Excelet

Septic Tanks: On-site Wastewater Treatment

Let's examine some basic concepts about the septic tank in your backyard.

Click on the tabs to navigate!!!

Why does my septic tank need to be pumped out?

Here's your septic tank buried in the backyard.

add solids to your septic tank 0
Click the up arrow!

from the house to the drain field

wastewater

0 occur in the tank?

What other processes 0 field?
What processes occur in the drain

Sinex 2009
How long does the wastewater reside in my septic tank?
Type your tank volume in the yellow box and
set the number of people in your household.
number of people in household 0
Click the up arrow!

For an average household from the house to the drain field

on a daily basis:
input of waste output to groundwater
50 gallons/person/day 0 gallons/day 0 gallons/day

Range of values
volume of tank = gallons As biosolids settle and
Minimum time in tank is 48 hours (2 days) accumulate in the tank,
to allow suspended material to settle and what happens to the
bacteria to digest waste. tank volume available
for the wastewater?
increase 0
biosolids
detention time in tank = days

This is the average time the wastewater remains in the septic tank.

Sinex 2009
How offen should your septic tank be pumped out?

STEP 1 STEP 2
Select your septic tank volume Number of persons in your household
in gallons
500 1 0 2
750
900
1000 How many people live in your house?
1250
1500
1750
2000
2250
2500

Years between pumping Biosolids production

years gallons collected

over pumping interval

How does the volume of your septic tank influence the pump out interval?

How does the size of your household influence the pump out interval?

Sinex 2009

Years between pumping

Tank size Household Size (number of persons living in the household)
 (gal) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 500 5.8 2.6 1.5 1 0.7 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1
2 750 9.1 4.2 2.6 1.8 1.3 1 0.7 0.6 0.4 0.3
3 900 11 5.2 3.3 2.3 1.7 1.3 1 0.8 0.7 0.5
4 1000 12.4 5.9 3.7 2.6 2 1.5 1.2 1 0.8 0.7
5 1250 15.6 7.5 4.8 3.4 2.6 2 1.7 1.4 1.2 1
6 1500 18.9 9.1 5.9 4.2 3.3 2.6 2.1 1.8 1.5 1.3
7 1750 22.1 10.7 6.9 5 3.9 3.1 2.6 2.2 1.9 1.6
8 2000 25.4 12.4 8 5.9 4.5 3.7 3.1 2.6 2.2 2
9 2250 28.6 14 9.1 6.7 5.2 4.2 3.5 3 2.6 2.3
10 2500 31.9 15.6 10.2 7.5 5.9 4.8 4 3.5 3 2.6

data from: http://www.abe.psu.edu/extension/factsheets/f/F161.pdf click here

Ammonia or ammonium ion in your septic tank?

The graph shows how the ratio varies with pH. plot pH range for septic0tanks

pH (H+) (NH4+)/(NH3) 1000000000

1 0.1 180000000 100000000
2 0.01 18000000 10000000
3 0.001 1800000 1000000 pH (NH4+)/(NH3)
4 0.0001 180000 100000 -2 0.00001
5 0.00001 18000 10000 -2 1.00E+09 -2 1
6 0.000001 1800 1000 -2 1.00E+09 -2 1
100
7 0.0000001 180 -2 0.00001
(NH4+)/(NH3)
10
8 1E-08 18 -2 0.00001
1
9 1E-09 1.8
0.1
10 1E-10 0.18
0.01
11 1E-11 0.018 0.001
12 1E-12 0.0018 0.0001
13 1E-13 0.00018 0.00001
14 1E-14 0.000018 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
pH
note: logarithmic scale

plot ratio equal to 0

one Find typical ratio in septic tanks
pH (NH4+)/(NH3) 10 1
1 1.8E+08 1 14
adjust pH to move tracer point on graph

Sinex 2009