Rid-X for septic

[EightFingers]

Should I be using this in my septic system? We had it pumped right after we bought the house and so far no problems. Is it cheap insurance or a waste of money?

[Carey]

Basically, if you are properly maintaining your septic system, and are not doing anything to kill the biotic "bugs", then biotic (not chemical!) additives are not really a necessity, as you system should build its own...if you are damaging you biotic ecosystem, then adding stuff will not cure the problem, as when they hit the tank, they are exposed to waste you have created...

Maintain a healthy septic...and then additives are not necessary

Here is a septic maintenance guide from WVU:
http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/pdf/ww/septic/pl_fall04.pdf

[Chas]

Yes, conventional wisdom is to not add anything to "help" it.

My septic tank is over 50 years old and still works perfectly. I have it pumped every 2 years even though my system can go for 4 years based on its size and my usage of it. I do this because I don't want to even think about the expense and headache of having solids clog the drain field and having to replace it.

The "cheapest insurance" is to have it pumped regularly and follow the guidelines in the link Carey provided.

[Seeb]

Dont dump to much bleach down the drain. And live yeast helps to get the good bacteria going again.

[kalakoa]

I've been using the RidX consistently since my cesspool went in -- but only one scoop a month, not the several scoops indicated by the directions.

[EightFingers]

Why would you use it on a cesspool?

[ericlp]

http://www.familyhandyman.com/plumbing/h...s/view-all

Pretty good read... Dunno about ridX, but bought 12 little bags at Home depot ... I empty a bag in the toilet every 6 months or so. I figure it can't hurt.

I wish I read the above before I got my septic installed, might have added a few filters to drain field.

I haven't got my tank pumped out, any good recomendations?

Edit:

I have shower, and washing machine going out to banana patch. Works great so far. Then a friend came over and asked why I have the kitchen and bath sinks going to the septic tank? ... Good question. I don't know... do plants like toothpaste? It's amazing when you start thinking about what goes down a drain. But wouldn't food particles be bad in hawaii to empty out in a banana patch?

Dunno, maybe not too good to be empting out in a septic tank? Then, I'm thinking, the shower is outdoors anyway, but it's all I need to have the bugs start trying to crawl up the lines from the banana patch to the kitchen and bathroom sinks. Yes, they have traps but roaches can swim under water for a few hours with out dying.

[Tink]

I would run the kitchen sink and toilets to the septic, as the grease residuals get pretty stinky in open air, the toilet, well, you know! Everything else, showers, lav(bathroom) sinks, clothes washer can go straight out to garden, or garden catchment tank. A filter inline out at the drain field would probably just clog and give grief, so pumping and inspection of tank every five years or so will do, as any grease usually forms a "skin" on the top of the liquid in your septic tank and needs to be broken up to be able to break down, or pumped out.
The Rid X is OK for an occasional enzyme "spike", but doesn't work well to assure the solids stay on their side of the tank for breakdown, hence the pump out every five years or so. Once the solids enter the drain field, you are done, replacement of drain field necessary.

Community begins with Aloha

[terracore]

quote:

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Originally posted by EightFingers

Why would you use it on a cesspool?

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When I was new to cesspool and dumb I bought two bottles of Roebic Laboratories, Inc. K-47-4 32-Ounce Cesspool Treatment from Amazon and blindly poured one bottle in, not knowing what the previous owners had left us. A year later when it was supposedly time to put it in again, I instead lowered a camera on "night vision" mode taped to a pipe and took a good look at the cesspool. It was empty, in fact it looked brand new. There were about a billion cockroaches in there and my guess is that they were the ones keeping the pit clean, not the cesspool treatment.

[EightFingers]

I figured I'd get on a regular pump routine. Should be a lot easier now that I removed the concrete the previous owners poured over both access hatches!