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Macerator pump and septic tanks


Bert2

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Question about using a macerator as it grinds the black down very fine I am going to be dumping sometimes into a friend's septic tank. My friend's concern is that the discharge is so fine that it will not either float or sink to the bottom of the first chamber of his septic tank and will flow to the second chamber and then into his underground field with adverse consequences. Any advice?

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 Going from one tank to the next they have an elbow facing down so anything floating cant go through and Then where his pump sits is inside a stainless steel fine mesh tube that goes down into the tank about 4' as I recall. If it gets through the mesh then it will go through the outlet holes in the leach field. Anything that does get to the mesh thats to big will in time detiorate and fall to bottom of tank. We were told that screen needed to be pulled yearly and cleaned... So we just told septic guy to put it on his calendar.

Jim Spence

2000 Dodge 3500 1 ton QC 4x4 dually 5.9 diesel LB

BD exhaust brake, 6 spd manual trans

34CKTS Cedar Creek 5er, Trail-Air hitch

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If the effluent of your waste tanks is safe to empty into a septic system, the use of a macerator pump should do nothing more than grind up anything not yet liquefied so why would doing that create any problems? As long as the rate the material is pumped into the septic tank is not too fast for the system to handle, there should be no issue at all. If it changes anything it would help with the liquefaction process that usually takes place in the first chamber of the septic tank and so speed up the process.  The macerator would have no negative effect at all. 

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 Then where his pump sits is inside a stainless steel fine mesh tube that goes down into the tank about 4' as I recall. 

 

I am part of the maintenance team of our co-op community where we have 10 sets of septic tanks and of them, only one has any sort of pump installed and it is a lift pump that moves the effluent of the second chamber out into the drain field. Most tanks have no pumps, screens, or moving parts inside but operate on a natural action that uses natural bacteria. Being an RV community, we do have members who have macerators installed in their RVs and we do not restrict the use of them. Our park has been doing this since 1997.

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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2 hours ago, Kirk Wood said:

If the effluent of your waste tanks is safe to empty into a septic system, the use of a macerator pump should do nothing more than grind up anything not yet liquefied so why would doing that create any problems? As long as the rate the material is pumped into the septic tank is not too fast for the system to handle, there should be no issue at all. If it changes anything it would help with the liquefaction process that usually takes place in the first chamber of the septic tank and so speed up the process.  The macerator would have no negative effect at all. 

I am part of the maintenance team of our co-op community where we have 10 sets of septic tanks and of them, only one has any sort of pump installed and it is a lift pump that moves the effluent of the second chamber out into the drain field. Most tanks have no pumps, screens, or moving parts inside but operate on a natural action that uses natural bacteria. Being an RV community, we do have members who have macerators installed in their RVs and we do not restrict the use of them. Our park has been doing this since 1997.

Here in CA they do a perk test and if the ground does not absorb water fast enough Then you get the privelage of installing an above ground system for a leach field and at the top of the particular dirt you have hauled in a pipe is installed across the top and holes drilled at intervals on top with a lid above them about an 1" for the water to squirt against. The holes I believe are 3/16" maybe 1/8" but the screen around pump is very fine mesh so it couldnt get to the pump. They are set to pump for an ex amount of time and also have floats and if the pump has to kick in before an alarm goes off to let you know that it's pumping more than is normal. An above ground system is $50K range and works great, BUT have the installers phone number programmed into your phone.

EDIT: the mound of dirt is about 4' high and top about 8' wide with pipe and holes put on top and then covered with about 12" of dirt, We expanded duck hunting clubhouse so another system had to be added another $50K and then the pumps ran on a cycle 1st one mound and then the other one.. ( our water table with rice growing right beside us was only about 3' below ground level. thus the reason for an above ground system

Jim Spence

2000 Dodge 3500 1 ton QC 4x4 dually 5.9 diesel LB

BD exhaust brake, 6 spd manual trans

34CKTS Cedar Creek 5er, Trail-Air hitch

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4 hours ago, Devilishjim said:

Then you get the privelage of installing an above ground system

Ah yes, you are thinking of an aerobic system , which is a variant of the typical septic system. They do seem to be getting to be more common in most areas. Still, effluent acceptability should not be effected by use of a macerator. 

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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13 minutes ago, Kirk Wood said:

Ah yes, you are thinking of an aerobic system , which is a variant of the typical septic system. They do seem to be getting to be more common in most areas. Still, effluent acceptability should not be effected by use of a macerator. 

No I wouldnt think so except for possibly if the septic was pumping, then it might be in suspension to where some got into the pumping tanking at the same time a macerator was pumping 40 gals in. But if screen was cleaned yearly the small amount from macerator would be miniscule

Jim Spence

2000 Dodge 3500 1 ton QC 4x4 dually 5.9 diesel LB

BD exhaust brake, 6 spd manual trans

34CKTS Cedar Creek 5er, Trail-Air hitch

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