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A Safety Guide for Septic System Inspection, Cleaning, Pumping, and Homeowner Care
- Don't work alone: Falling into a septic tank or even leaning over a septic tank can be fatal. Do not work on or at septic tanks alone - workers can become suddenly overcome by methane gas.
- Do not ever enter a septic tank unless you are specially trained and are wearing the special equipment and gear for that purpose, including self-contained breathing apparatus.
- Do not go into a septic tank to retrieve someone who has fallen in and was overcome by toxic gases unless you are equipped with a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). If a SCBA is not available, call for emergency services and put one or more fans at the top of the septic tank to blow in fresh air.
- Don't lean over a septic tank opening: Do not lean over or stick your head into the septic tank to examine its interior - you could fall in to the tank or become overcome by gases and fall into the tank, an event which is likely to be fatal.
- Don't ignite flames Do not light a flame at or near the tank - methane gas is explosive. At one tank pump out my client described the explosion and burns received by the pumping contractor when he stood by the tank and lit a cigarette. A reader reported a stunning methane gas explosion that damaged nearby buildings when a brush fire was built over a septic tank. [There are safer ways to find the septic tank.]
- Site must be ventilated: Decomposing wastes in the septic tank produce toxic or otherwise dangerous gases (such as methane which is both explosive and in a septic tank methane gas is an asphyxiant) which can kill a human in a matter of minutes. When working on a tank be sure the area is well ventilated.
- Rope off & Mark Dangerous Sites: If your inspection discover that there are dangerous conditions, such as an unsafe tank cover, tank collapse, or a home-made septic tank or cesspool (which are at increased risk of sudden collapse) such areas should be roped off and clearly marked as dangerous to prevent access until proper evaluation and repairs can be made.
- Safe covers: be sure that the tank and its access ports have sound and secure covers that do not risk collapse and which cannot be removed by children.
- Septic & Cesspool Collapse Hazards: Old steel tanks, thin, rusting steel or rotting home-made wood tank covers, site-built tanks and cesspools, and recently-pumped cesspools are at particular risk of collapse. Falling into a septic tank or cesspool is likely to lead to rapid asphyxiation from methane and in cases of collapse, there is risk of becoming buried. The author has consulted in cases involving such fatalities (homeowner fell into a site-built cesspool), and at one site inspection, walking near an overgrown area the author himself stepped through a rusting steel septic tank top, surviving only by throwing himself into a nearby clump of brambles! Beware of the following additional septic system inspection hazards:
- Bad septic tank covers: flimsy, rusted, old-steel, home-made, or missing septic tank/drywell/cesspool covers
- Abandoned septic tanks: systems which may not have been filled-in
- Collapsed, or collapsing septic tanks or cesspools
- Additional unexpected septic components: possible presence of multiple components at a property, abandoned or in-use
- Un-stable soils: Cesspools and septic systems in areas of unstable soils or areas of commonly-found site-built systems - collapse risk
- Cesspool pumping or agitating: pumping, aerating, or agitating cesspools in an attempt to restore function can lead to sudden collapse of these systems, especially if the cesspool or septic tank was "site built" using stacked concrete blocks or stone
- Shock & Electrical Hazards: when digging outdoors, watch out that you don't dig into and cut an electrical wire (or other buried mechanical line such as a gas or water line). Buried electrical wires can look a lot like tree roots. Chopping through an electrical wire while digging to find a septic system can be dangerous. [Thanks to Donica Ben for reminding us of this septic safety problem.]
- Unsanitary conditions: Be alert for unsanitary conditions such as surface effluent or sewage backups into buildings, events which risk serious viral and bacterial hazards and which indoors, may require professional cleaning. Be alert for personal sanitation hazards when working around septic systems, such as open cuts or failure to wash properly after working on systems.
- Damage to Septic Components: Avoid damaging septic system components or the building: Improper septic testing procedures, such as flooding a dosing-system, can damage the system. Also, remember to check for leaks into or under the building being tested when running water into the building fixtures and drains. Don't leave water running unattended - at risk of flooding the building.
Courtesy of InspectApedia at www.inspect-ny.com/septic/septicsafety.htm
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