The best home septic system treatment is proper inspection and maintenance. Keeping your home septic system running smoothly and efficiently is a simple matter of making sure you use it properly and putting as little stress on it as possible. This includes letting only what is meant to be in the septic tank pass through the system. It also involves keeping the entire system in good repair, pumping it out when needed and adding biological components when called for.
Basics
The conventional septic system consists of your toilets and other household plumbing, a concrete or Plexiglas tank buried in your yard and a set of perforated pipes buried in layers of sand and gravel known as drainfields. Liquid and solid wastes enter the septic tank by flushing sewage, emptying garbage disposals, doing laundry and washing dishes. The sewage separates into sludge (which sinks to the bottom) and waste water (which stays on top). The liquid moves out into the drainfields whenever new water enters the tank, but the sludge remains. This sludge must be pumped out regularly.
Inspection
A professional inspection is recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency once a year, but if you know what to look for, you can act faster. Look for excessively green growth near the septic tank, soft earth in and around the drainfields and leaking pipes anywhere in the house. If you notice any of these signs or detect a foul odor near your septic tank, contact a septic system professional right away. If your toilets refuse to flush or your plumbing backs up, it may already be too late. Though a quick pump-out can sometimes fix the problem, often a new drainfield will need to be installed.
Maintenance
A septic system is a highly efficient, low-cost self-contained option if municipal sewage treatment is not available to you. Pump out your septic tank every three to five years. Repair any broken pipes right away to decrease the flow of water into your septic system. If too much water enters the tank, the anaerobic bacteria that treat the waste will not have enough time to break down the harmful pathogens. These pathogens will then enter the drainfields prematurely. Keep tree roots away from your septic tank and drainfields. Grow only grass over the drainfield area. Do not pave over, park or drive on your drainfields to keep from crushing the pipes.
Additives
Although your septic system comes naturally-supplied with anaerobic bacteria to break down solid wastes in the septic tank, sometimes household cleaners can kill them or reduce their effectiveness. Some manufacturers, like RID-X, say their powder or liquid septic system additives can boost ailing bacteria and enzymes or replace missing essential organisms. These manufacturers also often claim that the time between pump-outs can be increased by using these products. The Environmental Protection Agency does not recommend using additives, but points out that if you do decide to use them, choose a product with biological ingredients, not chemical ones. Harsh chemical additives can do more harm than good to the delicate septic system balance.
Precautions
Make sure the only items that enter your septic system are appropriate. Trash is never appropriate since the septic tank bacteria cannot break it down sufficiently. Toss things like condoms, cotton swabs and paper towels in the garbage. Keep food debris (like ground-up food from a garbage disposal), cooking grease and cleaning products to a minimum. Food debris contributes inordinately to the solid waste mass, making pump-outs more frequent. Grease can clog up drainfields, making them work inefficiently. Cleaning products can kill the bacteria in the tank and the drainfields that eradicate the harmful components of home sewage.
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