Digging up my septic so it can be pumped. ARGH!!

[THEFAN]

Figured it's been 4 yrs since it was pumped. So to save a buck. I figured I would dig it up myself. ARGH!!! I swear the whole has moved. DARN IT!!! I'm up to my 4th whole and still no cap. Time to call in the expert. I new I should have marked the hole after the last time. I'm putting an old pump over the hole after I find it this time. ARGH!!!!!!

 

[FarmerChick]

I feel for ya LOL

but for the septic guys to find mine they charged $25 only (to find it)...then $75 to dig it out, then the charge to dump. (back then)

And yea, my cap is now above ground, I have a cement rabbit sitting on it....lol

one time cost though and forget about it. Cause when I call for a dump, first thing they say is....do we need to find the cap? I say nope, you did it 15 years ago

 

[MorelCabin]

I'll never forget the time my septic system froze up one January...and dh was out of town working...ya...I had to figure out how to dig it up through 4 feet of snow, and then try chipping away at the frozen ground. Ever try that??? But *I* had to dig it up before they would come and steam genie it. So the farmer down the road gave a solution to my delemna...light a bonfire on top of it to soften the ground..."but be careful", he cautioned, because I had just put a bunch of ether down the pipe from the inside of the house to try and unblock it.
So for three days I had a fire going out there, feared my house would blow at any given moment, but didn't have any other alternative. I did it! all by myself, with more cuss words than you should even hear coming out of a God fearing woman And thank God he didn't pay much attention to the cuss words, cause he didn't allow the house to blow up in the process

 

[Beekissed]

Tis the season....the Ol' Bat is also digging up the top of hers so it can be pumped. Hers hasn't been pumped in 20 years(they rarely place TP in the system)! The last time they had to dig out the cap for whatever reason, she placed a piece of PVC pipe over the cap and left some jutting above the ground and painted it flourescent at the tip. Now she just has to dig a little to get down to it.

 

[Marianne]

Please enlighten me.

I was told that if you are careful, you shouldn't ever have to have it pumped. Of course, freezing is a completely different deal...but...Friends of ours lived in a house w/ a septic tank for 7 years (family of 4 - 2 teenagers), she said they never had to pump it.

I keep an eye on water usage, no kleenix at all down the pot, I use family cloth, but DH doesn't, avoid bleach, try to do the green thing with cleaners, etc etc. I wasn't planning on ever having ours pumped. Wrong?

 

[i_am2bz]

I'll never forget the time my septic system froze up one January...and dh was out of town working...ya...I had to figure out how to dig it up through 4 feet of snow, and then try chipping away at the frozen ground. Ever try that??? But *I* had to dig it up before they would come and steam genie it. So the farmer down the road gave a solution to my delemna...light a bonfire on top of it to soften the ground..."but be careful", he cautioned, because I had just put a bunch of ether down the pipe from the inside of the house to try and unblock it.
So for three days I had a fire going out there, feared my house would blow at any given moment, but didn't have any other alternative. I did it! all by myself, with more cuss words than you should even hear coming out of a God fearing woman And thank God he didn't pay much attention to the cuss words, cause he didn't allow the house to blow up in the process

That sounds like something that would happen to me, MC!!

THEFAN - sorry for your troubles, hope you find it soon!!

Same with me, Marianne, we've lived here for almost 8 years & haven't had to have ours pumped.

 

[Beekissed]

Please enlighten me.

I was told that if you are careful, you shouldn't ever have to have it pumped. Of course, freezing is a completely different deal...but...Friends of ours lived in a house w/ a septic tank for 7 years (family of 4 - 2 teenagers), she said they never had to pump it.

I keep an eye on water usage, no kleenix at all down the pot, I use family cloth, but DH doesn't, avoid bleach, try to do the green thing with cleaners, etc etc. I wasn't planning on ever having ours pumped. Wrong?

I think it depends on so many things...your leach field and its drainage capabilities, how well the waste has "cooked", how well the system was done, etc. I live in an old farmhouse and have lived here for 6 years. No one that has lived in this house, nor the current owner, even know where the septic tank IS, let alone when it was last pumped. We use TP(my boys use enormous amounts!), use the homemade detergent, use bleach every day, etc. The septic system performs beautifully.

Who knows??

 

[ChaneyLakegirl]

We are required by law to have our septic tank inspected every 2 years, with paperwork being filed at the court house. Of course we have not found an inspector who will do it withhout pumping first. That being said, ours needs it every 2 years. We've had back up issues if we don't. We have 2 girls, so 3 girls in the house including me, I'm sure that has something to do with it.

 

[MorelCabin]

A good operating septic does not ever have to be pumped. But because of all the money grabbers out there, (and the 'green' "save the planet'money grabbers are the WORST!) many townships try and force you to have it pumped every two years. Around here if you live with in so many yards of a lake or wetland, you have to have it pumped. Now the trick is this..and I learned this simply by doing it If you don't bother, they usually don't really come after you. Yes they send you the initial 'reminder' in the mail along wth your tax bill, and even tell you to show proof when you come in to pay your taxes, but never once did they insist or even mention it when I went to pay my taxes...so I think it is a trap set for those who are willing, but you really arent breakinng any laws by not doing it...and around here, bilaw officers are highly paid for doing squat anyway. Try it, and you'll see.

 

[FarmerChick]

most of our septics thru my growing years hardly ever needed pumping. it is alot of variables...but if you are careful and avoid no oils/fats and things that 'harden' into it...good chance you will never need or can go very long without pumping. Stuff that breaks down truly is recommended only, when ya go putting stuff down the drain that isn't meant to be there, then it can start problems.

I like mine pumped every so often.....worth the penny cause I know I have no troubles coming


edited to say---WOW I never knew there was a law requiring some people to be pumped on a schedule...never saw that or lived anywhere that was required...huh