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Midlands House Walk
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What is worrying you?

Water where it shouldn't bePipes that might be oldA freeze is coming (AI picture)After a floodA smell you can't placeWho to call and what they needWhose water, town by townEvery picture on the walk

Back yard, stop 3 of 7

Septic care: what goes in, what stays off

Septic system care means watching what goes down the drain and what sits on the field, then leaving the tank to a licensed contractor. Clemson says pump every 3 to 5 years and inspect every 1 to 21. EPA says inspect at least every 32. Additives aren’t needed3.

Go to the back yard and stand where you can see the lid and the grass over the drain field.

Updated , Midlands House Walk

Leave the lid closed: never open a tank or lean over one, since fumes can cause fainting, and a flame nearby risks an explosion5.

Closed round green cover in thin grass and pine straw, pines at the back of the yard
A closed green septic riser lid in a sandy yard with pine straw and thin grass. This view is all you need of it. AI-generated picture.
Round green lids in short mown grass, seen from directly above
Round green septic lids in a mown lawn. Leave them shut, and keep them where a contractor can find them.

Can a contractor get to the lid?

Look for
Check that the lids aren’t under a deck, a shed or a thick bed of mulch. A clear path for the truck helps too, though it mustn’t cross the field.
What it tells you
Owners shouldn’t inspect or maintain the tank themselves, because of fumes and small spaces1. No state law requires routine inspections1, so the reminder is up to you. Clemson quotes an EPA cost figure of $250 to $500 every 3 to 5 years3.
Long open grassy strip between stands of pine trees
A long strip of tall green grass over a septic drain field in pine woods, state not given. Sun and plain grass are what a field wants.

What's growing on the field?

Look for
Walk the field and note anything other than grass. Shrubs, saplings and shade from a growing tree are what to flag.
What it tells you
Turfgrass is best, and shallow-rooted herbaceous plants suit the field, which needs sun3,4. Keep less aggressive shrubs at least 10 feet off and small less aggressive trees at least 204.
Thick surface roots from a big oak spreading over grass toward a curb
Surface roots spreading across a lawn from a large oak. Keep the same kind of reach well away from your field. AI-generated picture.

Are aggressive roots nearby?

Look for
Look for willows, red and silver maples, beeches, birches, elms and poplars near the system. Those are Clemson’s list of ones to avoid4.
What it tells you
Roots may find their way into a field or a line. Tree roots and the sewer line deals with that on the way out to the street.
Fresh risers in loose light fill with gravel around their bases
New risers and lids in sandy fill and gravel. Check where your roof water runs as you look round the lids.

Where does the roof water go?

Look for
Walk from each downspout and see where the water ends up after a rain. A gutter emptying toward the field is an easy thing to spot.
What it tells you
EPA says to send roof drains away from the field2. Avoid heavy water use during or just after rain, too3. On a soggy yard, this page sorts the causes.

How long should a system last?

Clemson says 20 to 30 years if designed and maintained1. For how your soil plays into that, see Midlands sand and clay.

Yours to do

  • Keep yeast, sugar, meat, wipes, grease, cat litter and drain openers out of the drain3.
  • Keep softener discharge out as well, and go easy on a garbage disposal, which can add up to 50 percent more solids3.
  • Keep cars and digging off the system1, and keep a dated note of each pump-out.
  • Learn the warning signs: slow drains, odors, greener grass, soggy areas5. A smell you can’t place helps with the odor.

For a licensed pro

  • Pump-outs, every 3 to 5 years or at a third to a half solids1.
  • Inspections, including checks of tank levels, which residents shouldn’t do themselves3.
  • Repairs of any kind, by a licensed contractor1.

A short film for this stop

An Extension video covers regular pumping, what to keep out of the drains, and what to keep off the drain field. From Purdue Extension, an outside channel; it loads from YouTube only when you press play.

Where this comes from

  1. Clemson HGIC: Be Septic Safe, locating the system
  2. EPA: how to care for your septic system
  3. Clemson HGIC: Be Septic Safe, best practices
  4. Clemson HGIC: landscaping over septic drain fields
  5. Clemson HGIC: Be Septic Safe, septic failures
Keep walking (AI picture)A soggy patch in the yard: septic, pipe or rain?