Septic Tanks

08/24/24

“How do septic tanks work?”

Wastewater needs to be purified before it reaches groundwater supplies again. However, many water purification techniques use electricity to work. How can we accomplish this without electricity? Well, what if we were to flush wastewater into an underground tank. The heavy solid contaminants in the wastewater would sink to the bottom, and lighter ones would float to the top and form a scum layer. Over the span of one to two days, the solids should break down into scum. Now what if this tank were to have bacteria that breaks down the solid waste? When the tank fills up more, the liquid will empty into the drainfield and become absorbed by the soil. The bacteria in the soil layers will cleanse the water of contaminants, and eventually transfer it to the groundwater layer. These machines called Septic Tanks are a real thing and this is how they work.

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