When it comes to septic tank installation, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. For one, if you are not a handy person, or if you don’t know your way around a set of tools, you probably want to leave the installation to the professionals. If you do know your way around a set of tools and you are confident that you can install a septic tank properly, it will help to have a few tips and tricks under your belt. The last thing you want is to install a septic tank improperly, because there is no turning back. Here are five DIY septic tank installation tips for handy homeowners.
- Make sure that you purchase your septic tank system from a trusted retailer. For instance, National Tank Outlet has one of the widest selections of septic tank systems on the market, so you will undoubtedly find the right system for your home. You want to purchase from a registered septic tank retailer, because you don’t want to end up with a dud.
- Make sure that you have all the tools lined up. When it comes to installing a septic tank, a few screwdrivers and a hammer won’t necessarily do the trick. You will need a motorized backhoe and you will need a number of motorized power tools to dig up the area where you will be installing the tank. In most cases, you will need to dig quite deep, so a shovel may work to clear the top layer of soil, but you will need some more heavy-duty tools to really break into the earth. And beyond just tools, you should also have a pressure transducer ready to be installed in the tank. This will alert you if the liquid level in your tank becomes too high.
- Make sure that you have all your permits before you break ground. In some cases, you may not be allowed to place your septic tank in a certain area of your property. If you live in a community that is semi-rural, there may be utility lines underneath the soil. The last thing you want is to break a gas line – this can start a massive fire. Not only that, but you could damage equipment and even your home. So, get permitted before you start digging.
- Make sure that you understand how your land is situated. Do you live on a hill? Do you live on an incline? Is it flat? All of these questions are important to ask, because you don’t want to blindly dig the space for your septic tank and then place it the wrong way. A septic tank should be on only a slight incline, but any more than that and you may need to do some surveying.
- Make sure that you pack the soil down tightly after the ground system is installed. Once you have the tank in place, you can start organizing your tools and cleaning up. However, before you return the backhoe, you want to make sure that the soil placed on top of the tank is firmly packed. In the end, you don’t want odors coming through and you don’t want the weight of the earth to damage the tank.