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Septic system - the more I read the more confused I am.


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I have purchased a home in La Floresta that was built in the 1980's.  There are no plans and the home has been remodeled a few times.  I ask the realtor where the septic tank was and he said it was under the flagstone entry at the front wall - maybe. Then I ask the previous owners when I ran into them in town and they said there was not tank but just a septic field in the front grass area by the road. but I really believe a tank is necessary. 

I took a rod and hammer and rebar and did some pounding and found some buried rock but nothing indicating a tank.  I have decided the only way to find the tank is to hire an inspector which is fine, but now I'm wondering about the leach field.  

I want to plant some fruit trees and some decorative trees but the septic situation as me stumped.  Food is not to be grown over a leach field in the States so I assume it is the same here but I see a heck of a lime and fruiting trees all over the place and wonder how everyone else figured out where their sh$# is leaching.  And I know the best way to screw up a septic tank or line is to plant a shallow rooting tree. But again, I see lots plastered with trees.  

Am I missing something different about tanks and leachfields here Lakeside.  I see some post where people say they have never had theirs cleaned and others who have. I read some people flush paper and others swear you shouldn't.  Some people flush buttermilk and others say no maintenance is needed.  

Is there a septic whisperer than can tame my poo fears?      

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Most plumbing is pipes that are too narrow to flush paper and will stop up eventually.  It has nothing to do with the septic tank.

Without a tank and just sending effluent into  fields you would eventually see paper showing.  Odds are you have a tank.

My house was built in 1964.  I have lived in it for 17 years and never needed to have it flushed.

Several years ago sewers were developed at lakeside.  Some sewer lines were attached to the septic tanks that already existed and newer builds mostly were added directly to the sewer system.

But, being as where we live, nothing is ever sure.

 

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They don't use leach fields here - wrong soil type and older construction methods didn't take the time to build them with the proper materials .  You likely either have a tank (some exist with aerators) or a connection to a municipal or fracc. sewer line.  Most "grey" water just finds its way to an arroyo nearby.

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32 minutes ago, Lakesider said:

We have the same predicament Yo1....Even the guy I hired to fix my place can't find it. I'm in Chula Vista btw.

I guess I just need to not stress about it and eat some e coli limes and worry about a root busting a pipe when it happens. At least that way I would know were the pipe was.

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3 minutes ago, TheBestSideOfTheWall said:

I guess I just need to not stress about it and eat some e coli limes and worry about a root busting a pipe when it happens. At least that way I would know were the pipe was.

 

rolling-on-the-floor-laughing_1f923.png

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On 27/8/2017 at 8:18 PM, TheBestSideOfTheWall said:

I guess I just need to not stress about it and eat some e coli limes and worry about a root busting a pipe when it happens. At least that way I would know were the pipe was.


Is there any evidence that fecal coliforms in sub-surface ground water are transported up plant roots?

Everything I've read only describes fecal coliform contamination on fruits & veg from the farmers spraying liquified pig or human waste (aka "night soil") directly onto the fruit & veg plants as fertilizer or as watering crops with contaminated water.  

When crop roots or fruit tree roots contact fecal coliforms in ground water, 50 years of measurements say the coliforms stay at the roots.  iThere are no reported mechanisms of movement of fecal coliforms moving up roots in the plants or fruits.

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A little off the OP's topic but to answer your question snowyco, many of the drilled wells operating along the north shore (including Municipal wells) that are pulling water up from about 50-100 meters down do test for the presence of some amount of fecal coliform counts.  That is why it is important to inject chlorine at these well heads to get it under control.  There is a problem during the hot/dry season that this water (if untreated) will become quite warm while travelling through distribution pipes and sitting in aljibes.  This will result in a "bloom" of the coliform bacteria and become hazardous to your health.  If you are watering your garden with this water, you can contaminate the produce as well.  Make sure you wash your fruit and vegetables very well with a solution of Microdyn before eating it.  Chlorine is your friend.

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