subject: The Finer Points Of A Proper Septic Inspection [print this page] Getting your septic system and your drain field inspected is perhaps the most important thing that you must do as a homeowner, to keep your house in good working order. Depending on the amount of people you have using your septic system on a daily basis, it may be necessary to get an inspection more frequently to maintain good working order. The major points of a good septic system inspection include:
1. A good and thorough check of both the baffles and the tees of your system. Baffles are installed on the tank during the building of the tank in the factory, they can be made out of steel or concrete. Concrete baffles must be checked for cracks cause by external stress, as this could create a major problem for your system down the road. Tees are plastic fittings that are set in place when there is a problem with the baffles and they must be checked for strength and stability also.
2. Checking the tank for water after it has been fully pumped of all its prior contents. Inspectors will require that you shut off the water in your house to ensure that there are no flaws with this portion of the inspection. Water flowing into the tank from your house when you have no items being used, indicates that there is a problem with your plumbing. If there is water flowing in from the drain field outlets, you could have a potential issue with the drain field; further inspection will be required.
3. A solid and in-depth inspection of the effluent filter. The effluent filter is a device that allows your septic tank to drain filtered water back into the water table via drain outlets. When this filter is clogged or damaged, it can result in increased backups into the septic tank and potentially caused backup of sewage into your house.
4. Inspection of the septic tank risers, if you have them installed, is a vital part of the process. Mainly, the inspector will just check to verify that the risers are in good working condition and verify their seals. Risers are similar to manholes, they help create easier access to the drain and they allow a much faster inspection. One of the problems that many people have with getting their septic systems inspected is knowing that each inspection requires excavating and digging to view your system. Septic tank risers greatly reduce the effort required for an inspection.
A septic system hangs in a delicate balance between input, processing in the tank, and output into the drain field. Without proper inspection, you are leaving this continuity of the balance up to chance and risking a great amount of damage to both your yard and your house. Fixing a problem with the septic tank can be expensive, but it is a lot cheaper to fix a potential problem than to clean up from a huge mess caused by ignorance. Septic tank inspections are the first step towards fixing these problems.
