French drain for washer water

[crewguy]

I live in rural Mississippi. I own all the land around my house, a 50 acre spread. I need to get the washer off my septic system. I cut the washer drain pipe out of the system and ran the pipe about 50' away from the house. There's a good grade the pipe is running down. I am going to have a good sized hole dug for a french drain. That's where I need some ideas. The land around here is sandy red clay. How big should I dig the hole? Can I use road gravel for the drain? How much dirt should I put back over the gravel? I suppose I can use tar paper to cover the gravel, after I am done. Any advice would be helpful.

 

[DieselPower]

The only thing that goes into my septic tank is the toilet. Sinks, washer, shower, etc... go into a gray well. I dug a trench about 200 feet from the house, layed in a 3 inch PVC drain pipe which goes into a large pit I dug out. The pit was filled with field stones, then gravel and then sand and recovered with dirt. Other than the grass being a little greener over it in the summer you would never know it's there.

 

[JB4310]

Welcome to TBN,
Not sure what you mean by a french drain, but you mention digging a hole so I'm thinking you want to do a dry well, which is a good sized hole filled with stone to allow water to percolate into soil.

I would only suggest a dry well for a confined space like a city lot, that's obviously not your situation, for your washing machine discharge I would just dig a trench maybe 2' deep x 12" wide x 20-30ft long, at the end of that pipe you already installed, lay a 4" perforated pipe in there bedded with crushed stone. just like a leg of your leach field.

That's just a suggestion, it's totally dependant on soil condition and how well it percs by itself, if it percs well almost no stone would be needed, also depends on how many washs you do a week.

It's a good idea that you took the washer off the septic, now just the washer discharge is no big deal, if your trench ever failed you could do another 2 feet away. Just keep it away from drinking water well or garden as there are some undesirable chemicals in laundry detergents, maybe a natural detergent would be better.

Good luck,
JB.

 

[WantedWolf]

The only thing that goes into my septic tank is the toilet. Sinks, washer, shower, etc... go into a gray well. I dug a trench about 200 feet from the house, layed in a 3 inch PVC drain pipe which goes into a large pit I dug out. The pit was filled with field stones, then gravel and then sand and recovered with dirt. Other than the grass being a little greener over it in the summer you would never know it's there.

I was considering dividing my system to the same degree but was told to leave at least the bathroom sinks OR 1 often used shower on the septic. reason was given that the additional water helps the balence and digestion the sluge. Keeping the kitchen and laundry seperate is best as that is where the most chemicals are disposed that distroy the good bacteria in the septic digestion process. B.S. or what?

 

[DieselPower]

Nope, no BS. Look at all the antiseptic products on the market that are designed to kill bacteria. I like my live little critters to live a long healty life in my septic tank. My tank get's pumped out every 10 years more for peace of mind than anything else. Everytime I get it pumped out the truck operator tell's me I didn't need it and I have one of the best operating systems he has seen.

 

[greenmule]

Use the bigger crushed stone,not the little driveway stuff[not sure of the numbers].I got one at the end of my leach field line from septic tank.

My washer just runs out over a bank about 150 ft or so from my house,down into brush and trees,and there plenty of down slope below that,might not be to many codes,but works for me.

 

[WantedWolf]

Nope, no BS. Look at all the antiseptic products on the market that are designed to kill bacteria. I like my live little critters to live a long healty life in my septic tank. My tank get's pumped out every 10 years more for peace of mind than anything else. Everytime I get it pumped out the truck operator tell's me I didn't need it and I have one of the best operating systems he has seen.

Sorry my wording sucked there... I know the bacteria part is true and makes great sense but what of the need for more water in the septic than the toilets can provide (specially low flows)

 

[JB4310]

My brother has a separate gray water system, his septic had to be mounded as he was on ledge and has poor perc. but that's one of the only ones I know of that have separate gray water wells, almost all the septic systems I've seen are all in one.

The 70 year old house I bought with 2 full and 2 half baths was still using septic system even though the elderly guy I bought the house from didn't know it, He had lived here 20 years and assumed the house was connected to city sewer. He never did anything with the septic tank, he lived by himself but had many visitors that lived with him for extended periods of time, and the original family lived 50 years here, don't know if they had any problems.

I wasn't gonna trust the septic system with family of 5 so I connected to the sewer, when excavating across the front yard we crossed a leach pipe about 100 ft from the tank and found a dry well at the end of the pipe, water had never even made it that far down the pipe, it was unstained and perfectly clean. I was shocked how well that system must have been constructed.
I pumped the tank which was only 4'x4' and use the system for storm water management now.

It's amazing how efficient a well designed septic system can be, not true with the house I grew up in on a postage stamp size lot, had an overloaded undersized system for family of 7, had to have that thing pumped every year. Just before it failed completely I remember the dark green foot tall grass growing on top of it in the middle of the winter!

 

[DieselPower]

Sorry my wording sucked there... I know the bacteria part is true and makes great sense but what of the need for more water in the septic than the toilets can provide (specially low flows)

Nothing but toilets connected to mine and all is and has been well. Then again, I drink over a gallon of coffee a day.

 

[LBrown59]

My brother has a separate gray water system, his septic had to be mounded as he was on ledge and has poor perc. but that's one of the only ones I know of that have separate gray water wells, almost all the septic systems I've seen are all in one.

My septic don't have a leach bed or leach field just a trench about 75 or 80 feet long with a 3 inch perforated pipe laid on top of some gravel in the trench going into a roadside ditch.
I'm legal as the installation was approved and A permit was obtained.