For homeowners across the country, autumn should be a time for getting the house ready for the frigid winter months. They should do things like have their furnace cleaned, seal cracks around the house and consider adding insulation to reduce energy costs. Homeowners with septic systems need to go one step further with winter septic maintenance in Prior Lake, MN.
Professional maintenance before winter sets in is a key to prolonging the system’s lifespan and avoiding any problems during the holiday season, when your tank likely gets a lot more use than normal. Keep reading to learn more about pre-winter upkeep!
What does winter maintenance entail?
Winter maintenance involves a few things that we can do, as well as some items you can do by yourself. Here’s what they are:
- Have a professional inspection: We recommend hiring a professional once a year to inspect your septic system. If you haven’t had one yet, now’s the time! During an inspection, we’ll measure the scum and sludge levels in your tank to determine whether or not it’s time for pumping. We’ll also look over your entire system to ensure everything looks up to snuff.
- Insulate: Protect all of your pipes by insulating them with towels or pipe insulation from the hardware store. You can wrap all of the pipes inside your home by yourself, but you might want to call a pro to more effectively insulate the pipes leading from your home to your septic tank.
- Spread mulch: Just like your trees, your septic tank could use a nice layer of mulch to protect it this winter. Mulch will provide insulation that’ll help prevent the liquid in the tank from freezing and cracking.
- Use hot water: Go ahead and splurge by taking a long hot shower or bath! That hot water running through your pipes and into your tank will prevent freezing and will feel quite nice on a cold winter day.
- Keep cars off the grass: Parking may be hard to come by if you’re having guests over for the holidays. Just be sure they don’t park on your drain field or atop your septic tank. Heavy vehicles will compact the soil, which could lead to cracks in the system.
Why is winter maintenance important?
Ignoring the tasks above leads to quite a few different problems. These are the most common issues we see each winter from customers who ignore winter septic maintenance in Prior Lake, MN:
- Frozen components: Subzero winter temperatures can cause a bunch of different things around the house to freeze up, including your septic system. Not laying down mulch, insulating your pipes or running hot water can lead to freezing.
- Cracks: Whether it’s a cracked pipe leading to the tank or a crack in the tank itself, a crack anywhere in your septic system is bad news. This is damage that a professional technician will have to repair right away if you want running water in your home for the winter.
- Backups: It’s hard to think of a worse problem than backed-up toilets and sinks, especially during the holidays when you have guests over! If your septic tank hasn’t been pumped in a while, or if there’s a clog in the system, this scenario could happen to you.
Ready your septic system for winter by contacting us for winter septic maintenance in Prior Lake, MN! Reach out to Mike’s Septic & McKinley Sewer Services soon, before the temperatures get any colder.