Your home’s septic system serves an essential function of processing all the waste and water that comes from your home or business. The drainfield, or leach field, arguably has one of the most critical jobs in the process as it performs the final cleanse and disperses the treated wastewater. And a healthy drain field does that flawlessly.
The drainfield is a subsurface wastewater disposal system used by septic systems that removes impurities and contaminants from the liquids that emerge in a septic tank.
If the drain field becomes damaged, it can severely reduce the efficiency and performance of your septic system. Hence why it’s essential to understand what a healthy drain field looks like so you can eventually know when something is amiss.
If you have a healthy drainfield, you will probably notice the following five indicators.
5 Signs of a Healthy Drain Field
Leveled and Stable Soil
One of the apparent signs of a healthy leach field is level and stable soil near the drainfield. When your home’s drainfield cannot expel all of the wastewater from the septic tank, it will eventually collect into the ground.
This will cause your soil to be “squishy” and even condense on itself. Always check the soil condition near your drainfield to be sure that your drainfield is working correctly.
Regular Pump-Outs
Every septic tank must be pumped once every 3-5 years. Pumping should ideally be a convenient process, only occurring every few years when the sludge level builds up in your tank.
But what if an unhealthy and inefficient leach field isn’t discarding wastewater at its normal rate? You could find yourself calling out the professionals for a pump-out and finding it’s just wastewater, rather than sludge, that has filled your tank.
A healthy drain field doesn’t cause this issue.
Quick Drains
Your home’s plumbing system relies on your septic tank to dispense wastewater. Fast drains mean that your septic tank and drainfield are working together to store and eliminate wastewater.
Over time, your septic tank can become full causing your drains to become slow and clogged. Remember that a healthy drainfield increases the efficiency of the removal of wastewater, which can mean faster drains that remove water instantaneously.
Fast Drying Soil after Rain/Storm
When it rains, your lawn may be soaked for a couple of days. Unfortunately, heavy rain and storms can misguide homeowners from seeing that their drainfield is causing their soil to be overly-saturated.
After a storm, your soil should not be wet or squishy when a few weeks have passed. To determine if your wet lawn is due to those Florida thunderstorms or an unhealthy drainfield, compare areas of your lawn that are not near your drainfield to the soil directly surrounding the leach field.
If your soil is wet, you may need to call a septic tank professional for immediate assistance as your drainfield is not properly filtering the wastewater.
Normal Lawn Color
Your lawn should ideally have the same color throughout its landscape. While it’s possible to have different shades of color in various areas of your lawn (hello big shady tree), you should watch out if the grass above your drainfield is healthier than the rest of your lawn.
Wastewater works similarly to manure, promoting rapid plant growth. Therefore, if wastewater is seeping into your drainfield, the grass above it will be a strong, tell-tale sign.
Locate where your drainfield is by consulting your septic tank professional. Monitor the area above your drainfield to notice any issues before they become problematic and expensive.
Give us a Call Today!
If you are noticing the above signs, you fortunately have a healthy drainfield. Don’t see the signs of a healthy leach field? Give us a call today at (352) 242-6100 to schedule an inspection.