs to be monitored to avoid costly repairs. No matter how sanitized you want your septic components to be, never use cleaners with harsh chemicals to clean a septic system, because certain chemicals can create problems or worsen already existing ones. If there’s a problem in one part of the system, chances are you’ll need to check the entire thing, from the drains to the tank to the leach field.

Below are seven signs and symptoms that your septic drain field in Strafford County, NH is failing:

• Noisy plumbing: Unusual noises coming from drains or other areas of the plumbing system should be investigated. While it might be a one-time thing, some noises—like a gurgling drain—may be early signs of improper drain venting, which could indicate a partial blockage. Call a plumber if you notice such sounds coming from more than one plumbing fixture in your home (toilets, sinks, showers, other drains).
• Slow drains: One of two things likely pops into your head when you encounter a slow drain—either there’s a clog in the pipe, or a problem with the septic tank. Sure, slow drains are annoying, and you might feel you can remedy the issue yourself, but persistent slow drains could be a symptom of a much bigger problem.
• Water flowing back up: Water coming up through the drains is a gigantic warning sign of trouble brewing somewhere inside your septic system or out in the drain field. Water backing up into your house from plumbing fixtures or toilets means you have a serious septic failure or blockage that needs immediate attention.
• Additional flushing: There are many reasons why you might need to flush a toilet repeatedly. However, the need for multiple flushes to flush away waste when you have a normal volume of water in the tank points to a clog in the system or a failing drain field.
• Wet or overly green lawn: Your grass is lush and green… but only in the spots sitting directly above your drain field. This is not good. Overly green lawns and obvious wet areas in your yard are signs of leach field failure.
• Visible black substance: Properly functioning drain fields will move water from the septic tank out and away from your house. The soil above the septic pipes in your yard should be like the rest of your yard: dry in summer, wet in winter. If you see a black, slimy substance on the ground above your drain field or septic tank, call a septic professional immediately.
• Sewage odor: Just because you have a septic system instead of being connected to a main city sewer line doesn’t mean sewage smells inside or outside of your house are normal. Don’t ignore odors coming from drains or wet sewage-smelling areas on your property.

For drain field maintenance or leach field replacement in Strafford County, NH, call B.H. Cameron Septic Services LLC today.

Categorised in: Leach Field Maintenance

This post was written by Writer