Drain problems

[Steven99]

My first post here, thank you for having me!

I have a septic system that I try to keep clear but no flushing any toilet paper, napkins, etc and I use ridx to keep the septic clean. I have a downstairs bathroom and two upstairs, three days ago the bathroom downstairs started to spill water, so I know right away what it was. We use coconut oil for frying food so I assume my pipe got greased up with such cold weather we had experienced lately. If someone flush upstairs there would be no problem if the second flush would take at least an hour or so, so there is some movement in there. So I went to the store and purchased a gallon of a very concentrated drain opener. I removed the toilet from downstairs, pour the gallon down and let it sit for 4 hours. I think that from my toilet upstairs to my septic tank there is a total of 30 feet, so I have a 1/2 50 feet snake which I used with very little problem all 50 feet! and as I was removing the snake I would dump boiling water down the drain in case any of that lye would stay on the snake since the smell is intense and that water would end up coming out of the toilet downstairs. The problem is that I am still having the same drain problem... I tried 3 more times to snake the drain... I even though that perhaps the snake was going out of the vent pipe, so I checked and no, that was not the case -at least that would had made some sense because this problem has me scratching my head.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Steven

 

[Jimmy Cee]

I am clearly having trouble trying to figure how to reply to Steven99's post. I hope this goes through.

I am not trying to be critical but I do not understand the logic of your stated actions. You say you use RidX, don't flush foreign matter down the drains and yet you imply you pour coconut oil for frying down the drain. I suspect that is your main problem and is causing a heavy scum mat in the septic tank that perhaps is clogging your leach field. You probably need to check the level of the scum and sludge in your tank. If the tank flows water back onto the top of the tank when you open an inspection port you probably have a serious problem.

BTW, the researchers working for various universities and extension services in several states say that the use of any additives (such as RidX) are of no value and are not recommended.

 

[Diehard]

Did you check the septic tank level to make sure that wasn't overfilled.

What does this mean?
"If someone flush upstairs there would be no problem if the second flush would take at least an hour or so, so there is some movement in there."

Are you saying that it spills out of the first floor toilet when the second floor toilet is flushed?

Why are you snaking from the second floor?

 

[Jimmy Cee]

My first post here, thank you for having me!

I have a septic system that I try to keep clear but no flushing any toilet paper, napkins, etc and I use ridx to keep the septic clean. I have a downstairs bathroom and two upstairs, three days ago the bathroom downstairs started to spill water, so I know right away what it was. We use coconut oil for frying food so I assume my pipe got greased up with such cold weather we had experienced lately. If someone flush upstairs there would be no problem if the second flush would take at least an hour or so, so there is some movement in there. So I went to the store and purchased a gallon of a very concentrated drain opener. I removed the toilet from downstairs, pour the gallon down and let it sit for 4 hours. I think that from my toilet upstairs to my septic tank there is a total of 30 feet, so I have a 1/2 50 feet snake which I used with very little problem all 50 feet! and as I was removing the snake I would dump boiling water down the drain in case any of that lye would stay on the snake since the smell is intense and that water would end up coming out of the toilet downstairs. The problem is that I am still having the same drain problem... I tried 3 more times to snake the drain... I even though that perhaps the snake was going out of the vent pipe, so I checked and no, that was not the case -at least that would had made some sense because this problem has me scratching my head.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Steven

Did you check the septic tank level to make sure that wasn't overfilled.

 

[Steven99]

I am digging my way into the tank... I am sure this is a silly question, but how do I know if the tank is overfilled? @Diehard: I was using the snake from upstairs because the basement bathroom is a disaster...! That is going to be a project into itself to cleanup, replace drywall, etc. and yes, the toilet in the basement would spill water if the toilet upstairs gets flush more than once in an hours time.

 

[Diehard]

I figured you'd ask that.
In my case I would know because I've seen the typical level many times when having it pumped. Mine is roughly 8" +/- below the bottom of the top concrete slab.
I can't see my inlet or outlet from the tank on mine but if you can see your outlet it should be no higher than the bottom of that pipe.
If you had a cleanout between you house and the tank, that should not have standing water in it if it's draining into the tank as it's suppose to.

How long has it been since you had it pumped? If it's been a few years or so, now would be a good time to do it.
For one, you'll find out from the pump person if it is over filled, as they should know.
Secondly, if that was your problem, you'd quick find out if you toilets flushed with no issues. Or if you still had blockage symptoms that would confirm it.

In some cases people see wet spots and/or smelling in the area of their tank. Or the grass is much greener in that area.

The worse thing you can do for your septic system is to allow the floating grease and scum or the settled solids to build up so much that they find their way into the tanks discharge pipe and out to the leaching field.

 

[Diehard]

I am clearly having trouble trying to figure how to reply to Steven99's post. I hope this goes through.

I am not trying to be critical but I do not understand the logic of your stated actions. You say you use RidX, don't flush foreign matter down the drains and yet you imply you pour coconut oil for frying down the drain. I suspect that is your main problem and is causing a heavy scum mat in the septic tank that perhaps is clogging your leach field. You probably need to check the level of the scum and sludge in your tank. If the tank flows water back onto the top of the tank when you open an inspection port you probably have a serious problem.

BTW, the researchers working for various universities and extension services in several states say that the use of any additives (such as RidX) are of no value and are not recommended.

Hi Jimmy Cee... Just now saw your comments.Apparently they didn't post properly earlier but I can see them now.
Funny thing about that RidX comment. I have a bunch of 1 lb bags of "High Potency SEPTIC KLEENZ" that my plumber brother had given me quite some time back. Suppose to flush 1/2 lb each month for the first 2 months and 1/4 lb every month after that.
I never looked it up until now this is what I found.

"A federal grand jury in Greenbelt indicted two men yesterday on charges that they conspired to operate a telemarketing fraud scheme in which they sold garden fertilizer as septic tank cleaner.

The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Lynne A. Battaglia for the Maryland District and Thomas F. Johnson, postal inspector in charge of the Washington Metro Division.

Gerard Sedletz, 57, of Bethesda and Steven Jacob, 55, of McLean, Va., were each indicted on one count of conspiracy, five counts of mail fraud and four counts of wire fraud, Battaglia and Johnson said.

The indictment charged that Sedletz and Jacob operated the scheme from 1988 until 1996, selling "Septic-Kleenz," a product they claimed would help keep septic systems clean but was actually repackaged fertilizer with lime sometimes added and sold at an immense markup.


The indictment alleges that the product was sold primarily through telemarketing from the defendants' offices in Beltsville."

I have no idea where my brother got the stuff but I can't ask him as he has Dementia and wouldn't remember.
So I guess I'll use the remainder of that stuff I have on garden. I'll limit it to flowers.

 

[Steven99]

Hi Jimmy Cee! I did not see your comment until now. I never meant to say we dump the coconut oil down the drain, we cook with it, so there is going to be a residue on our pots and plates, but we have always been careful to collect and dispose off any extra oils out of our sink.

@Diehard, it was five years ago, but we are 2 adults and four children in the house... I am 1/2 digging, I am hoping to be done by tomorrow.

Thanks for the great information!

 

[Jimmy Cee]

Hi Jimmy Cee! I did not see your comment until now. I never meant to say we dump the coconut oil down the drain, we cook with it, so there is going to be a residue on our pots and plates, but we have always been careful to collect and dispose off any extra oils out of our sink.

@Diehard, it was five years ago, but we are 2 adults and four children in the house... I am 1/2 digging, I am hoping to be done by tomorrow.

Thanks for the great information!

I appreciate the clarification.

 

[Ferdinand]

Not saying this has anything to do with your situation, but the symptoms are similar. A few years ago the drains backed up at our cottage. Run the water in the kitchen sink or, God forbid, flush a toilet and it would all come up into the shower floor. Yikes!

I rented a snake and ran it through the drains all the way to the septic tank. Nothing. It's all clear. Finally called a plumber for advice.

It turns out the leaching field had frozen solid! It was early in the winter and we had several days of intense cold before any significant snow accumulation. As a result the frost had gone much deeper into the ground than normal and frozen the leaching bed. There was nothing wrong with any of our plumbing, nor the septic tank. It's just the runoff from the tank had nowhere to go and eventually backed up into the cottage.

So what's the solution? The plumber said we had three choices:

1. Steam out the leaching field. Crazy expensive and potentially destructive!
2. Pump out the tank. Ain't gonna happen. All the permanent residents in the area are having the same problem and pump-out trucks are already all booked up for the next several weeks. Weekend cottagers get lowest priority.
3. Gotta place ya can stay in the city? If so, go home and come back in the Spring.

We chose option #3 and have never experienced the same issue again.

 

[Steven99]

Hey Ferdinand, thanks for your post, the idea crossed my mind because all of these started after we had several days of unusual freezing days, but yesterday I finally got to my tank and it was really full! So an hour later I had the guy come and vacuum all out, as he as doing that I open a faucet just so I could celebrate and see the water come into the septic tank, instead it came from the toilet downstairs! Grrrr, so after the guy left I started to snake from the septic tank since I though the problem could be on the pipe from my home to the tank, but it bypassed that pipe and it got into my home where I got to a point where I could not push the snake... as I tried sludge will come down slowly, but when I stopped the sludge will stop as well... so I am wondering if the pipe vibrating is what is releasing the sludge.. after a brutal 30 minutes of that I stopped, and try again from the toilet upstairs, and again I hit something that would not let me snake further! So exhausted I went to the store, got a gallon of heating melting grease and hair bottle, poured into the line.

I am thinking that when it got really cold (this season we did not heated downstairs), that any grease solidified on the pipe since coconut oil freezes hard when cold, so I am thinking I need to rent a power snake since my 1/2 snake is manual. I called the store and they said they recommend the not self feeding unit because people tend to break them and should just get the just rotating unit, so how do I try to push the snake while it rotates? Any advice on this??

And no, I have not yet try to use my manual snake to see if the melting gallon staff worked... I am convincing myself to go now and try... maybe I get lucky!

Thanks from the trenches of waste

 

[CT18]

Be careful with pouring chemicals in your drain as the septic tank has enzymes that break down organics.