How long should an individual sewage treatment system last?
A properly installed and maintained ISTS should serve a residence indefinitely. Some factors that can shorten its service life include: • Lack of routine maintenance, septic tank pumped to remove sludge. • Dumping harmful chemicals into sewer, including septic additives. • Surface water draining onto drainfield or over-sprinkling. • Compaction of the soil over the drainfield, vehicles driven or parked on the drainfield. • Mechanical failure of system components, baffles in the septic tank falling off, septic tank cracking or collapsing, or pump failure (if so equipped).
