Why an Onsite System?
Not long ago, there was a commonly held notion about any wastewater treatment system not connected to a city sewer plant. These systems, known collectively as decentralized or onsite systems, were thought to be a temporary solution to the issue of wastewater management. “Some day,” they said, “everyone will be connected to big city municipal treatment plants.” The times, as well as those antiquated ideas, have changed.
Important Information about your Onsite System
Good record keeping is important for any onsite homeowner. Who installed your system? When was it last serviced? What do you do if the alarm goes off? Use this page to take notes and record the important facts about your wastewater treatment system. You’ll be glad you did.
________________________________________________________ Owner Address ________________________________________________________ Installer Phone ________________________________________________________ Health Dept. Official Phone ________________________________________________________ Service Professional Phone ________________________________________________________ Treatment Package Installation Date
The Homeowner’s Manual to Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems
101
ONSITE
Welcome to the Onsite Family
Your home is perhaps the most basic and important possession you have. Provide it with attention, care, and basic maintenance and it will provide you and your family with countless years of protection and comfort. A major contributor to that comfort is your home’s onsite wastewater treatment system. A properly designed and installed system, like any other component of your home, requires a basic level of care and consideration. Treat it right, and it will work hard for you! Your onsite system has been designed to provide a superior level of treatment to your household waste. Unlike municipal sewer systems, in which overloading frequently leads to degradation of the treated sewage, your onsite system is engineered to produce a consistent, high quality effluent. Whether you’re on the fringe of city life, or enjoy the solitude of countryside, your onsite system will help to protect what you value most. The finished product is not only environmentally friendly, it’s naturally beneficial. What is your role in this process? This manual is designed as a guide to answer that very question. Put simply, your job is to be mindful of what leaves your home and enters your treatment system. A failed system can cost thousands of dollars to replace and is ecologically damaging, so educate yourself and your family. Periodically, a qualified service provider should perform an inspection to ensure that things are running smoothly. Much like getting a tune up on your car, a regular check and tune up of your onsite system will ensure its health and proper operation. This guide will give you tips and suggestions for getting the best quality and longest life from your new system. It is a valuable and integral part of your home – protect it. At Zoeller Company, we believe in and develop quality products that both meet and exceed the expectations of our customers. Why? Because we have homes and families, too. We understand that your home is so much more than just a good investment.
Today, 25% of all homes in this country use onsite wastewater systems. A third of all new homes constructed will be decentralized.
Onsite wastewater technology is more advanced than ever before. With the current push toward rural living, the trend toward onsite will only grow. Decentralized technology gives people the freedom to live comfortably wherever they choose without polluting the world around them. In fact, most properly designed onsite treatment systems produce a cleaner water product than their big city sewer counterparts!
Service Record
__________ Date __________ Date ___________________________________________ Action ___________________________________________ Action
Owner's Checklist
√ Annually review this document. √ Inspect all faucets and toilets for drips. √ Test panel alarm using the side switch. √ Check that all access lids are secured. √ Contact your service professional if problems are encountered. What if my alarm sounds? • Silence the alarm using the switch on the side of the control panel. The beacon will continue to flash. Never open the panel. Serious risk of electric shock exists. • Call your service professional. • Cut back on water usage until your service professional addresses the problem.
A Practical Guide to Your New Onsite System
If properly installed, serviced, and maintained a new onsite system should outlast the mortgage of the home it services!
The value of a home is undeniably linked to its wastewater disposal system. Selling a home with a failed system can be daunting at best and impossible at worst. If failure occurs, most systems can be fixed, but the cost is substantial. An ounce of prevention, as they say, is worth a pound of cure. Maintenance and service by a knowledgeable professional can provide a homeowner with tremendous savings, both in dollars and in aspirin! Protect your investment. Have your system inspected annually.
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Compliments of
Zoeller Pump Company
Manufacturers of quality pumps since 1939
3649 Cane Run Road • Louisville, KY 40211-1961 (502) 778-2731 • 1 (800) 928-PUMP • FAX (502) 774-3624
FM2382 0806 Supersedes New
www.zoeller.com
“Alright, so it’s important. But, what is it?” The Basics of Treatment
An onsite treatment system can consist of a few basic elements beginning and ending at an individual residence, or can be part of a community system. The most essential elements are: Primary Treatment – The principal method used to treat raw wastewater in a system. A septic tank is most commonly used. Secondary Treatment – Any treatment carried out after primary, serving to lower the waste strength. Media filters and constructed wetlands are examples.
“Why would I use a pump?” The Basics of Movement
Effluent often leaves the septic tank by gravity. However, in hilly areas or as part of a community clustered system, it is sometimes necessary to use a pump in the septic tank to remove the effluent. This is referred to as a Septic Tank Effluent Pumping system, or STEP system for short. STEP systems can take a variety of forms, but most commonly consist of a thermoplastic pump vault placed directly into the septic tank (shown at right). Effluent in the septic tank is filtered as it enters the vault. A pump inside the vault then moves the fluid wherever needed. Depending on which pump is selected, a STEP system can move effluent several feet, several miles, or anywhere in between! If your home is equipped with a secondary treatment device, such as a constructed wetland or recirculating media filter, you likely have a dosing tank. This structure is downstream of the septic tank and regularly doses the secondary treatment device with effluent. In the case of the recirculating media filter (shown above), a large percentage of the treated wastewater returns to the dosing tank, to be treated again and again. Part of the routine of your service professional will include checking the pumps and pump station components for proper operation. Every so often, the dosing tank may need to be cleaned in addition to the septic tank. Your service professional will alert you should that need arise. There are some basic things that a homeowner can do to ensure a long life for an onsite system. The following sections will provide some helpful do’s and don’ts for keeping your system performing its best. Discuss this list with your family and review it on an annual basis.
Keeping Your System Healthy
Your onsite wastewater treatment system is alive! It contains microorganisms and bacteria which help break down most solid wastes. Keeping your new system healthy is not difficult, but it does require some consideration. Everything in your home that is drained or flushed ends up in your septic system. Excessive oils, fats, and greases can coat and close passageways, non-biodegradable items can clog filters, and harsh chemicals can kill essential, productive microorganisms. Avoid introducing the following items into your system.
Avoid Drowning Your System
Septic tanks rely on something called retention time to work properly. Wastewater entering the tank needs to stay there awhile in order for the solids to settle out and start treating. It is generally stated that water needs at least two days in the septic tank, but universally accepted that more time is better.
“What does this mean for me?”
Water conservation is the key. Certain household actions consume more water than others. The following guidelines offer helpful advice on septic water conservation.
Chemicals . . .
• • • • • • • Chlorine or chlorine bleach Latex or oil paint & thinners Herbicides & pesticides Oils & body lotions Caustic drain openers Motor oil & Antifreeze Toilet disinfection tablets
Trash . . . .
• Paper towels • Dental floss • Feminine hygiene products • Hair • Baby Wipes or Diapers • Condoms • Cat litter • • • • Seeds Cooking oil Onion skins Garbage disposal waste*
Stop The Drips!
Leaky faucets, toilets, and hoses can waste a lot of water. One small drip every 2 seconds adds up to 54 gallons a month! A drip extending 1/2” from the faucet before falling wastes 1,014 gallons per month! Leaky toilets can be even worse. Tighten all leaky faucets and drop a bit of food coloring into the toilet tank. If colors appear in the toilet bowl, you have a leaky tank.
Dispersal – The principal manner of disposing of treated wastewater. Leech lines, mounds, and drip irrigation are all dispersal methods. The workhorse of your onsite system is the septic tank. This buried storage tank receives raw waste from the home. Bacteria naturally present in the human body go to work in the septic tank to break down and consume biodegradable solids. This process is slow but thorough. Non-biodegradable solids, as well as treatment byproducts, slowly accumulate on the bottom of the tank. Fats, oils, and greases float to the surface. This material is known respectively as sludge and scum and will remain until physically removed. What leaves the tank is a relatively clear liquid known as effluent. Periodically, a service professional will need to inspect and possibly remove the sludge and scum from your septic tank. Until that time, it is very important that these materials stay in the septic tank and not pass beyond it. If the sludge and scum are allowed to enter your dispersal field, it could clog, causing permanent, irreparable damage. Good household practices are your first line of defense. A good septic tank effluent filter is your second. Effluent filters prevent larger solids from exiting the tank and plugging up downstream components. Your service professional should clean your filter at each inspection.
Food . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
• • • • Excess kitchen grease Egg shells Fruit & vegetable peel Coffee filters & grounds
Don’t Save Up Your Laundry!
Clothes washers can use up to 35 gallons per wash. Most likely, your home’s washing machine empties directly into the septic tank. Doing several loads, one after another, can strain a septic system by churning up the internal septic environment and prematurely flushing out solids. Don’t do a week’s worth of laundry all at once. Try to limit loads to three or less per day. Also, a lint trap on the wash water discharge line can do wonders to eliminate excess solids.
Avoid Draining Large Tubs!
Hot tubs and swimming pools can be fantastic for relaxation. Just be sure to drain them to the yard, not the septic tank! The same goes for back flushing water softener units. Be cautious of the oversized Jacuzzistyle bathtubs which have become more popular than ever. These huge tubs are filled and drained with each use. They waste water and can quickly overload a septic tank. If you have one, use it sparingly.
* Garbage disposals are wonderful conveniences of modern life. However, if overused they can bring a swift end to a septic system. NEVER purposfully put food wastes into a garbage disposal. Use the disposal only to clear the drain of any debris that may accidentally enter the drain during food preparation, diswashing, etc.