Keeping Your Septic Tank Healthy During Social Distancing

With the COVID19 pandemic, people are encouraged to stay home and practice social distancing. This means many of us are spending more time at home, which means more laundry, more cleaning and more cooking. That can mean more water usage, which can impact your septic system. Here are some helpful tips to keep your septic system healthy:

• Do not flush any kind of wipe or paper towel. While some wipes may say they are ‘flushable’, that only means they will go down the toilet. Wipes do not decompose like toilet paper and can result in a clog in your pipes and your septic system. If you want a fun science project to do with the kids, compare how long it takes for a piece of toilet paper and a wipe to start to break down in two separate jars of water.
• If you’re doing more laundry, try to space out the loads to avoid overwhelming your septic system.
• Keep cooking grease and fats out of your septic system. Put that bacon grease in a can and throw it out, don’t put it down the drain.
• Be aware of how much disinfectant you’re using. Understandably, it’s important to sanitize surfaces, but remember that bleach and other sanitizers can also impact the microbes that are an important part of the decomposition process in your septic tank.
• If you think your tank needs pumped, call your local pumper. They will advise you on how a pump-out can be arranged and what safety precautions they are taking around COVID19.