Maintenance

A substantial percentage of homeowners in the Yellow Creek Watershed must treat wastewater on their lots. There are more than one million household sewage treatment systems (“HSTS”) in Ohio today, and more than 25 percent of new homes built in Ohio will use a HSTS. Given an estimated failure rate of 25 percent and periodic discharges from inoperable systems, up to 900,000 gallons of sewage are discharged daily throughout Ohio. Serious human illnesses, including gastroenteritis, cholera, dysentery, infectious hepatitis and encephalitis, are associated with raw sewage.

Improper siting and management of household systems have far reaching community impacts. The Ohio Department of Health lists the following examples:

· Leach lines contaminated water wells in a Butler county subdivision

· Failing systems polluting Rocky Fork Lake in Highland County and Buckeye Lake in Fairfield and 2 other counties

· Contamination of ground water from failing systems caused a gastrointestinal outbreak affecting 1,400 visitors and residents of South Bass Island

Failing systems can affect property value and saleability of homes as well.

Individual homeowners are responsible for the maintenance and operation of septic systems, and proper operation and maintenance can have a significant impact on how well the system works and how long it lasts. Failing septic systems are expensive to repair or replace, and can present a serious health hazard.

The Environmental Division of the Summit County Health Department estimates the cost to replace a failing system to be from $3,000 to $10,000, whereas the cost to inspect and pump the system is $100 to $200. These cost estimates for replacing a system may well be understated. According to US Inspect, a private home inspection company, the cost to replace a leachfield is from $6000 to $20,000, and the cost to replace a septic tank is from $1500 to $2000. The familiar old adage is right -- “It is better to be safe than sorry!”

Why Is A Well-Maintained Septic System Important?