This article will cover how to landscape around drain field lines. Every homeowner should know and understand how to landscape around drain field lines. Plants are good to have as natural decoration for your home’s perimeter but they should not damage or disable your septic system. Landscaping should be done with the help of knowledgeable professionals who can help you with your landscaping decisions. You should not take a risk and just randomly plant anything you want on your lawn. Root systems of higher plants can damage or clog your drain field lines. If this happens, your entire septic will fail. Here are some tips on how to landscape around drain fields:
- Plan the landscaping for your drain field lines.Your drain field lines should not be interrupted during the wastewater treatments process. Pause and look at your lawn for a moment. Think about how it would fare for years to com. Your landscaping should not interfere with the normal flow of wastewater treatment. With this in mind, you should never place structures such as sheds, patios, parking areas, driveways, decks, swings, and driveways over your drain field lines. These will only be huge obstacles in accessing your drain field system during maintenance, care, repairs, and replacements. Plan all these well before you design and install your drain field system.
- Keep access points in sight.Remember that accessing your drain field lines is vital. The elements in your drain field should be found right away so that drain field line care and pump outs can be done easily. The septic systems decades ago had access ports that were installed underground, about 6 inches to 2 feet. That is why it was so difficult for them to find. Homeowners usually have sundials, potted plants, sculptures and bird baths to mark the location of the access point. Modern septics have access points that can be seen above the surface. However, homeowners tend to disguise them by placing movable planter boxes over the access points. This is an effective way to easily pump ut the septic system so that the drain field lines won’t be clogged.
- Care for water and soil
- Make sure that irrigation systems and runoff drains are not placed over the drain field. The excess water load that enters the drain field will only stop the normal flow of wastewater treatment. The raw sewage will go back into your home and over your lawn. The flooding will kill off the aerobic bacteria in the drain field. As you know, the aerobic bacteria regulate the biomat and breakdown particles that may still be present in the pre-treated effluent. The biomat purify the effluent but if they’re not regulated, they clog the drain field. Any irrigation system should be installed at least ten feet away from your drain field lines.
- Make sure that heavy vehicles and animals move over your drain field. Their heavy weight causes soil compaction that reduces the number of bacteria that treat wastewater, and negatively affect the performance of the drain field system.
- Never use bark, landscape fabric on over the drain field. These only store moisture and decrease the amount of air being exchanged.
- Make sure that large animals do not graze over the cesspool area because they also cause soil compaction.
- Do not use mulch, bark, or landscape fabric over the cesspool. These decrease the amount of air that is being exchanged and also retain moisture.
- Discuss the design with your landscape expert. They have know-how about the techniques in making your property an ideal place for your drain field system.
- Decide on your plants wisely. Experts recommend using small, low maintenance, and low water plants that have shallow roots. Grass and herbs are good because they provide sufficient cover over the drain field while leaving your drain field alone to do its job efficiently.Go forth and express your love for plants through landscaping. Just make sure that your drain fields will not suffer during the aesthetic change.