Our septic system is nearly 20 years old and during Christmas 2008, we realized our septic system was in failure. The septic tank was overflowing at the riser and there was surface water in the yard. We called some local septic guys and learned we had been doing everything wrong. Our family used too much water: We took long showers, had laundry “days†where we would do multiple loads of wash in a day, and unbeknownst to us, we had a malfunctioning iron filter that was dumping 5 gallons of water per hour into the septic system for an undetermined length of time. As if that was not enough, a farm tile had broken in our yard. It was putting large amounts of water into the fingers of our septic field anytime the ground was saturated.
The “experts†said the fingers were clogged, the system was ruined and we’d need to dig a new septic field at a cost of $25-35K. Furthermore, they were going place the finger system in our front pasture, thereby rendering the field off-limits for our hooved animals. In my mind, installing a new system was like buying a new car and burying it out in the yard so I started looking for alternatives. I consulted local governments, colleges, wastewater associations, and conducted extensive research on the internet. Fortunately, I stumbled upon the Aero-Stream product. It was the only product that seemed to made technical sense. Most people I asked supported the aerobic bacteria theory, but nobody (and I mean, nobody) wanted to go out on a limb and say it would work in reality.
While doing this research, our family stopped wasting water and repaired the broken iron filter. We hoped that the septic would magically begin working again. It didn’t (not surprisingly.) So in February of 2009, my husband and I installed the Aero-Stream. Within a month or so, the water levels in the septic tank began falling. It was still occasionally overflowing but the amount and frequency became less and less.
By summer, we were having no issues at all with our septic system. The water level in the septic tank has been consistently perfect. By the way, we finally fixed the broken farm tile in the yard this summer. In the process, we exposed one of the fingers with the ditch witch. In fact, we thought we had nicked the pipe but it turns out we just got too close. But do you know what came out? A bit of sludge but then clear water!
So if you are having trouble with your septic due to overwhelming it with water, we suggest that you run (don’t walk) to get this product. It delivers amazing results. It is not hard to install either. We placed our unit in the crawlspace of our home and ran a longish hose out to the septic tank. The hose is out of the way beneath the grass. I personally wished I owned the Aero-Stream company. Thank you Aero-Stream for saving us thousands of dollars.
more