How often should the septic tank be cleaned out?

Practices vary but should be from 3 to 5 years.

Depends on who is answering. If you ask the guys who pump they like 3 years. My HOA requires every 5 years because we are on a lake and want to protect the water shed. The true answer will need to include the gallonage of the tank and the number of folks in the household. In my case 2 people on a 1,000 gallons tank 5 years is more than sufficient.

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Originally Posted by fannincounty

how often should the septic tank be cleaned out?

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The time to pump a tank is when the solids have built up to the point they interfere with the settling/storage process, usually one third to one half solid to liquid ratio. However the build rate will vary dramatically from home to home and it is more than the number of people using the system that affects that build rate; other factors are dietary habits (highly processed/preservative laden foods vs. whole grain/natural foods), cleaning solutions, medications, etc. In many cases tanks that are being pumped on a time schedule do not actually need to be pumped.

The drawbacks to pumping a tank that doesn’t need it are:
• Those pump trucks consume a tremendous amount of fuel and the contractor needs to charge more to pay for that fuel.
• They have to put that load somewhere; either they do a land application where they kill the pathogens with chemicals and spread it on a field (the potential for pollution because it doesn’t always work) or PAY to dump it into a sewage treatment facility (definite pollution because treatment facilities are not the perfect machines many think they are).

You are better off having the tank inspected (for a reduced cost) every year and only pumping it when it actually needs it. It will save energy because they can do these from a pickup truck and reduce the chance of pollution.

A bonus for the homeowner is, by doing an annual inspection they can catch problems before they become failures (you can unknowingly do a lot of damage in 2, 3, 4 or 5 years).

And before you say paying $50 to $150 a year for an inspection is expensive, you will pay the city $500 to $1,500 a year to treat your wastewater so do the math…cheap at twice the price.

This is a new concept for many contractors so you may need to search around to find one that realizes this is a better program for them as well. If you want to learn more about your septic system go to Septic Protector. You will be amazed when you find out how septic systems are not only cheaper for you but better for the environment.

Jim Vonmeier-Environmental Educator