The Three Deadly Sins

There are three major contributing factors to septic system failure. They are easily overlooked and therefore are all too common. With a little due diligence you can help avoid problems that stem from any of the following.

	CHEMICALS	Chemicals kill bacteria and prevent the digestion of waste. Many household products are lethal to the bacteria in a septic system.
	OVERLOADING	When too much water is used at one time, the septic system does not have enough time to break down the previous wastewater. The extra volume forces the un-processed waste into the field bed.
	INORGANIC MATERIALS	Fats, oils, grease, and other inorganic materials are slow to break down, if they break down at all.

Not Scared Enough?

If you don't take proper care of your septic system, you're not just threatening your own finances. When a septic system fails, a series of "natural disasters" occur. The groundwater can become contaminated, or the wells, lakes, streams, and rivers nearby. This can release pathogenic organisms, such as viruses and E. Coli bacteria, or just plain rotten smells, upon you and your neighbours.

Know Where to Build

You must be careful when building additions on your property or when planting new trees and/or shrubs. Any one of these can damage your field bed, even at a distance.

Buildings & Additions - We've heard a story of a man building an above-ground swimming pool on top of his field bed, though we hope for his sake that this isn't true. However, some people just don't realize how delicate their field beds are. Sheds, decks, and home extensions should be built well away from the septic system, for the sake of your system and your new project. Maybe your new dining room extension isn't hurting your field bed, but should that field bed back up or malfunction, all your hard work had better be water-proof! And on top of that, be prepared to rip up that new flooring to access the field bed in order to repair it.

Plants & Trees - The most damaging thing we've ever seen, time and again, are roots infiltrating a septic system. Roots naturally seek out moisture, and normally find it in your field bed area. Sometimes this will happen, no matter the distance, since age old trees have a vast and far-reaching network of roots under the soil. However, you can avoid future occurrences by planting your new trees and shrubs away from your entire septic system.