For the parts of Ipswich off the sewer. Four quick questions say whether your septic tank or treatment plant is fine, due for a pump-out, or needs someone now.
Many acreage properties in these suburbs run on a septic tank or a treatment plant. Each suburb guide covers the local housing and drainage.
Sooner with five or more people, or a small tank. Keep the receipts.
No driving, parking, building or trees over the absorption trench or the irrigation area.
Washing over the week, not all on Saturday. Fix leaking taps and running toilets.
Wipes, sanitary products, fat and oil block the outlet and the trench.
Smell sewage inside the house? Find the source
A treatment plant alarm usually means the air blower or pump has stopped, or the water level is too high. Check the plant’s power at the switchboard and the power point. If the power is on and the alarm stays on, use as little water as you can and call your service technician or a plumber: the plant can overflow within a day or two.
A wet or unusually green patch over the trench, or sewage on the ground, means the tank is full or the trench can no longer absorb the water. Keep children and pets away and use as little water as you can. A pump-out buys time, but a trench that has failed usually needs a plumber to assess it and, often, a new absorption area.
Slow drains or a smell outside, with no pump-out in five years or more, usually means the tank is full and solids are reaching the outlet. Book a pump-out now, before the solids block the trench, which is far more expensive to fix. Ask the contractor to check the baffles and the outlet while the tank is open.
With a recent pump-out, slow drains or a smell usually point to a blocked pipe into or out of the tank, a damaged baffle, or a blocked vent. A plumber can clear the line and check it with a camera.
Most septic tanks need pumping every 3 to 5 years, sooner with a bigger household. If it has been longer than that, or you don’t know, book one now while everything still works. It is far cheaper than a blocked trench.
Three to five years since the last pump-out, with a small or average household, is about the usual interval. Nothing needs doing today, but put it in the calendar, and book it sooner if the drains slow down.
Treatment plants need regular servicing by a licensed service technician, usually every three months under a service agreement, and the tank pumped out every few years. If the last service sticker is out of date, book one: a service catches a failing blower, pump or chlorinator before it overflows.
Pumped within the last three years, working well and an ordinary household: nothing needs doing. Keep the receipt from the last pump-out, and come back if the drains slow down or the yard gets soggy.
Most septic tanks need pumping every 3 to 5 years, sooner with a bigger household or a small tank. A treatment plant also needs regular servicing, usually every three months under a service agreement.
Slow drains and gurgling, a sewage smell outside, and a wet, soggy or very green patch over the trench. Sewage on the ground means it is overflowing: use as little water as you can and get it pumped out.
Many acreage properties are not on the sewer, especially in Karalee, Chuwar, Barellan Point, Pine Mountain, South Ripley, Thagoona, Marburg, Willowbank. Your Urban Utilities bill shows a sewerage charge if the house is connected to the sewer.
A licensed liquid waste contractor pumps it out. A plumber fixes the pipes into and out of the tank, the baffles and the trench.
Wipes, sanitary products, fat, oil, paint and chemicals, and large amounts of bleach or antibacterial cleaners, which kill the bacteria the system relies on.
Send what is happening, when it was last pumped out and your suburb. A licensed local plumber who covers your area gets back to you with a price before any work starts.