Pumping sewer into a septic tank. Bad idea?

[Rustyiron]

Septic systems seem to be lost between the guy with the heavy equipment (installer) and the plumber depending on the system. Got any plumbers you trust?

 

[Jchonline]

But that’s pumping effluent into a leech field isn’t it?

Yes we have 3 tanks with our setups in CO. Solids, effluent, then dosing tank. Tanks are gravity fed, but the dosing tank pumps 75gal 4 times a day into a pressurized leech system.

 

[4570Man]

Yes we have 3 tanks with our setups in CO. Solids, effluent, then dosing tank. Tanks are gravity fed, but the dosing tank pumps 75gal 4 times a day into a pressurized leech system.

Why do they have 3 tanks? Locally the effluent and the pump tank is the same one.

 

[Jchonline]

Why do they have 3 tanks? Locally the effluent and the pump tank is the same one.

I misspoke, my apologies. The septic is 2 chambers itself..effluent isnt completely separate.

 

[grsthegreat]

I hook up dosing pump systems all the time here only thing allowed for new systems near lake or high water table areas.
but i also wire in lots of sewage pumps that send waste to septic tanks. Companies here have done that for many trouble free years.

worst thing that happens is pump fails……a crappy job to fix. personally, i never work on existing systems. All my work is new systems only. Not enough money in the world to dig into a used septic pump.

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[4570Man]

I hook up dosing pump systems all the time here only thing allowed for new systems near lake or high water table areas.
but i also wire in lots of sewage pumps that send waste to septic tanks. Companies here have done that for many trouble free years.

worst thing that happens is pump fails……a crappy job to fix. personally, i never work on existing systems. All my work is new systems only. Not enough money in the world to dig into a used septic pump.

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I know pumps aren’t optimal. The only way to avoid that would be to install a completely new system. Which is probably what I would do but you know how that works. You can usually do a 3 bedroom gravity system for about $4500 here. We’ll have probably spent $3000 maybe a little more by the time the pump is done.

 

[Rustyiron]

Looking at all this might persuade your customer to just go for a new gravity system.
In all my years there's never been a time when you couldn't couldn't count on it.

 

[Rustyiron]

Nice, neat cabinet there grsthegreat.

 

[cqaigy2]

My cousin has a system where the house is on a steep hillside, sewage is pumped up from her house to a flat spot, where her septic system is. It was put in just a bit over 20 years ago. Pumps into a two chamber tank, from there gravity into leach field. She's had two problems, all caused by uphill neighbor so she said, one was broke pipe, the other was pump failure, i didn't hear how the neighbor was involved in that one.

 

[check]

Mine gravity feeds into the 2 chamber settling tank, and then the effluent drains out into a pump tank, which pumps up to the septic field. I have had the pump in the chamber fail, and then fail again when I replaced it with a cheap pump. However, I now have a $400 killer pump and I don’t expect any more problems.

It would be nice to have the whole thing simply gravity fed, but I just don’t have the topography for it.