Septic Tank Drainage Fields

Septic drain fields also called leach fields or leach drains are subsurface wastewater disposal facilities used to remove contaminants and impurities from the liquid that emerges after anaerobic digestion in a septic tank organic materials in the liquid are catabolized by a microbial ecosystem.

Septic tank drainage fields.

Septic tanks last from 15 to 30 years. This however is not true. The solids stay in the tank while the wastewater is discharged to the drainfield for further treatment and dispersal. Soil based systems discharge the liquid known as effluent from the septic tank into a series of perforated pipes buried in a leach field chambers or other special units designed to slowly release the effluent into.

All of the parts of this carefully tuned system must be functioning properly or else the result is a mess and a costly one. Building a septic drain field is time consuming but pays off in the long run. A buried watertight tank designated and constructed to receive and partially treat raw domestic sanitary wastewater. Many people with septic system problems such as odor slow draining sinks and tubs gurgling pipes backups and sewage water ponding in their yard mistakenly assume the cause of these issues is their septic tank.

Heavy solids settle to the bottom of the tank while greases and lighter solids float to the top. While all septic tank drain fields require regular inspection you can save a lot of money by digging one yourself. The most common cause of septic system problems and failure is their septic system absorption component more commonly known as a drainfield becoming. You will want to choose a site that is away from the house but close to the tank.

Unfortunately drain fields also known as leach fields do not last that long. How far is the drain tank from the septic tank. It is primarily the drain field pipes that you have to worry about when planting around septic tanks. If placed in an area with good ground absorption a drain field can last up to 10 years.

The field should be at least 10 feet away from your edible garden and any water such as a lake river or well. Shop menards for septic tanks and septic drain field chambers that are available in a variety of styles and sizes to meet your project needs. In the article index you ll find articles on how to find the septic tank distribution box and drainfield. The septic tank digests organic matter and separates floatable matter e g oils and grease and solids from the wastewater.

On 2020 04 09 by mod que typical drainfield layout is parallel trenches about 5 feet apart. Planning a septic field garden. Step 1 choose your site. A septic drain field a septic tank and associated piping compose a septic system.

You do not want roots penetrating the perforations and gumming up the works.