a New Homeowner’s Guide to Septic Systems - OVHI

1 A New homeowner s Guideto Septic SystemsThe Ontario New Home Warranty Program (ONHWP) and itsconsultant Rowena would like to thank the followingpeople,whose comments and suggestions have been of greatassistance in the preparation of the 1998 edition of this booklet:Carole BennettOntario New Home Warranty ProgramGlenn CaverlyConcrete Precasters Association of OntarioRay HachigianTownship of the ArchipelagoBryan KozmanHousing Development & Buildings Branch,Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and HousingRob PalinUpper Thames River Conservation AuthorityPaul PicardOntario New Home Warranty ProgramHarold RudyOntario Soil and Crop Improvement AssociationAlbert SchepersAlbert Schepers Engineering SharpInfiltrator Systems SmithOntario Sewage and Liquid Waste Carriers AssociationJohn TeixeiraTeixeira Construction ZyharYork Region Health DepartmentIllustrations in this booklet are based on material supplied by the Ontario Ministry ofMunicipal Affairs and _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _International Standard Book Number 0-0000000-00-0 People who live in towns and cities don t

2 Often think about what happens tohousehold waste water after they run their washing machines,flush their toiletsor pull the plugs in their it has entered the sanitary sewer in thestreet,waste water is the municipality s in more rural areas,many homeowners are not connected to provide their own waste water treatment services right on theirown lots,using a Septic Septic system depends on nature s own waste treatment processes:gravityseparates solids and liquids;soils filter the waste water by absorbing contami-nants;bacteria break down biodegradable roots also play a roleby taking up liquid,using nutrients and giving off fact,a Septic system islike a small underground any ecosystem,it has it gets drowned with too much water -- or ifit gets clogged up because of misuse or poor maintenance -- or if it is poisonedwith contaminants it is not designed to handle -- a Septic system can present aserious health threat to homeowners and their ,includingnitrates,bacteria and phosphates can contaminate the underground water usedfor household wells or municipal water can enter lakes and streams,or bubble up on the ground a properly designed.

3 Operated andmaintained system can function very effectively for a long TermsThis Guide has tried to avoid scientific jargon wherever possible, but if you rediscussing Septic Systems you may hear a lot - or find that common words haveslightly different meanings in their scientific pages 18 to 19,you will finda glossary explaining technical terms associated with Septic are a few examples of how homeowners have caused problems for theirseptic is covered by the warranty. That large, flat piece of land was just sitting there, so we .. built a driveway (patio, deck, tennis court) over it. Just cove ring the grass over the leaching bed will stop evapotra n s p i ra t i o nand keep out the oxygen the system weight can crush thepipes,and make the leaching bed used it for our above-ground pool.

4 The weight of an above-ground pool will almost certainly crush theleaching used it for our in-ground pool. Don t really got the whole thing excavated,and then somebody flushed the flooded it so the kids could have a skating rink. Leaching beds are carefully built to accept water -- even if it comesfrom a hose sprayed in the middle of family managed tofreeze their entire leaching bed solid,and ended up with water backingup into the rototilled it for a vegetable garden. Pipes can be as little as 375 mm below the ground can easilyget ,vegetables don t protect the soil from erosion likegrass made it look pretty with trees and nice landscaping. Perforated pipes don t stand a chance against roots from trees ands h ru b s.

5 They get clogged or cru s h e d .Either way, the Septic system doesn twork properly. That huge mound was really ugly, so we .. brought the rest of the ground up to match. Often,the reason the builder installed a raised bed is because the site owners fill in around the bed with more of that clay soil,they endup making a sort of large,almost impervious or later,itwill fill they also put a layer of clay soil over top,it can fail only material that should be used to level the grade is cut it off and built a nice-looking retaining wall. This family didn t understand that the whole mantle area is used forfiltering waste they cut it off,the liquid (which wasn tcompletely filtered yet) seeped out through that pretty wall instead.

6 Nobody ever told me I couldn t .. drain the downspouts, sump pump, etc. down the Septic system . This is a common problem,which can make the actual water flow throughthe system many times the estimated design will drown the water the lawn over the leaching bed area. There have even been cases where people installed automatic lawnsprinklers over the leaching bed area,and refused to turn them ,this will drown the start a daycare centre, add an apartment in the basement, etc. A nything that increases the house water use - and both of these cert a i n lydid - can overload the Septic fill in those ugly ditches. Swales are used to direct rain water and melting snow away from the leaching them in changes all that carefully-thought-outdrainage you re planning an addition that adds more than 15 per cent to your home s floor area,increasesthe number of bedrooms,or increases the number of plumbing fixtures,you may need to enlargeyour Septic call your municipal building department and your builder before you doany renovations,additions,changes in use or major whether your plans will affectyour Septic s covered?

7 The Ontario New Home Warranty Program (ONHWP) covers Septic systemswhen they are provided by a builder as part of a new home capable of year-round includes repairs due to workmanship and materials for ap e riod of one ye a r, and repairs due to major stru c t u ral defects for a period of seve nyears,to a maximum of $25, ,there are several major s NOT covered?Inadequate maintenanceUnderstanding the proper operation and maintenance of your new home sseptic system is very be protected under Ontario s New HomeWarranty plan,homeowners must maintain their homes and Systems properly;p r o blems arising from homeowner negligence, misuse or inadequatemaintenance are not homes and the Septic Systems connected to them are not covered under the warranty own systemsWhere the homeowner or buyer contracts directly with an installer to providethe Septic system for a new home,that system is not covered under thewarranty the home builder nor the Ontario New Home WarrantyProgram take any responsibility for SystemsIn some areas.

8 A number of homes share a single large Septic system which isbuilt by the developer and then owned by the builder andwarranty program provide coverage to the homeowner only for those portionsof the system actually located on the homeowner s lot,and not on the facilitiesowned by the traditional Septic system has three main components: Septic tank: a large concrete, fibreglass,heavy plastic or coated steel tank divided intot wo compart m e n t s ,with access ports at the top for inspection and serv i c e uses time and gravity to separatewastes into three layers:i)heavy materials,which settle to the bottom where they are broken down into sludge by naturally occurring bacteriaii)light soaps,greases,fats and similar materials,which rise to the top as a layer of scum,a n diii)liquids with some suspended solids w h e n e ver waste water from sinks,appliances and toilets comesoutof the house into the first compartment,it pushes an equal amount ofliquid from that first compartment into the second one -- which thenforces the same amount of liquid out of the second chamber and into thepipes leading to the leaching bed if the tank is properly operated and pumped out regularly,only theliquid component leaves the tank as effluent i)

9 The sludge should remain well below the outletsii)baffle walls or pipes stop the scum from going out into the bediii)some installations include filters at the outlet pipe (recommended)Distribution system : a system of pipes leading from the Septic tank to the leaching bed may include a distribution chamber to direct waste water evenly todifferent parts of the leaching bed traditional Systems use gravity, but some sites use pumps to move wateruphill from the Septic tank larger Systems use pumps to distribute the waste water over the leachingbed areaSeptic tankLeaching bed typical bed is an arrangement of connectedpipes with holes along the sides and bottom,s u rrounded by stone/gravel and properlydraining soil or other filtering material liquid leaving the Septic tank travels down thepipe,seeping through holes into the gravel andsoil filtering materials in the stone layer.

10 Oxygen-using bacteria breakdown waste particles b e l ow the stone,n a t u ral organisms fo rm a "biomat" in the soil filter - an extremely important com-ponent of the Septic system - chemical,p hy s i c a land bacteriological reactions remove remainingsolids and b a c t e ria before the fully treatedwater meets the underground water tabl e soil fi l t e ring materials must allow the wastewater to drain aw ay slow ly enough that conta-minants are filtered out, but also quickly enoughthat the bed doesn t fill up in most instances some waste water in the soil gets taken up by grass roots - nutrients areused and water is released through a process known as evapotra n s p i ra t i o nTypes of leaching beds include:Conventional bed most common type used where the natural soils are suitable filter materials and the ground iswell drained leaching bed pipes are laid in stone-filled trenches below normal ground leve lCross section of typical trench in conventional leaching bedGroundwater table,bedrock or poorly draining soilsGroundwater table,bedrock or poorly draining soilsRaised bed.