OT-Drill well/septic system

Gunner wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Considered adding some good old fashioned, readily available microbes to the system?

I my case I added a second one (actually two).

Bill K7NOM

Regular treatment with yeast (baker's or brewer's) will keep a system clean, but it won't rapidly restore a clogged system. Much as I'm sure Gunner would prefer to play with explosives, hydrofracturing is a better method of opening up a well. Rent a high pressure (>800 PSI) pump and give that a try.

Gary

We use sulfuric acid on Long Island, it breaks through the organic matter at the bottom of the pool. Prior to the acid, you can aerate the pool with compressed air or waterjets. The pools here are typically 8 to 10 foot diameter precast concrete rings, installed with an excavator or crane. I'm not familiar with the type of system you are describing. Microbubble aeration on a continuous basis has been used to restore some pools, it converts the system to aerobic decomposition, which is much faster than anaerobic.

Gunner, I bought some anaerobic for mine and it ate up and liquefied all the sludge, I put in 6 bottles, a little pricy but worked great! I have a high clay content here in the Gilroy area, I wish I had the sandy soil in Taft. Alan Black

Ive regularly added the normal bug supplements to the system, once a year or so. The septic tank (over sized) is healthy. The dry well is not draining properly.

Gunner

"A vote for Kerry is a de facto vote for bin Laden." Strider

Your system must be specific for your location. Most folks around here don't use a 'dry well' to dispose of effluent. It may just be a semantic difference though.

Around here those are called leach pits or disposal fields.

The latter are typically composed of a foot wide trench dug about three feet deep, with a layer of gravel at the bottom, perforated pipe laid in, and then more gravel on top. Cover with filter cloth and backfill. The former, as mentioned, are precast perforated concrete.

"Dry wells" around here are mostly hand-dug pits that are backfilled with gravel, and receive the outflow of washing machines or other gray water.

From reading your description it sounds like you have a drilled borehole to receive the effluent.

I don't know the geology in your area but I would guess dry and sandy. Could you simply lay in a length of linear subsurface disposal field with perforated pipe?

Jim

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The area where Gunner and I live has layers of soil, sand and sometimes gravel. So a leach line takes up real estate where as a "dry well" is just a hole in the ground. In those areas in the "hills" where granite is under the soil the leach line approach is used. The dry well is usually (always) filed with rock.

I my case the previous owner did not take care of the system so I had two dry wells that were plugged. I was advised to add new dry wells and put in a valve to switch the flow to the new ones or to the old ones. I was advised that the old ones would probably clean themselves (with the help of those bugs). Right now the valve is set to "both" and things seem to be OK.

Bill K7NOM

There are special anaerobic additives for liquefying the dry well area, others are for the tank. Alan

Hi, First of all, a dry well is mostly water and soap. Soap will cake and plug up everything. The chemical that you use to encourage bacteria are probably design for toilet waste and not soap. I have everything going in one septic tank and in 25 yrs never had any problems. I believe the secret is to make sure that you do not use javex or dishwasher soap that is not septic safe. I know, you will need your best magnifying glass on your next visit to the grocery store. If I have to use javex, I use it in a bucket and throw it out behind the garage. The local health department always say,