Each time we try to flush the toilet, it seems to have a hard time flushing. We even changed out toilets because we thought that might be the problem. Whenever we do get the toilet to flush, the bathtub has a bubble/gurgle noise. Nothing comes up, just hear the sound. Same thing happens when the washing machine is run, but both the toilet and the tub bubble. We have had the tank pumped 2 times in the last eight months...and that hasn't helped the problem.

Also, we have a problem with water draining off the hillside that we live below. It has caused a stream to pop up in our driveway. We have had our tank tested by the Health Dept. 3 times in the last 6 months... and the leak isn't coming from it but has a nasty smell. They seem to think that the water coming from the hillside is going through our septic drainage lines. Could this cause the bubbling too?

speedball1

"Bubbles" and "Gurgles". They are both indicters that something's going on in your drainage system.
A "bubble" indicates a clogged line while a "gurgle" indicates a blocked vent. let me explain. When you flush the discharge drains down the pipe untill it hits a partial clog. Then it rebounds back sending a "bubble" of air ahead of it. When you flush a toilet or drain a bathtub a suction is created by the water rushing down the pipe. This suction is relieved by a open pipe that runs to the outside called a vent. When a vent's stopped up the suction has to relieve itself somwhere, in this case your tub and toilet. The noise you hear is the air being pulled through the trap by suction, (gurgle).
So what do you have? Bubbles or gurgles?

"Also, we have a problem with water draining off the hillside that we live below. It has caused a stream to pop up in our driveway. We have had our tank tested by the Health Dept. 3 times in the last 6 months... and the leak isn't coming from it but has a nasty smell. They seem to think that the water coming from the hillside is going through our septic drainage lines. Could this cause the bubbling too?"

If the run-off were causing your problem then pumping the septic tank should have eliminated the problem and it didn't, so I think the problem lies in either the vent or the drain. If this were my call I'd snake the entire drainage and vent system. Good luck, Tom