Leach Fields

The most important part of your Septic System is getting Effluent into the soil in accordance with NYS Health Department and Local Regulations.  There are a multitude of systems that do just that.  We strongly recommend using an engineer to design a system that will work best for you.  We work closely with the engineer to ensure that it is installed to their specs and your system will function for years to come.

conventional ABSORPTION trenches

A conventional system is the most common in our area.  It's a single solid pipe from the septic tank to the distribution box (D-box).  The d-box is installed level and has speed levelers installed on the inlet of each leach line.  The d-box with properly set speed levelers ensure that each line gets the same amount of water.  The lines themselves are perforated (have holes in the pipe) to allow effluent to leach into the ground.  The pipe is installed into a stone bed that is typically 8 to 12 inches deep.  The effluent leaves the pipes through their engineered holes and works through the stone.  The stone creates an interface with the surrounding soil that allows for the effluent to work into the ground. 

 The number of lines varies for each customer, but most people have 4 to 6 lines.  

Let's assume that you have 4 lines.  That means that every time you flush your toilet the septic tank takes in the 2 gallons at the inlet and pushes 2 gallons of effluent out of the outlet and sends it to the leach field.  The d-box then takes the 2 gallons and gives each line 25% of that flush, which is a half gallon of effluent.  This works through stone and soil into the ground.

seepage pit (Drywells)

Drywells are still commonly found around Central New York.  A solid pipe connects the outlet of the septic tank to the drywell.  It's very simple in it's design.  The largest drawbacks are that they are not as efficient as a leech field and must be maintained like a septic tank.  It is becoming more uncommon for these to be installed due to their poor efficiency.  The health department chooses all other absorption systems over this one.

Gravelless absorption trench system

These systems are trenched much like conventional, but that is where the similarities end.  These systems use chambers instead of pipes and there is no stone.  They rely on the excessive air space to hold the effluent until it has time to be absorbed by the soil.  These are typically installed only when engineers have specified them.