Septic Install

We are far enough out of Tucson that we can not tap into the local sewer system.  We debated for a long time about whether or not to go completely off grid and install composting toilets and had pretty much decided that was the direction we were going, against the concerns of Jeff's mom.  But after a fortuitous stop at the Real Goods store in Hopland, CA, we laid eyes on what we thought was going to be the throne of our dreams only to have our dreams brought back to earth by the knowledgeable salesman.  He educated us to the fact that composting toilets probably weren't right for our house.  A septic system it was to be.  So that night at the family reunion we informed Jeff's mom about our new decision and she let out a cheer of joy! 

Of course nothing is easy when it comes to this house endeavor and so it was with the septic system also.  Back in November of 2018 we had a crew come out and evaluate our property for possible septic system locations.  After digging a couple holes around the property in order to perform some percolation tests, the water guy informed us that there was only one place we could put the leach field and since it was so small and so close to the wash we would have to use an alternative septic system called an Elgen System.  

Mini excavator digging for the perc test

Mini excavator in action

Perc test hole ... yeah no rocks, mostly dirt!

So now that we knew what kind of system we were going to use we just needed to wait until we got to the right place in the build schedule to start the install.  The first step was to excavate the hole for the septic tank.  The tank needed to be up near the house so can you guess what they had to bring out to dig the hole?  Yup, you guessed it the big hammer!  They did all the excavation while we were at work so we saved our ears, but we were left with a big hole in the ground.

Initial prep work before The Hammer arrives

The Hammer returns!

Checking progress

Jeff at the bottom of the hole

Septic tank hole description

With the hole completed it was time to bring in the septic tank.  We went with a 1500 gal tank which is way more than we need for the two of us, but it will allow for growth if we ever decide to add another bathroom.  The truck didn't have any issues coming up the hill but getting it backed up to the hole required a three point turn with a lot of micro turns added in for good measure.

Arrival of the truck

First test was to back into the big parking spot

Then turn down the hill

Finally backed up to the hole

We encountered our next hurdle once the truck was backed up to the hole.  The tuck has to put out/down legs on the back to increase its stability for when the crane is used to lower the tank into the hole.  Well, the ground was not very compact and the support legs kept sinking into the dirt.  Lucas did a little negotiating with the driver, moved some rocks around and finally we were ready to crane the tank into the hole.

Lucas negotiating with the driver

There weren't any lifting points on the tank, instead they wrapped a chain around and over the tank and when they put tension on the chain the friction between the chain and the tank kept the tank from slipping out of the chain.  A very simple and efficient process.

Hooking up the crane for the lift

The start of the lifting process

The swing

The placement

Placement complete

It really is a big tank ... the leap over to it was fun too!

Nancy contemplating her existance

With the tank in place it was time to partially back fill around the tank.  

Burying the tank

The next step was to connect the septic line from the house to the tank and then start digging the trench downhill from the tank to the leach field.

Septic line from the house to the tank

The first section of the trench

Around the bend and down the hill to the leach field

The leach field is located about half way down the hill toward the wash crossing just to the north of the road up to the house.  This is where they put in the Elgen system.  This system uses a series of geotextile fabric baffles to provide verticle surface area and oxygen transfer to the treated effluent before it is applied to the soil.  This increases the long-term acceptance rate into the soil.  The first step in the installation was to dig two parallel trenches.  Each being about four feet deep, four feet across and 40 feet long.

Digging the trenches

Showing off the trenches

Once the trenches were dug it was time to install the Elgen system.  First a layer of sand was put down on the bottom of the trenches.  Then the baffles were laid end to end along the bottom of the trench.

The stack of baffles

Close-up of the baffles

Baffles being laid in the trench end-to-end

One trench down, one to go

Once the baffles were in place a perferated pipe was run down the center of the baffles and then special fabric was put down to cover everything and keep the soil off the top of the baffles.  A vertical pipe was installed at the end of each baffle trench to mark the end of the system.

Everything is complete and ready to be back filled

The one nice thing about the leach field is we now have a flat area in which we can install a native plant food garden.  Our plan is to plant shallow rooted plants such as prickly pear and cholla cacti from which we can then harvest nopales (young cactus pads), tunas (prickly pear fruit) and cholla buds.  We have these growing wild on the property but it will be nice to have some in a centralized location for easy picking.

All back filled and leveled

The last thing to do was to back fill the trench for the pipe running from the tank down the hill to the leach field. The crew made quick work of this with the help of the mini excavator.

Mini excavator finishing things up

After a couple monsoon cycles the desert will reclaim this area and we won't be able to tell there was a trench here