"Grandpa Dan" wrote in message
...
Cubby,
I don't know where you are living but frost doesn't go any lower than
approx 20 inches in the ground. In cases where there is no snow, frost may
go as much as 36''. I live in eastern Canada and the first thing I done
when I purchased my home was to dig up the tank to see the condition and
put an extension on the clean out. The piece that I have is approx 36''
deep. To date(knocks on wood) I've never had any problems.
Here are some questions, things to look for and a few suggestions.
How much soil(deep) is covering your tank?
The tank should be covered ground level with at least 2-1/2 to 3 ft of
dirt
Is the vent in the roof of the home un-obstructed?
If the vent is bent,plugged or capped off, the system could get air
locked.
Is your sewage system up to code have a distribution box and septic field
with 4 lines running away.
This is the first question you should be asking and is there a sufficient
grade running away from the home.
Is there ground water from a spring anywhere near by?
If the ground is saturated wet from other sources such as changes made by
road work crews in the area to change ground water direction then you
could contact the municipal government in the area to correct it. If the
water table is high or the distribution lines are not grade properly than
you would see problems.
Do you flush tissue paper down the toilet?
I have no idea how many people are using the toilet(s) in your home but to
get an idea, ask wife or yourself, how often do you buy bum wad? Once you
get an idea, multiply that and you can draw from that how much paper you
flushed in 6 months. It takes years for paper to break down in a tank. You
should instead put a small container in the bathroom lined with a bag and
discreetly dispose of the tissue tied up and tossed into a regular garbage
bag with the rest of the household trash. You could flush several packs of
bakers yeast in the toilet monthly, this promotes a healthy culture of
Bacteria in your tank.
In the basement of the home, do you have a clean out access where the
sewage goes out?
If your plumbing is done right then it must have one of these per code, so
it would be wise to open it up and look for the obvious and run a snake
thru it.
Do you have a back water valve? This prevents sewage from backing up in
your home so you should find out if you have one and see why it is or
isn't working and if indeed the baffle in the tank is not clogged up.
What do you do with the grease from cooking? If you answer that you pour
it down the sink or toilet than you have created your problem as the PVC
pipe acts just like an artery and a cholesterol build up and everything is
choked off. The only difference is, grease sticks better to the inside of
a cold piece of pipe. thank god for that or we'd be all dead.
How do you know the septic or chemicals is the problem?
The tank under normal conditions when you open the lid should always be
full of water but low in waste, that's common sense as the run out to the
distribution box is located at the top at the back of the tank.
If you are flushing chemicals(bad boy) than you must be flushing
everything and anything. Cut back on the tissue paper, give up flushing
everything besides what it is intended for and it will serve you well.
Give the pipes a good cleaning with a snake and hot water, remove and
replace them if you have to and make any necessary changes so it doesn't
escalate into another costly venture.
Mine has been working effortlessly for the past 10 years and I have yet to
open it for any reason.

Holy Cow Dan! Thank you for such a lengthy, in depth look at Septics! I
really appreciate it.
You asked a number of questions, some I have asked myself and other's which
have me thinking. That's great!
I went out this morning and checked my vent pipe (which showed water in it
last night). It was dry as a bone this morning.
I'm going to monitor it through the day to see what happens. I'm
suspecting (and hoping!) that I had a small blockage between the
vent pipe and the septic tank itself which has since cleared itself. That
would be best case. Worst case is the field lines are frozen/plugged in
which case I'm in for a bit of work. We've been very careful about what we
put down the septic since the pumpout 6 months ago....no grease (ever for
that matter) or chems. We do put toilet paper down but no "female hygeine"
items. All in all, you've prompted me with enough questions to get this
thing figured out. I really appreciate that.
Thanks very much!
cc