What About My Septic System?

We do a lot of work with rural home owners and see all kinds of different well water quality issues.  One thing most of these owners have in common is they have a septic system.  In our area, its common to have a septic field or a mound, but there are also a good number of surface-discharge or cesspool setups as well.  What these systems all have in common is the septic tank.  If you're not familiar with a septic tank, its usually just a two-chamber underground container that separates out the solids and liquids and gives bacteria a chance to do some breakdown of the materials prior to being discharged from the tank (or sucked out by a vac truck, if there actually is no discharge.)

Because these bacteria need to have the right conditions to live and enough time to do their job, its common to question whether it is appropriate to discharge water treatment equipment into septic systems.  There are concerns about salt-based systems killing bacteria or clogging up the pipes or even the soil in a septic field.  There are also concerns of "flooding" the septic tank with the water used in cleaning and regenerating water treatment equipment.  If too much water comes into the system too quickly, the bacteria will not have had a chance to work nor will separation into "sludge" (the solids,) and "scum" (the fats and greases that float to the top.) Without separation, the wrong things can go out to your field and cause massive problems - especially "biomat" - or an accumulation of a slimy layer in a septic field that clogs things up, eventually causing failure.  These are valid concerns, but that doesn't mean they are problems.

There is a lot of information available on this and there have been a LOT of studies performed.  The general consensus is: septic systems can be compatible with water treatment equipment.  Newer water treatment systems are more efficient than ever.  When they use less water to clean themselves, obviously that's less water going into the septic system.  Even the use of salt isn't a problem.  A recent study available from the Water Quality Association clearly talks to these points.

The end results actually show better operation of the septic system - including the field - when compared to not running the equipment.  Another benefit is the dramatic reduction of soaps, detergents and cleaning products that soft, iron-free water allows home owners to take advantage of.  The less these chemicals are dumped into our soils, the less impact on the environment.

To be sure, there are proponents of both sides, but it has clearly been shown that there are a lot of benefits to running rural water treatment equipment, and there is no reason that if done properly, the water treatment equipment should cause a concern for a septic system.

Resources:

• For information on Pirana aerobic septic treatment and field remediation systems, please see the following LINK.
• For information on WaterMax the most-efficient, "septic friendly" water softening and treatment systems available, please click HERE.
• For a FREE, useful PDF on this topic from the Water Quality Research Council:
  http://www.wqa.org/pdf/Consumer%20Briefs/cSoftprobseptic.pdf
• For a free copy of a paper from NOWRA (National On-site Wastewater Recycling  Association) the organization representing the septic treatment industry, please download the PDF HERE.