There is a much needed balance when it comes to maintaining your sewer and septic system. If you happen to own one of these systems, you will find out quickly that they need some care and maintenance in several different ways. One of the times these systems need maintenance is during the winter months. Below are some tips that you can use to help maintain the care of your septic and sewer systems during the harsh weather conditions of winter.
One of the biggest misconceptions out there is that anti-freeze will help keep your sewer and septic system from freezing. This is far from true and is not recommended at all. The reason you should never put anti-freeze in your systems is because it will throw off the balance of bacteria, which causes major problems to develop in your septic or sewer system. The depth that your systems are built within the ground along with the warm waste water is plenty enough to keep your sewer or septic system from freezing up.
Take some time to check the cover of your septic tank or sewer. This is one of the most important steps in your inspection process. Depending on how deep the cover is, you may have to have a professional inspect it. If it is far below ground level, when you have service on the system, they can check that for you. If the cover is flush to the ground, or above the ground, you can check it out yourself. Look for anything being loose or in danger of breaking off. Oftentimes, this is the most overlooked part of the inspection process when winterizing the system.
Be sure you don’t run anything over the drain field of your septic or sewer system. When you run things over the system, such as a snow plow, you can damage the pipes or compact the soil which makes the septic or sewer tank less effective and less functional.
Take the time out before the winter months to ensure you are not dealing with any problems that would cause damage to your septic or sewer system. Prevention happens to be your friend when it comes to your septic and sewer system. Don’t let the winter months cause you any expensive repairs due to issues that weren’t corrected beforehand.