Septic System Backup Questions

[Rocky J]

Just so you know you are not the only guy that suffers crapper complaints, I will share my embarrassment. My toilet was installed 20 years ago new and last year it got slow to go down. Had the tank cleaned and that was not it. Went to take up the toilet and turned the rusted bolts and broke the plastic floor flange. When I got it up it looked like a hammock under the bottom hole. It was dental floss , who would have thought of all the stuff that does go that wouldn't. I guess the china did not get all the way down that far when made and was ruff and snagged it. Trip to the store for a floor flange repair made of steel and wax ring and new bolts. Wife was pushing me to hurry when I got home and I did. Never sanded out the ruff area. Fast Forwards to last week and it was slow to go down. This time instead of turning them rusty bolts and breaking the flange I brought in the 4 inch grinder with a cut off wheel. I wrapped a wet towel around to catch the sparks and went to it. Thought the bolts were putting up a good fight then I realized the blade was wore off enough that it was the nut on the grinder against the toilet base not the stone on the bolt. While I was gathering excuses for that move ,cabinet is so close you cant see and I am getting to old for this stuff and stooped to making it all about who flushed what down there. Anyway with a new bigger stone I removed the throne to find a piece of yarn had made a new hammock . We know who did that and the grinder deal would not of happened if it was not for the yarn deal. I felt any more grinding or touching up should be done outside. They are made of fine china and it did not like concrete , it just was a pile on the porch. I drove 25 mile to get a new one. The sales person said do you know what you want, Yes I do, tallest one you got in white with the power to swallow a squirrel. We looked and found one that would do a bucket of golf balls, American Standard $225. I had the thought about the talk I got before I left about do not drag home the cheapest thing you can find. So I bought and installed this new high dollar throne with the thought of never having to remove it the rest of my life. BUT I got a defective one and no water could come through the holes around the top of the bowl. American Standard said take it up and take it back. I had to walk away after 8 hours on the job, I was feeling very ugly. No grinder on this removal, getting quicker and more careful. Took it back and returned it to get the store brand with the same specs for $88 on sale.I knew nobody would ask me anything for a week . It did as good of a job or better then the high dollar model . I learned a lot those two days, they make a plastic wing nut to fasten the toilet to the floor bolts , dont try to carry a toilet in one piece between your knees going down steps and we all get a turn.

 

[Beltzington]

Well #%#@ - Wife says she is 100% sure the rag was at the top of the pipe when the water started leaking. Going to have to start shoveling dirt, thanks for the advice.

 

[Hersheyfarm]

Can't you just run your snake down flange and try to hook rag?

 

[Beltzington]

Rag has been removed it must have been sucked down when the overflow subsided, I was lucky it wasn't pulled further into the pipe. I'm back to not knowing what is wrong, I do have some things to check now. Right now I am full work avoidance mode, much easier to type than dig

 

[Larry Caldwell]

The tank had to be pumped and inspected when you bought it or no bank would ever have written a mortgage on the place. If the previous owners went 25 years without pumping the tank, it's quite possible the drainfield is plugged solid and has to be replaced, or you may just need to run a snake down the lines. Good luck.

 

[CalG]

If you are having the tank pumped, Pull the access cover and LOOK to see if the tank is full and overflowing. (I assume it is a gravity system with the tank below the sources and above the drain field.)

If the tank is not full and overflowing, the drain field is not the problem, and neither is tank flora.
If the tank liquid level is below the inlet, and there is flooding in the house, there is a blockage up stream. (A tee shirt? ;-)

Reduced to simple "plumbing", a septic system is not hard to trouble shoot.

 

[Redlands Okie]

Can not solve your problem but i do know that a towel or large rag stuck in a toilet flange opening to stop odors or prevent items from going into the sewage pipe can be sucked into the pipe. This seems to happen from flushing other commodes or full bath tubs of water bering drained. As air is sucked into the system it pulls in the rag. Ya i know their supposed to have vent pipes and the air will be sucked down the vent instead of pulling in the rag. but i have seen this happen more than once.
A clean out in the yard with a really loose cap or such will often pop the cap and allow overflow into the yard before the commode or tub will overflow. This allows you to know you got a problem before you make a mess of the house floor.

 

[Beltzington]

The tank had to be pumped and inspected when you bought it or no bank would ever have written a mortgage on the place. If the previous owners went 25 years without pumping the tank, it's quite possible the drainfield is plugged solid and has to be replaced, or you may just need to run a snake down the lines. Good luck.

Thanks - We paid cash for the house and I did not see any reason to pump it until we were ready to use it, maybe not a good decision. The septic system was done by the same local crew that replaced my system and we have had zero problems for 10-years. The previous owner was not very handy but did pay folks for upkeep until his wife passed and decided he just wanted to be rid of the house.

I am still at a loss as to what happened, this afternoon we verified all of the roof vents were not obstructed and I replicated the exact same situation which resulted in yesterdays backflow. I actually ran more water than yesterday and never saw any water in the toilet drain which overflowed yesterday. My best guess is the septic tank inlet may have had a partial blockage that was washed out and now everything is back to normal. I am hoping we can confirm this when I have the tank pumped ASAP.

 

[Sprinklerman]

Pop the lid on the tank , run some water . The intake pipe should be visible .if its not there is a field problem

 

[Citydude]

Just so you know you are not the only guy that suffers crapper complaints, I will share my embarrassment. My toilet was installed 20 years ago new and last year it got slow to go down. Had the tank cleaned and that was not it. Went to take up the toilet and turned the rusted bolts and broke the plastic floor flange. When I got it up it looked like a hammock under the bottom hole. It was dental floss , who would have thought of all the stuff that does go that wouldn't. I guess the china did not get all the way down that far when made and was ruff and snagged it. Trip to the store for a floor flange repair made of steel and wax ring and new bolts. Wife was pushing me to hurry when I got home and I did. Never sanded out the ruff area. Fast Forwards to last week and it was slow to go down. This time instead of turning them rusty bolts and breaking the flange I brought in the 4 inch grinder with a cut off wheel. I wrapped a wet towel around to catch the sparks and went to it. Thought the bolts were putting up a good fight then I realized the blade was wore off enough that it was the nut on the grinder against the toilet base not the stone on the bolt. While I was gathering excuses for that move ,cabinet is so close you cant see and I am getting to old for this stuff and stooped to making it all about who flushed what down there. Anyway with a new bigger stone I removed the throne to find a piece of yarn had made a new hammock . We know who did that and the grinder deal would not of happened if it was not for the yarn deal. I felt any more grinding or touching up should be done outside. They are made of fine china and it did not like concrete , it just was a pile on the porch. I drove 25 mile to get a new one. The sales person said do you know what you want, Yes I do, tallest one you got in white with the power to swallow a squirrel. We looked and found one that would do a bucket of golf balls, American Standard $225. I had the thought about the talk I got before I left about do not drag home the cheapest thing you can find. So I bought and installed this new high dollar throne with the thought of never having to remove it the rest of my life. BUT I got a defective one and no water could come through the holes around the top of the bowl. American Standard said take it up and take it back. I had to walk away after 8 hours on the job, I was feeling very ugly. No grinder on this removal, getting quicker and more careful. Took it back and returned it to get the store brand with the same specs for $88 on sale.I knew nobody would ask me anything for a week . It did as good of a job or better then the high dollar model . I learned a lot those two days, they make a plastic wing nut to fasten the toilet to the floor bolts , dont try to carry a toilet in one piece between your knees going down steps and we all get a turn.

thanks for the laugh!