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One question. If the house was built in the 20’s, how would anyone knoiw if the absorption field was oversized or not? I would be skeptical! Septic fields are designed to treat material that was already been “treated” by our intestinal tracts. Raw food puts quite a burden on the system.
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Don't put potato peels down your disposer. The starch acts a "clotting agent".
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SHGLaw
You referred a couple of times that the "tanks are empty". Do you mean that literally? Are they full of liquid, but empty of solids? There is no way that a functioning septic tank should be empty.
*I checked with ISE, and the Septic Disposer costs about $230. The Bio-Charge enzyme package costs about $30 for three refills, and each refill is good for 3-4 months, depending upon usage. According to ISE, the Septic Disposer costs more than standard ones because it operates faster and grinds finer than standard disposers, plus the enzyme injection system.
*I agree with drvnputt, the tanks should not be empty. Are you sure your looking at the right tank/field? Maybe a new tank/field was put in sometime back with the old tanks left in place and the drains redirected. Doesn't seem so impossible to me.Rich Beckman
*Sorry to be unclear. I didn't mean empty empty, just free of solids. But you ought to see how this field is. There are old manhole covers for access. The tanks are huge. It's just terrific. I never thought I would gush about a leaching field. Yuck. But I do admire the work.BTW, if the ISE septic disposal really works, the small extra cost is trivial. Even if the system could handle a regular disposal, it seems that the septic system would be better. The only pain is that you have to get refills of the solution every 3-4 months. Another thing that requires running out to HD.
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So there's a leaching field and the customer wants to have a garbage disposal. Is this a smart move?
SHG
*Might as well ask re dishwasher also? Joe H
*If it was used much, I would guess that it could plug things up in a hurry. It would be possible to put in a composter of some sort and drain the excess water off into the leach field. I thought I had a reference to a URL that specifically addressed this problem, but I can't find it. You might start off at:http://www.septicprotector.com/and also look athttp://www.ebuild.com/index.htmlparticularly the paper:http://www.ebuild.com/Resources/Rosenbaum/waste.htmlthere might also be something at:http://www.ecological-engineering.com/index.html ,http://www.ecological-engineering.com/typical.html or http://www.nwlink.com/~van/glcomp.html
*I think the answer could be yes and could be no. It all depends on the capacity of the tank and leach field. If it is an old field, one installed before garbage disposals became common the answer is most likely no. If, however, the field was put in in since it is possible a garbage disposal was inculded in the load computation. If the septic system was permitted the design should be on file somewhere (Health Department?). You should be able to get some specific advice from them.
*SHGLaw:In our area the County Health Dept (the ones who approve septic installations) require the septic system (field & tank) to be sized 25% larger for an in sink garbage disposal. Some people install a garbage disposal after the CO (Certificate of Occupancy) has been issued.One resulting issue is that the tank needs to be pumped more often as more solids enter the tank. The real danger is if the solids fill the tank enough to, somehow, flow out into the field - this could ruin the field! This should not happen if the garbage disposal is used sensibly. IMO sensibly would mean throwing food in the trash or in a compost, and simply using the garbage disposal for small food scraps that are rinsed from plates. Also, in my area, the Co. Health Dept. is now requiring a filter be installed on the outlet side of the tank. Here are some questions you need to get answered before installing the garbage disposal:1) How many people are/will be living in the house? 2) How many people is the septic system sized for? In my area, it goes by the number of bedrooms in the house. 3) Using answers from 1 & 2, is the system near/at capacity? 4) How old is the system?Look at this link for some info:http://ces.soil.ncsu.edu/soilscience/publications/Soilfacts/AG-439-13/index.htm
*Great information. Thanks. Here's the specifics. The house (an old manor house) and leaching field were built in the '20's. It is a large house, with (from what I'm told) a large field. It encompasses about 1/2 acre. There are two tanks, both of which look pretty clean and empty, although there is some recent sinking around the first tank. Everything in the house was build oversized. Water and elec look like they should be for an apartment house, not a private residence.I'm told the tanks have never been pumped, but never needed it or had a problem. There has been a dishwasher in the house since the '50's without problem. My sense is that the garbage disposal will not present much of an additional burden, although it makes sense to warn them not to use it for every conceivable thing that can theoretically go into a garbage disposal. In other words, use it with some discretion.SHG
*I know nothing about it, but In-Sink-Erator has a model called the Septic Disposer. It appears to be a standard disposer with a tank that adds a bit of some biological garbage eater to the waste as it's ground. Maybe a gimmick? Go to .
*One question. If the house was built in the 20's, how would anyone knoiw if the absorption field was oversized or not? I would be skeptical! Septic fields are designed to treat material that was already been "treated" by our intestinal tracts. Raw food puts quite a burden on the system.
*COMPOST!
*Can't say for sure how it was sized. We can only see what we can see. However, everything about the place was done oversized for its day, and it's logical to believe that this was too. Of course, that doesn't make it so.
*A nice idea, but not helpful. Telling a customer to compost kind of negates the point of the work. That's like telling them, sure you can have a disposal, just move to another house.
*I can't imagine a septic tank in use since the '20's never needing to be pumped. If you install a garbage disposal, I would definately plan on pumping the tank more than every 70 years. The things that get ground up are not generally as biodegradable as the usual things that end up in the tank. Some one said it before, if the solids make it to the field, you're in for trouble.
*I think that septic insinkerator sounds like it should do the trick. Of course, how many new ideas turn out to be duds after a little use, but that's life. And maybe the ocassional pump and dump won't hurt it any.
*Seems to me the biggest issue is tank capacity and keeping solids out of the fields. Tank capacity is the easiest thing to check... have them both pumped and the pumper can get a pretty accurate idea of size. Based on size and occupancy of hose they can also give you a good idea of pumping frequency. If there is any doubt start with annual and see how fast solids are building up... then adjust. Most pumping services will put you on an automatic notification cycle.I'm not sure the quality of solids (intestine pre-treated or not) has much to do with field performance as long as solids stay in the tank.It is possible that even in the 20's there was a diagram of the fields that might have been filed or plan prepared by an architect or engineer. Even if not it's pretty common as a part of pre-purchase house inspections to locate and confirm the size of fields. Most health departments require a spec for additional construction, bring systems to current code size... so somebody qualified to figure it out should not be hard to find.If I owned the house or represented a buyer in a real estate transaction I'd be a lot more concerned about the system treating the usual sewer output without overflowing or backing up than about the additional burden of the GD. Field capacity and function should be checked anyway. If somebody knows or thinks tanks haven't been pumped in 70 years does that mean a now elderly couple or person has been there all these years? A couple of flushes a day, a couple of sponge baths, a load of wash a week and eating off paper plates before... and now a young family moves in with 4 kids (two in diapers), 2 dogs, lots of sports and gardening clothes, more frequent dishwasher use... get the picture? Check the system anyway!
*The house has been occupied for the past five years by a family with two young children plus a maid, so it's been pretty heavily used and still the tanks are essentially empty at present. There's nothing to pump. It's possible that it has been pumped over the years, but no one around now is aware of it.We have the original plans and conditions for the house, but not the leaching field. There's no filing otherwise. This was the issue. With none of the tell-tale problems associated with old systems, it's hard to say much of anything for sure. The tough thing is that it looks like its working magnificently, and appears capable of handling everything that's being put into it without any effort at all. This isn't surprising since everything that was done at the house was done very well, top quality, oversized, etc. There was no skimping on this place. All houses should be built like this place.Thanks.