This article will discuss how plastics and nylons from laundry water can cause clogging in a leach field. Pollution is an environmental problem that just doesn’t go away. It continually brings forth various issues that lead to health and sanitation problems. Urban areas often experience flooding because of non-biodegradable materials that end up in the drains and sewers. The same problem can happen in your home because plastic is incorporated in various home components such as appliances, furniture, cleaning materials, decorations, and clothes. You should know how plastics and nylons from laundry water can cause clogging in a leach field so that you can improve your home care starting with your wastewater disposal and treatment.
The septic system is your home’s personal wastewater treatment system. Your household produces wastewater on a daily basis. Homeowners these days make sure that their septic system is well taken care of the environment friendly way. The Green revolution these last few decades are able to motivate more people into looking into their housekeeping practices. They do this to make sure that they do not aggravate the situation by using harsh chemicals or adding more pollutants such as plastics and nylons. Man has used plastics in many things around the house. It could also be found in clothes and accessories that enter the washing machine on a regular basis.
Plastic and nylons are non-biodegradable. They are synthetic that’s why the septic system’s anaerobic bacteria won’t be able to degrade them anymore. There are biodegradable plastics already but they are also detrimental to the household. Methane is produced when biodegradable plastics are decomposed in the septic system. Methane is an odorless and colorless gas that can be toxic in elevated amounts. It is also a flammable gas that could easily cause destruction to your property if there is a sudden spark. Laundry water is a fast medium for plastics and nylons because they are used as fiber as well. Once they make it into septic system, they will only accumulate and clog the normal flow of the wastewater treatment process. These plastic particles will even get pushed into the leach field. If the plastic particulates clog the leach field, the aerobic bacteria will die off. If the aerobic bacteria are killed off, biomat will not be regulated anymore. Biomat will then increase in number and end up clogging the system as well. You will only find yourself drowning in expenses because of the septic problems that you will have when plastic gets into your leach field. Ultimately, your leach field will fail because of the clogging. If this is not dealt with immediately, it will set you back thousands of dollars worth in repairs and replacements. There goes the college fund, right?
The septic system is usually the collector of greywater when you don’t have a greywater or drywell system in your yard. This means that all the water from your drains, showers, sinks, dishwasher, and washing machine will definitely end up in your septic system. If you have a drywell system or greywater system, the greywater will be treated and recycled to flush the toilet or water the lawn. It will not enter the septic system anymore. If you don’t have such systems, additional filters should be installed in the inflow pipe and the outflow pipe of the septic system so that the effluent won’t have plastics and nylons anymore. The leach field will then be safe from clogging, malfunction, and inevitable failure.
However you look at it, plastic will always be a source of various problems for the environment and for your septic system. The leach field in your yard will suffer a lot once plastic accumulates in it. It will be a great relief if your laundry water is free of plastic tidbits that will cause leach field failure. If you think that your leach field is starting to have problems with plastic clogging, immediately seek the help of your septic expert. With proper treatment of the clogging issue, you will not find yourself troubled with wastewater backups, flooding, and overflow anymore.