Bought a new home; not sure the septic tank has ever been pumped

[David P]

We've been very careful about not even putting very small food scraps down the disposal; I don't think it's been run, other than to test it, since we moved in. We have a high-efficiency washer, which should reduce the amount of water and soap going down the drain and will continue to look for other ways to minimize our impact on the field, although I would guess more issues arise due to various solids going down the drain than too much water.

 

[David P]

BTW, is there a life-expectancy on the tank itself? Or a general range or is this highly variable?

 

[dave1949]

BTW, is there a life-expectancy on the tank itself? Or a general range or is this highly variable?

All else being equal, like proper use and pumping, the tank itself should outlive you. It is usually leach fields/systems that fail for a number of reasons: poor design, tree roots, improper care of the septic tank, plus some have pumps, circulators, grinders, etc. that have a mechanical usable life.

 

[Country Geek]

Under the right conditions, a septic tank does not have to be pumped. Mine was installed in 1999 and has never been pumped. Because it's a low pressure piping system it has to be maintained every six months, and that maint includes measuring the level of the solids. In 15 years they've never exceeded 6 inches in my tank.

Buy a "sludge judge" (you can google for it). Use it to measure your solids level every six months or so. Pump when the solids get high, not on a calendar based timetable.

 

[radioman]

The life expectancy depends on the type of tank. concrete? metal? plastic? My folks had a metal one and it was leaking and replaced with concrete. as long the tank is not cracked, you are good to go regardless of age. As for how long its been pumped, I would start doing homework by looking in the phonebook and making some calls. How many septic pumpers are available in your area? We have 3 so 3 phones calls is not alot. Give them a call and ask if they have any records for your tank of it being pumped. While on the phone, ask for cost for pumping it out. Make an appt with the one you prefer to work with and get it pumped. You really want to have the tank pumped to look at the condition of the tank and see how full of solids was it . Get a fresh start for the next 3-5 or shhhhh maybe 10 years depending on what went down in the tank.

 

[vtsnowedin]

Unless your pumping acid through it a concrete tank will last a hundred years or more if you don't drive heavy trucks over it. Pumping times will vary as said above and most people flush enough natural bacteria down the lines that supplemental treatments are unnecessary. I have twenty five years on mine with four women in the household for most of that. I probably should give it a good pumping for it's first time and that would be the last time it will be my problem.

 

[Egon]

The washing machine puts a lot of micro plastics into the system. If they are not filtered out they could plug the field system.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

You bought a house without a septic system inspection? You bought a pig in a poke. Keep your fingers crossed.

The purpose of a septic tank is to intercept everything but liquids before they go into the leach field. There will be a thick layer of grease on top and a thick layer of sludge on the bottom. If either one has passed the baffles, you have a problem. A few hundred pounds of lye might saponify grease in a leach field, but nothing will rescue a line packed solid.

Get it pumped right away. A 1000 gallon tank may be OK after 20 years, or maybe not. If the old guy lived alone and was careful not to send grease down the drain, you may be OK.

 

[KennyG]

When you have the tank pumped, the septic tank company should tell you what the condition was and this will tell you if there may be a leach field problem. Moving in with a family I would suggest having it pumped after two more years just to see how you are affecting it. Also, confirm you actually have a 1000 gallon tank. I bought a house with a 1000 gallon system and had it pumped several times before I found out it was two 500 gallon tanks in series and I was only having the first one pumped. Apparently this is a common configuration in our area.

 

[murphy1244]

When you have the tank pumped, the septic tank company should tell you what the condition was and this will tell you if there may be a leach field problem. Moving in with a family I would suggest having it pumped after two more years just to see how you are affecting it. Also, confirm you actually have a 1000 gallon tank. I bought a house with a 1000 gallon system and had it pumped several times before I found out it was two 500 gallon tanks in series and I was only having the first one pumped. Apparently this is a common configuration in our area.

Same here..