HOW CAN SEPTIC SYSTEM FAILURE BE PREVENTED?
There are two main factors that cause problems: overload and lack of maintenance. An overloaded (or under-designed) septic system can occur if, for example, an original two bedroom home has subsequent bedroom and bathroom additions, but no increase in septic system capability. With overload, waste water flows to the leach field before there has been time for natural biological process to settle out solid waste in the septic tank. As a result, particles can clog up the holes in the drain-field pipes and build up extra pressure on the holes that remain open. The increased flow through fewer drain holes produces more liquid than the soils of the leach field can naturally treat. The result can be contaminants moving to the ground water, rise of waste water to the surface, or both. In the case of subsurface overload, the situation may go unnoticed for years. Lack of maintenance can also lead to problems even if the system is not overloaded. If the solid material is not periodically removed
