My Septic System Experiment

[Pettrix]

I installed a fine air tube diffuser inside my first chamber in my 2-chamber septic system and ran air to the diffuser 24/7 for the past 6 months. It costs me about $3.00 per month in electricity. It's a new system on a new home.

Here are the results after 1/2 a year of use:

A - The septic tank has NO smell once you open the tank lid. It actually has an "earthy" smell, kind of like soil when wet.
B - There are NO solids in the tank. It's just liquids.
C - The effluent filter in chamber #2, before it heads to the leach field, was very clean. No debris on it, just some slime bacteria.

This proves to me that aerobic systems are way better than anaerobic systems. Studies I read show 10x faster digestion and breakdown of wastes and the effluent is much cleaner as it heads into the leach field. This also helps with the biomat in the leach field. One is less likely to have a failure in the biomat with an aerobic system. In addition, I might never have to pump the tank since the solids (poop & toilet paper) are breaking down so quickly.

My last home had an anaerobic system that smelled really bad when accessed and required pumping every 5 or so years. The methane gas produced by anaerobic breakdown is very caustic to the concrete septic tank. Since the aerobic system has basically no methane gas, the longevity of the concrete tank is indefinite.

I'm now a believer in aerobic septic systems. The entire setup cost me $300 in parts and labor was free (me). :laughing:

 

[buickanddeere]

I installed a fine air tube diffuser inside my first chamber in my 2-chamber septic system and ran air to the diffuser 24/7 for the past 6 months. It costs me about $3.00 per month in electricity. It's a new system on a new home.

Here are the results after 1/2 a year of use:

A - The septic tank has NO smell once you open the tank lid. It actually has an "earthy" smell, kind of like soil when wet.
B - There are NO solids in the tank. It's just liquids.
C - The effluent filter in chamber #2, before it heads to the leach field, was very clean. No debris on it, just some slime bacteria.

This proves to me that aerobic systems are way better than anaerobic systems. Studies I read show 10x faster digestion and breakdown of wastes and the effluent is much cleaner as it heads into the leach field. This also helps with the biomat in the leach field. One is less likely to have a failure in the biomat with an aerobic system. In addition, I might never have to pump the tank since the solids (poop & toilet paper) are breaking down so quickly.

My last home had an anaerobic system that smelled really bad when accessed and required pumping every 5 or so years. The methane gas produced by anaerobic breakdown is very caustic to the concrete septic tank. Since the aerobic system has basically no methane gas, the longevity of the concrete tank is indefinite.

I'm now a believer in aerobic septic systems. The entire setup cost me $300 in parts and labor was free (me). :laughing:

Sounds like good **** to me.

 

[frugalangler]

Care to elaborate on the design of your system, I've got 2 3-chamber systems that I'd like to modify, one has a air injection currently but it eats motors every couple years, and at about $300 each time, that gets pricey! That system uses a motor to spin a hollow tube with a T shaped end that acts as a venturi to suck air down the tube into the chamber. I'm thinking it uses more electricity than your system, as it runs about 50% duty cycle.

 

[GGB]

Could you share the specific parts you used for your system? I致e been hoping to do something similar to our system.

 

[RNeumann]

I appreciate the info. It’s an interesting concept that has been around for some time now. This would be good for folks with undersized tanks and or too many chemicals going into the tank.

Am I the only one laughing when OP said his **** don’t stink? Instead of an earthy smell I have more of a lavender aroma.

 

[ultrarunner]

I've thought it is similar to fountains and aerating ponds... maybe different but my city has spent a fortune on a municipal "Lake" and it turned the tide...

 

[Pettrix]

Care to elaborate on the design of your system, I've got 2 3-chamber systems that I'd like to modify, one has a air injection currently but it eats motors every couple years, and at about $300 each time, that gets pricey! That system uses a motor to spin a hollow tube with a T shaped end that acts as a venturi to suck air down the tube into the chamber. I'm thinking it uses more electricity than your system, as it runs about 50% duty cycle.

My tank is a 2-chamber 2,500 GAL concrete tank (it will eventually serve 2 homes). The leach field consists of the Infiltrator chamber systems. My system is a 100% gravity fed conventional system.

Your system sounds like an "engineered" system that has air injection and grinder pumps. You must be in an area that the soil did not perc good.

I run a Hakko 40L air pump with a 3/4" PVC pipe that then feeds air to a Matala EPDR rubber air diffuser. The diffuser then sits in the 1st chamber of the tank. It's pretty much the same setup they use in ponds to aerate the water.

 

[Pettrix]

Could you share the specific parts you used for your system? I致e been hoping to do something similar to our system.

I run a Hakko 40L air pump ($180) with a 3/4" PVC pipe that then feeds air to a Matala EPDM rubber air diffuser ($60). The diffuser then sits in the 1st chamber of the tank. It's pretty much the same setup they use in ponds to aerate the water. The other $60 was spent on PVC piping and some rubber weighted air hose. The air pump sits inside the garage so it is protected from the elements. I ran the PVC pipe next to the 4" sewer pipe from the home. That way it is buried and out of sight/protected.

 

[pmsmechanic]

I'm signing in as I'd like to follow this. My septic would be very easy to set up like this.

 

[Pettrix]

I've thought it is similar to fountains and aerating ponds... maybe different but my city has spent a fortune on a municipal "Lake" and it turned the tide...

Yep, the system setup is designed for ponds but it works great in a septic system. Same concept, same formula, of using oxygen to create an aerobic water system which helps break down waste and keep the water cleaner.

According to Wiki:
...aerobic process for digestion rather than just the anaerobic process used in septic systems. These systems are commonly found in rural areas where public sewers are not available, and may be used for a single residence or for a small group of homes. Unlike the traditional septic system, the aerobic treatment system produces a high quality secondary effluent, which can be sterilized and used for surface irrigation. This allows much greater flexibility in the placement of the leach field, as well as cutting the required size of the leach field by as much as half.

A typical ATS will, when operating correctly, produce an effluent with less than 30 mg/liter BOD5, 25 mg/L TSS, and 10,000 cfu/mL fecal coliform bacteria. This is clean enough that it cannot support a biomat or "slime" layer like a septic tank. ATS effluent is relatively odorless; a properly operating system will produce effluent that smells musty, but not like sewage. Aerobic treatment is so effective at reducing odors, that it is the preferred method for reducing odor from manure produced by farms.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

Petrix, is it possible you could do a simple sketch showing various parts; size, model, manufacturer, and important dimensions. Maybe you should market your idea.

Ron

 

[Pettrix]

Petrix, is it possible you could do a simple sketch showing various parts; size, model, manufacturer, and important dimensions. Maybe you should market your idea.

Ron

I will sketch it up and give the best info I can. There are companies out there that sell aeration kits for septic tanks but they run about $1,000 - $1,600 for the systems. I did my own setup for $300 which included the air pump and diffuser (see previous posts for equipment info).

SUPPLIES:
Hakko 40L air pump ($180)
Matala EPDM Air Diffuser stick ($60)
Air Tube Diffusers - Air Diffusers
5/8" weighted heavy duty air hose
3/4" rigid PVC pipe




3/4" PVC pipe from garage to septic tank riser. This was buried next to the 4" ABS sewer line. (see pic)

Then it coverts to 5/8" rubber weighted air hose which connects to the diffuser using brass & plastic air barb fittings.
The rigid PVC you see in the picture is used to keep the diffuser from floating to the top of the water since I attached the diffuser to the PVC using a SS clamp and zip ties. The plastic septic tank access lid, once closed, keep the PVC pipe in place and thereby keeping the diffuser stick underwater. The PVC stick was cut to length once everything was in place.

The air pump sits inside a garage to keep it protected and out of the elements.

 

[Bird]

We used to have an aerobic system, but instead of a leech field, it ran out to two sprinkler heads so it watered a fair sized part of the yard. That worked well for us but might not be as good in colder climates up north. Of course you never knew when the sprinklers would come on, it just depended on when the level of water reached a certain point in the last tank. And you never knew which way the water was going to start when it came on, but they were sprinkler heads that gradually rotated. Only once, when I was on my way to the barn, did it come one and catch me full broadside.:laughing: But at least in appearance and smell, it was just clean water.

 

[Redlands Okie]

Have been around more than a few yard where you could smell the difference. People are not always real good about keeping the chlorine (or what ever is used) in the treatment container.

 

[Pettrix]

We used to have an aerobic system, but instead of a leech field, it ran out to two sprinkler heads so it watered a fair sized part of the yard. That worked well for us but might not be as good in colder climates up north. Of course you never knew when the sprinklers would come on, it just depended on when the level of water reached a certain point in the last tank. And you never knew which way the water was going to start when it came on, but they were sprinkler heads that gradually rotated. Only once, when I was on my way to the barn, did it come one and catch me full broadside.:laughing: But at least in appearance and smell, it was just clean water.

The system you mentioned are engineered aerobic systems that are much more advanced than my setup but they also cost about 2-3x more than a conventional system. The use lift pumps and such. They are supposed to get chlorine injection tabs to disinfect the water before it goes into the public area.

My system is just a conventional gravity fed system that I modified with air to change it from anaerobic to aerobic.

I've seen those sprinkler setups you mentioned. Definitely not potable water but good for grey water use in watering trees and grass.

The cleaner the effluent, the better for both the environment and the water table. Eventually the water from your septic tank system makes its way back into the drinking water table for those on well systems. The ground acts like a filter also, the deeper the well, the more filtration water has to go through before it gets picked up by your well.

 

[MacLawn]

We rented a house that had this system, was supposed to put chlorine tablets in it, but as a renter, that was not my responsibility. I never did. The water ran on top of ground on neighbor's land! No one knew it until he was clearing it off. I was surprised at how short drain pipes were! About 15'. I have 3 100' drain fields on ours, but might like to put this kind of pipe in it. Be pretty easy to do at my place I think.

 

[buickanddeere]

A 250 watt solar panel or two and a dc pump should move enough air every day to keep the tank aerated ?

 

[bunyip]

I was thinking that and a battery to keep it going at night too.
Is a windmill an option, we are on the coast and rarely have a day with no breeze, inland would be different.

 

[buickanddeere]

I was thinking that and a battery to keep it going at night too.
Is a windmill an option, we are on the coast and rarely have a day with no breeze, inland would be different.

Aeration would not have to be 24/7.

 

[bunyip]

My train of thought was that solar needs to be regulated so putting in a battery would be a minor addition to an MPPT controller, we have a two tank treatment system which runs on mains power, our council/shire does not allow septic systems any longer.