You were just dreaming about a nice Bora Bora vacation when your daughter woke you up. She said that there was something wrong with your bathroom—it smelled bad and there was something dark in the toilet. When you checked the bathroom, there was indeed something black in the toilet and in the sink as well. There was wastewater backing up. You soon realized that you had a slow draining sand mound and this was definitely a job for your septic expert.
The septic expert arrived and immediately got to work. He said that you had a slow draining sand mound. You thought that the sand mound was the best system that you could get to treat your wastewater with because of your high water table and aberrant soil conditions. But why did this problem come about? Your septic expert told you not to feel that depressed. All you had to do was reflect on how you care for your sand mound and see if you were guilty of any of the following causes:
1) Increased water load
An increase in water load makes the breakdown of the solid wastes much slower because the bacteria don’t have time to do their job. The sudden gush of water also stirs up the sludge which clogs the soil absorption and filter systems. The slogging prevents the wastewater from getting treated continuously. As a result, the wastewater backs up into the house and onto the yard. It also makes the draining slow.
2) Component damage
Components of the sand mound can be damaged by heavy structures and vehicles over the sand mound. Their heavy weight crushes the sand mound parts because of soil compaction. Make sure to remove any vehicle and structure over or near the sand mound system. Trees and hardwood plants could also cause damage with their invasive root systems. Manually remove the roots and relocate these plants away from your sand mound system. Never use harsh chemicals to remove the roots because these will leave harmful discharges that will contaminate the surrounding environment.
3) Blockages
Trees and plants could also clog the system together with the misuse of your drains, sinks, and toilets. If you have the habit of throwing non-biodegradables and grease into the system, then it should only be expected for blockages to occur. Refrain from doing this and you will not have a slow draining sand mound system.
4) Eliminated bacteria
Bacteria are the ones that break down the solid materials in the wastewater. If you use harsh chemicals and antibacterial cleaners, surely the bacterial population will significantly dwindle. This is a cause for the wastewater treatment to cease. Solid wastes will just accumulate in the sand mound tank and prevent wastewater from completing the journey to the soil absorption system. Draining will definitely become slow. You have to change what you use into bacteria-friendly and environment-friendly products so that the bacteria will be well-cared for.
5) No pump outs
If you have not adhered to the regular pump outs of your sand mound, the slow drainage is inevitable. Sludge keeps on building up because of the continuous flow of wastewater. It will occupy the space that’s meant for the wastewater to occupy. You have to maintain the normal level of sludge in the tank so that the wastewater could flow continuously through the system and not cause slow drainage.
The septic expert double-checked everything before he declared the sand mound cleared up. Eventually, the sand mound’s draining returned to normal. The sand mound odors slowly disappeared. Your daughter’s face lit up when she came back from her friend’s house that day.
You had a little talk about not dumping anything into sinks and toilets aside from wastewater. Your daughter agreed to everything and promised not to throw art paper and crayons into the toilet anymore. She smiled and went to play again. You were thankful that the slow draining sand mound system didn’t need replacement or your may have to pay up to $30,000. Whew!