my septic tank is backing up, and i need to call someone to pump the shit out. (har har.) anyone have any recommendations for poo-removal (ncsu/cam village area) as far as price goes? thx

5/8/2009 8:23:33 AM

is this your place or do you rent?

if you rent, i would think this would be your landlord's responsibility

don't have any recs tho.

5/8/2009 9:01:38 AM

hopefully it can just be pumped and you don't need a new drainfield and/or tank

5/8/2009 1:23:21 PM

we just had ours pumped. 95% water, hardly any sludge, and it was still backing up. Apparently either the distribution box is clogged with roots or the drain pipes in the drainage field are clogged.

This is a 50 year old septic system though.

5/8/2009 2:52:00 PM

you should get your system pumped every 10 years just because...it's cheap (~$250 or $25/year) preventive maintenance

5/8/2009 3:04:52 PM

Do you live in the city limits? Is city sewer available? maybe that is an option for you...

5/8/2009 3:31:28 PM

You will most likely need a new drainfield if its backing up. It could possibly be a clogged filter in the outlet end of the septic tank (if your tank has one).

If you do have to install a new drainfield make sure to put valve splitting the old system with the new one. The old one will heal up over time and you can alternate efluent between the two drainfields.

[Edited on May 8, 2009 at 8:14 PM. Reason : .]

5/8/2009 8:10:43 PM

pumping the tank is the cheapest fix, so you should probably do that first.

as far as companies go, call around and get the cheapest price. service will not vary hardly any between companies.

5/8/2009 8:25:35 PM

you may or may not need a new drain field. get it pumped right away and then hold off on doing crazy amounts of laundry or taking long showers for a while so the field can dry out. I have seen one that I thought was a goner ( old and undersized) come back from the dead. Wake Co Health department has some really good folks that can come out and help you figure out what is wrong and if it can be fixed.

5/8/2009 11:54:38 PM