Why It’s Crucial to Maintain Your Septic System to Your Protect Water Supply

Can the orthodontist straighten your teeth on the first visit? Or can you go to the gym one time and come home with a six-pack? No. Both situations require routine visits and dedication to keeping your teeth or body at its best.

In the same way, your septic system needs preventative drain, tank, and line maintenance to keep it working correctly. Regular septic system care also prevents costly septic tank replacement for you and protects the local water supply. Here at Biros Septic & Drain Cleaning, we’ve seen firsthand how dangerous it can be when homeowners neglect to keep routine septic visits. Sewage begins to back up in their homes, drainfields fail—and before you know it—their drinking water is contaminated.

That’s why we recommend our No-Hassle Maintenance Program, where we remind you when it’s time for your next septic system maintenance.

The Importance of Maintaining Your Septic System

Just think about all the waste that gets emptied into your septic tank: everything you flush down the toilet, the dirt and grime your clean off your body in the shower, the food residue and grease you wash off your dishes, and everything else that goes down your household drains. All this waste ends up in your septic tank, where microorganisms break down the debris, and it slowly leaches into your drainfield.

Eventually, this wastewater gets further filtered by the soil in the drainfield and enters the groundwater. That same groundwater enters your well, nearby streams, rivers, and other bodies of water.

If a septic system fails due to lack of regular pumping or maintenance, it can cause clogs in the drain line, allowing untreated wastewater to back up into your yard or home.

What Happens to Untreated Wastewater?

Untreated wastewater in your yard can enter your water supply in two ways. First, if your well cap is unsecured or cracked, the contaminated water could leak into your well through it. Second, suppose your drainfield floods and is unable to filter the wastewater properly due to oversaturation from clogs. In that case, the contaminated water will enter the groundwater, polluting not only your water supply but that of your neighbors as well.

Dangers of Contaminated Water

If the thought of drinking water that your own feces have contaminated doesn’t motivate you to schedule an appointment with Biros today, many other issues will cause you to reach for your phone.

Wastewater contains bacteria and viruses that cause diseases like typhoid fever, hepatitis, and dysentery. Plus, wastewater is high in nitrogen and phosphorus, which can cause blue baby syndrome, a condition where there’s not enough oxygen in a baby’s blood. Have young children? Their health could be at stake if you neglect your septic system.

In addition, your children and neighbors might be swimming in bodies of water that groundwater enters, leaving them at risk of developing diseases from the pathogens in the unfiltered wastewater. You’re also putting the local environment at risk, likely damaging or killing plants and animals in the area.

Tips for Preventative Drain Maintenance

Well-maintained septic tanks remove the pathogens and bacteria that cause these dangerous diseases, ensuring your drinking water remains contaminant-free. The best way to lower the contamination risk is by scheduling and keeping regular septic pumping and inspection appointments. Preventative drain maintenance, both by a septic professional and you and your family’s actions, will help prevent clogs in your septic system.

Here are some tips to prevent clogged drains and contaminated wastewater:

  • Don’t flush chemicals or medications down the toilet, as they could enter the wastewater
  • Test your well water regularly for potentially harmful pathogens
  • Ensure your septic tank and drinking water well are a proper distance apart
  • Don’t treat your toilet like a garbage disposal
  • Pouring grease down your kitchen sink is one of the worst things you can do for your septic system. Once it cools and solidifies, it will cause clogs. Pour cooled grease into a container instead, and once it hardens, throw it in the trash.
  • Minimize the use of heavy-duty cleaners that run down your drains. These cleaners can affect the bacteria that break down the waste, causing contaminated water to seep into the drainfield.
  • Most importantly, keep your septic system maintained by experienced professionals, like those at Biros Septic.

Need Septic Services? Schedule an Appointment Today!

As a homeowner with a septic system, you must maintain your septic system to protect your health, your family, neighbors, and the environment. Responsible septic owners know that calling a qualified service provider, like Biros Septic & Drain Cleaning, for preventative drain, tank, and line maintenance will help protect the local water supply from harmful contaminants.

If you need septic services, don’t hesitate to schedule an appointment with Biros today!

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