With the winter holidays upon us, septic systems across the Ozarks are seeing more use than other parts of the year. Did you know that JRBP offers a rebate to residents of the James River basin who apply for our Fresh Flush Septic Rebate Program?
Residents of portions of Greene and Webster counties may also qualify for expanded rebates in the red and yellow zones on the map below. Not sure if you qualify? Contact JRBP Project Manager Todd Wilkinson via email or at 417-836-4847.
“An onsite wastewater treatment system is essentially a mini-wastewater treatment plant attached to your home,” said Tammy Trantham of Missouri Smallflows Organization. “It’s a living, breathing workhorse that cleans up your wastewater before the water is returned to your local aquifer, groundwater, or streams.”
Septic systems are very effective at treating wastewater when they are maintained. Here are a few tips to keeping your system working throughout the holiday season:
1. If you haven’t pumped your tank in over 5 years, consider getting that done. This basically gets the buildup of sludge out of the bottom of your tank back to a manageable level and gives the microbes a chance to catch back up with the wastewater coming in.
2. Clean your effluent filter. Most onsite wastewater treatment systems will have an effluent filter at the outlet end of the tank heading out to your soil treatment area (drainfield). Periodically, this filter needs to be pulled and hosed off back into the front (inlet) end of the tank. An effluent filter is important because it catches anything too big to go out to the soil treatment field. Never remove this permanently or you can cause damage to your drainfield.
3. Risers are great additions to your tanks. Risers make it easy to access filters for cleaning and for getting to the tank for when you have it pumped. Most pumping companies can install these risers. They may even charge less next time if they don’t have to dig up the tank!
4. Advanced Treatment Systems such as drip irrigation or low-pressure pipe (LPP) systems need a higher level of maintenance. There are a few more filters that need to be cleaned about every 6 months. Consider hiring a Septic Maintenance Contractor to do this for you. A skilled contractor that is certified to work on these systems can make sure your system is working properly.
Proper maintenance of your septic system not only helps save you money, but it also helps protect our most precious resource – our local water. Why not start the new year off with a “fresh flush” and get your tank pumped, and give the gift of clean water this holiday season.
Visit the links below for more information about maintaining your septic system:
Why Maintain Your Septic System?
