4 Things That Affect Septic Tank Pumping Frequency

If your septic tank was designed to support a home with five residents but only two people live in the home, the time between pumpings can be more spread out. If your septic tank was designed to support a house with two or three residents and five people live there, your septic tank will need to be pumped on a more frequent basis.

A small septic tank for a home with a lot of residents will need to be pumped more frequently than a small septic tank with a low number of occupants.

2. The Presence of a Garbage Disposa

A garbage disposal can seem like a great addition to your kitchen. However, the way you use your garbage disposal has a direct impact on how often your septic tank must be pumped.

If you put all food scraps into the trash and only run your garbage disposal a few times a week to clean things up, it shouldn't have much of an effect on your septic tank.

If you use your garbage disposal like it's a garbage can and run it daily to break up food waste, you are going to need to pump your septic tank more frequently. 

Your septic tank is made to break down human waste, not food waste. Food waste takes longer to break down in your septic tank, which causes your septic tank to fill up at a faster rate. Using your garbage disposal like a garbage can will increase the frequency of your septic tank pumping needs. 

3. How You Use Your Toilet

The only thing you should flush down your toilet, besides human waste, is toilet paper. Although you could flush other things down the toilet, you shouldn't. The only paper product that is designed to break down in our septic tank is toilet paper.

Even disposable wipes that are labeled as flushable don't break down very well in septic tanks and often clog up septic tanks.

If you are careful and only flush toilet paper down your toilet, you are going to be able to spread out your septic tank pumpings further than if you flush a wide variety of paper products down your septic tank.

4. The Products You Clean With

Finally, the products you clean with the impact the health of your septic tank.

If you use a lot of harsh chemicals for cleaning and laundry, those harsh cleaning chemicals are going to kill the bacteria in your septic tank, which leads to more build-up in your septic tank because the bacteria are not able to do their job. If you use natural cleaners, the bacteria in your tank can thrive and you should be able to pump your septic tank on a regular schedule.

If you are not sure if your septic tank needs to be pumped, give us a call at AAA Pumping Service Inc. We can come out, inspect your septic tank, and let you know when your tank should be pumped.