Shit happens

Post by **pitsch** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 11:52 am

How do you know when this thing is full?

Is it the same as a blocked drain? But how do you know it's not a blocked drain?

Terry · Post by **Terry** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 1:29 pm

Answer to question 1 .........It smells of poo
Answer to question 2 ......... If installed correctly, the black lid unscrews - if it's full of 5hite, empty it!

Post by **crazy88** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 2:26 pm

If that is the current stage of construction make sure ONLY the solid waste ie wc's is connected .Do not let them connect sinks and showers as they will overload the waste tank .Those should go into seperate soakaways . Also Don't use any nasty chemicals in the wc,s as they will disrupt the natural process of the waste/sceptic tank .Anyway I've had enough of talking s**t and am going into town .

Crazy 88

Post by **Sabai Jai** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 3:29 pm

They can provide hours of fun clearing up during the Rains if badly installed.

They usually have a 'breather' pipe need to know where that is too..

SJ

Post by **chopsticks** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 4:01 pm

Septic tanks are more complex than they appear and need to be correctly installed. If not done properly they end up as just a storage tank and will need frequent emptying.

Correctly installed ones rarely need emptying as WC waste enters on one side only and is acted on by anaerobic bacteria etc. (which multiply on the large surface area that is part of the tank's inner construction) inside which allows for the outlet pipe from the tank's opposite side to be discharged into the normal soakaway tanks.
Avoid using toilet cleaners that destroy the useful microbes inside the tank as it defeats the whole point of installing one.

Post by **chopsticks** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 4:13 pm

Also,ensure the base they are on is either well compacted or reinforced as any ground movement when the tank is filled up with water initially will break the inlet and outlet plastic pipe joints. They are sometimes supplied with flexible pipe inlet and outlets to allow for slight movement.

Post by **Randy Cornhole** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 4:34 pm

It looks like a giant hand grenade. Imagine if the bugger exploded...

Post by **pitsch** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 5:14 pm

Thx for the tips. I managed to open the lid and saw that it is rather full. It is already in use for more than 1 year, so I think it is time to clean it. I dont know if it is correctly installed or if it is septic at all, but I hope so. The outlet is going into a canalisation where also the non-wc water will go.

The WC drain is not blocked, but has not the pull as before, so this seems to be a sign that it is nearly full. The time until is it full will also depend on the amount of toilet paper used, which brings me on the idea to make a poll about use of toilet paper by the expats.

Post by **Big Boy** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 5:18 pm

idea to make a poll about use of toilet paper by the expats

I just can't wait for that one

Post by **Nereus** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 5:28 pm

pitsch wrote:Thx for the tips. I managed to open the lid and saw that it is rather full. It is already in use for more than 1 year, so I think it is time to clean it. I dont know if it is correctly installed or if it is septic at all, but I hope so. The outlet is going into a canalisation where also the non-wc water will go.

The WC drain is not blocked, but has not the pull as before, so this seems to be a sign that it is nearly full. The time until is it full will also depend on the amount of toilet paper used, which brings me on the idea to make a poll about use of toilet paper by the expats.

It is supposed to be "full". The outlet of the treated water is near the top of the tank, so even if you empty it, it will just fill up again. It should not need emptying after only 1 year in a domestic application.

An old trick that we used to use is to throw a handful of chicken bones into a "fresh" tank, to encourage the bacterial action to get started.

Post by **Condoking** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 5:34 pm

crazy88 wrote:Anyway I've had enough of talking s**t and am going into town .Crazy 88

To get Sh*t faced??

Post by **Lung Per** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 6:40 pm

Nereus wrote:
pitsch wrote:Thx for the tips. I managed to open the lid and saw that it is rather full. It is already in use for more than 1 year, so I think it is time to clean it. I dont know if it is correctly installed or if it is septic at all, but I hope so. The outlet is going into a canalisation where also the non-wc water will go.

The WC drain is not blocked, but has not the pull as before, so this seems to be a sign that it is nearly full. The time until is it full will also depend on the amount of toilet paper used, which brings me on the idea to make a poll about use of toilet paper by the expats.
It is supposed to be "full". The outlet of the treated water is near the top of the tank, so even if you empty it, it will just fill up again. It should not need emptying after only 1 year in a domestic application.

An old trick that we used to use is to throw a handful of chicken bones into a "fresh" tank, to encourage the bacterial action to get started.

On my granddad's farm they always started the bacterial process by stuffing a dead chicken or cat into the tank. ...

Post by **PeteC** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 6:50 pm

There are bottles of liquid bacteria booster at all hardware stores that you can put in yourself about every 6 months.

My understanding, and what they did here, is to put a powder substance of almost pure bacteria in when the tank was installed. It came in about a 1.5kg bag for each tank. They then recommended the liquid booster periodically. As stated above, bones or just about any rotting thing will probably produce the same results.

As far as TP, what they have here seems to dissolve quite rapidly. Put a few sheets in a bucket of water overnight and see what's left of them in the morning, not much if anything.

I use a few sheets once a day and water. I'm the only one. I've looked in the tanks when adding the bacteria liquid and I've seen no paper, just old sanitary napkins some idiots flushed when we had a party here more than a year ago. They're still there!

Pete

Post by **hhfarang** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 7:16 pm

I've found that it's pretty simple as some of the earlier posters said. When it's too full and needs emptying, a smell comes back into the bathrooms that are connected. Call and have it emptied that day and unless you have a big family it's good for another six months to a year. I have three and the one we use most requires a cleaning about once a year. I get the others done at the same time whether they need it or not as it is fairly cheap.

Post by **Francois** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 8:10 pm

Nereus wrote:An old trick that we used to use is to throw a handful of chicken bones into a "fresh" tank, to encourage the bacterial action to get started.

My brother, who was a baker, use to pu yeast and it worked...