Driving over a septic tank

[5030]

when I was young, the old-timer concrete men told me when concrete is poured, the first 50 years it slowly gets harder, the second 50 years it is in the softening/degradation stage.
The qualifier is; what concrete "recipe" was used. I've seen 5 yr-old concrete crumbling already.

Sounds like Michigan roads to me... Crumbling concrete.

 

[SmallChange]

I read somewhere that falls into septic tanks are often fatal. Naturally, this surprising tidbit was hard to get out of my mind for a while. And, now, here it is again.

 

[5030]

Maybe fatal but certainly stinky....lol

I guess it would depend on the size if the tabk itself howver. Large commercial sized ones you could certainly fall into and maybe get stinky and drown in but the size I have (1500 gallons) would be hard to fall into and expire.

 

[Zetorboy]

Why complicate things! Is'nt any place else to ride your piece if equipment ? Are you that short of land!!!!

 

[MH8675309]

It will be fine till it aint. Then you'll be kicking yourself

 

[shooterdon]

Why complicate things! Is'nt any place else to ride your piece if equipment ? Are you that short of land!!!!

I have no shortage of places to ride the tractor. I bought a ZT a few years ago because I hate cutting grass and I had over 20 trees to deal with. But things have changed.

I still hate cutting grass. But after the last ice storm, about 1/3 of the trees are too damaged. Another 1/2 are useless trees that can be removed. So, was considering getting a finish mower for the tractor. The tractor has a cab with AC so that is attractive.

I am going to map out the tank and see if I can mow over it while keeping the machine off the area and reaching in from the sides. Another option is to use a flail mower with hydraulic offset.

Getting rid of the trees also cuts the amount of leaves I need to deal with.

I like the idea of making a small island with plants like in post 40. That solves the problem.

Hope that helps you understand.

 

[DarkBlack]

If your septic tank was at proper depth, if simply driving a car/tractor over it causes it to fail, then it is/was a weak, failing septic tank anyway. You’ll just bring it’s poor condition to your attention a bit sooner

 

[DarkBlack]

when I was young, the old-timer concrete men told me when concrete is poured, the first 50 years it slowly gets harder, the second 50 years it is in the softening/degradation stage.
The qualifier is; what concrete "recipe" was used. I've seen 5 yr-old concrete crumbling already.

I don’t think good 50 year old concrete “softens”. It always gets harder but at a minuscule pace after 50 years. I think what you are describing is the concrete getting brittle, and breaking apart.

 

[4570Man]

If your septic tank was at proper depth, if simply driving a car/tractor over it causes it to fail, then it is/was a weak, failing septic tank anyway. You’ll just bring it’s poor condition to your attention a bit sooner

What is “proper” depth? Around here any dirt covering the top is proper depth.

 

[4570Man]

Here’s a picture of a pretty standard septic permit for my area. The leech field is dug 18 inches deep. The pipe is installed on top of 3 inches of gravel so it’s really 15 inches deep. The outlet on the tank is 13 inches under the top of the tank. Code requires the first bed to be at minimum 4” of slope from the tank. Digging the beds deeper isn’t allowed and that’s non negotiable terms. The only way to get more fall to the beds is move them farther down the hill but septic systems take up a lot of room and we’re frequently fighting for every inch of ground possible to get the required footage in while maintaining the property line setback, the structure setback and maintaining the duplicate area so moving down the hill 20-30 ft to get more fall just isn’t possible. So what I’m saying in more words is the septic tank is frequently set with just a dusting of dirt over top and that’s really the only option.

 

[DarkBlack]

What is “proper” depth? Around here any dirt covering the top is proper depth.

Valid point. It’s going to vary by location for sure. Unless your land slopes steep from the house foundation, you need to go deep enough for the proper drain pipe slope 1/4” per foot, unless you’re using a pump. Usually you want it hidden with grass growing so you need at least 3” for that. For us in cold climate, we get better winter bacterial activity having it 1/2’ or more deeper to keep the temperature up. I guess some don’t care, and have the top right at the soil surface.
In those cases, I wouldn’t drive over it either

 

[Tx Jim]

My septic lateral domes installed in 2001 with permits & inspected by county inspector has no gravel under lateral domes

 

[dieselscout80]

My septic lateral domes installed in 2001 with permits & inspected by county inspector has no gravel under lateral domes

Mine are that way too. I’ve wondered if they had say 6” or so of gravel below them if they would be better?

 

[Locoweed]

I have followed this with some interest. My zero turn mower is having problems with one of the drive motors again & I am not going to fix it this time. Using one of the tractors with a midmount mower is my first choice to replace it. My "yard" contains my septic tanks & drain field. The tractor with mower, loaded tires & me is over a ton. Last night I tried it for the first time. All went well thankfully. This is not a recommendation, just how it went for me.

 

[4570Man]

Mine are that way too. I’ve wondered if they had say 6” or so of gravel below them if they would be better?

The whole appeal of chambers is the labor savings of not having to move gravel. If you were going to bed the chambers with gravel you might as well go old school and IMO still the best and do the traditional gravel/pipe system. As long as the ground is pretty dry and it’s not cutting ruts you can drive over a gravel pipe system without a lot of concern. The chambers are delicate and won’t support driving over them.

 

[danielk]

I drive over my tank and leach field regularly. Kubota L3010 with implements, so I'm supposing about 3500 lbs.

 

[Gord Baker]

I have an LS 4140 with cab and loaded tires. Estimated weight is 5500 lbs.

Would it be safe to drive over a septic tank buried 10” below grade?

NO

 

[olenjohn]

If you move across the tank quickly, it won’t damage the tractor.

 

[Skypilota72]

If you move across the tank quickly, it won’t damage the tractor.

 

[saxtonhill]

I've been driving over my field with a NH subcompact for over 20 years without issue. I probably shouldn't have said that though as I may have jinked myself. I would never drive my L4600 anywhere near it.