Ask Me Help Desk - Septic Tank smell

I have a 15 year old house with a concrete septic tank under my house. This past fall, it kept smelling really bad when we washed clothes. The smell would permeate the house, and seemed to come from the washer and the bathrooms.

Last month, I had the septic tank pumped. I guess it was pretty full, so I thought the problem would end.

Every time I wash more than one load of clothes in a day, the smell is back. However, it only seems to come from the laundry room now. It does tend to get through the whole house, though. The smell almost seems to be worse than before, and it is really making me nauseous, but I have to wash clothes! :) Please help!!

Have the septic tank checked again. If it's full then have it pumpede and have the drain field checked to see if it's working. Good luck, Tom

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedball1

Have the septic tank checked again. If it's full then have it pumpede and have the drain field checked to see if it's working. good luck, Tom

So, it might still be full? I just had it pumped not even a month ago. What's a drain field? Would that be hard to find if the spetic tank was really hard to find to begin with?

The tank really is "always" full, the tank will hold my guess in the 1000 to 15000 gallons of water, which is about a week usage for a standard family of four, so one week after having it pumped the tank is again full of water.

It is the sluge in the bottom that is being pumped out,

What happens is the water with the waste goes into the tank, there is pipes going out from the tank into the yard, as the tank fills, the waste stays in the tank and the water goes out into the drain field to be absorbed into the ground.

Most of the older drain fields were pipe with holes in them with gravel under and around the pipe. But over years roots grow into the pipe and block it up. If you have never replaced these in 15 years there is a good chance they are clogged up with roots.

I will also note that the drain lines are very expensive to replace.

Also if the septic is getting too old, there is a baffle from the tank to the drain field, if the baffle has broken down ( and they do in the old concrete tanks) then the waste (sluge) gets into the drain field and will also cause the system not to work.

In most counties, at least in the ones I have lived, there is a county office where all septic and waste fields are filed, they may know and have the layout of your tank and drain fields.