How Do I Know If My Calverton Va Septic Tank Needs Pumped Out?

How do I know if my Calverton VA septic tank needs pumped out? This is an excellent question, and one we get on a regular basis from the customers we serve. It’s easy to understand what’s driving the question and where it comes from because everybody knows, or at the very least can imagine what will inevitably happen if you let the tank fill to the point of overflowing.

There’s only one possible place the contents of the tank can go, and having raw sewage backing up inside your home is a nightmare scenario that no one wants to contend with.

If you’ve been wondering the same thing, but didn’t know who to ask, or were too embarrassed to inquire, this article is for you!

How Do I Know If My Calverton VA Septic Tank Needs Pumped Out?

Before we get into particulars, let’s start with this: If you don’t know the last time your tank was pumped out, then the safe bet is to assume it’s time and call us right away. Then, once we pump it out for you, mark your calendar, or give yourself a digital reminder to have it done at three to five year intervals, starting from the day we complete the work.

That’s helpful, but it doesn’t quite provide enough detail. After all, there’s no such thing as a cookie cutter family. Every household is different, and depending on the number of people you have living under your roof, how often you have overnight guests and how good your septic tank habits are, the timeframe can vary widely. Some people just need more frequent tank pump outs than others.

An important part of answering the question ‘How do I know if my Calverton VA septic tank needs pumped out?’ definitively then, comes down to understanding how to minimize your septic tank risks and knowing what to look for.

Let’s start with developing better home septic system habits. There are a number of things you might be doing that are causing your septic system to fill up more quickly than it should. The key difference between a living in a house with a septic system and living in one that’s tied to a municipal sewage system is this:

When you live in a house that’s tied to the city’s system, anything you flush down the toilet or pour down your sink drain is gone and out of your life the second it clears your pipes. Sure, you might clog the pipes up, depending on what you flush or pour down the drain, but once you solve for that, it’s over and done with. The offending material is off to the sewage treatment plant where someone else will deal with it.

If you live in a house with a septic tank, it doesn’t work that way. One way or another, everything that gets poured or flushed winds up in the tank, which means you’ll have to deal with it eventually.

That means that it pays to be mindful. Don’t pour grease down your sink drain. Don’t flush anything that isn’t biodegradable down your toilet. The more of that stuff that winds up in your tank, the faster it’s going to fill up, which means you’ll have to have more frequent pump outs. The rule of thumb we mentioned above flies right out the window.

The good news is that your septic system will try to tell you when it’s struggling and having problems, but that only works if you know what to look for. Here then, are some common signs that you’re headed for septic system trouble:

• You suddenly feel as though you’re living in a haunted house thanks to the pipes in your walls shaking and groaning every time you flush one of your toilets or turn on a faucet.
• There’s a nasty odor coming up from your sink drains and toilets.
• You notice the same nasty odor any time you go outside and are standing near your system’s drain field.
• Speaking of the drain field, if you notice that the ground in that area is constantly muddy, even though it hasn’t rained for days, that’s also a trouble sign.
• Your sinks won’t drain properly and your toilets don’t flush well or properly, and no amount of plunging seems to make any difference.
• The grass that grows over your drain field is a much different, brighter shade of green than the grass growing elsewhere in your yard.

All of these are bad signs. They don’t automatically mean that your tank is full, but all septic system problems tend to end up the same way. If you don’t address them, they’ll get worse over time, and you’ll wind up with raw sewage backing up inside your house.

The best thing you can do if you even suspect you’re having an issue with your septic system is to give our office a call. It’s just not worth the risk to do nothing or try and fix the problem yourself. Our skilled technicians have the experience to quickly and correctly diagnose the problem and get your system working the way it should once more. There’s tremendous peace of mind in that. It just gives you one less thing to worry about.

Since the day we first opened our doors, we’ve built our reputation by exceeding the expectations of every customer we serve, and we’d love to add you to our growing family of satisfied customers. Call us today.