water treatment

It is important to maintain an active population of microbes

Both tank types can meet your wastewater management needs. But the systems must be installed according to manufacturer specifications.  They also must be watertight to prevent groundwater from entering the system and overloading the treatment unit and land application area.

Fiberglass tanks are light enough to be carried to the installation site by a backhoe. They generally have an aeration chamber and clarifier in one structure. A separate trash tank and pump tank accompany the aeration chamber and clarifier.

Concrete tanks are heavier and require larger equipment to carry them to the site, which can delay installation during wet periods. Some concrete systems incorporate the trash tank, aeration chamber, clarifier and pump tank into a single structure; others include in one structure only the trash tank, aeration chamber and clarifier.

Aerobic treatment units can be built from concrete or fiberglass. Both materials are durable and can be used across the state.

A land application system, which distributes the wastewater into the soil for final treatment and disposal/reuse. Aerobic treatment units usually disperse wastewater via spray distribution systems, which include a disinfection component for removing disease-causing microorganisms, a pump tank for dosing water, and spray heads for spreading the water over the ground.

A settling chamber, commonly called a clarifier, which provides a place for the microbes that have treated the wastewater to settle out of the water.

An aeration chamber, where aerobic microbes decompose waste in the water. An aeration system consists of an air pump, piping and diffusers that force air into the aeration chamber. The air pump, located near the aerobic tank, compresses air to flow into the aeration chamber. The diffuser forces the air into the water, dividing the air into bubbles that float to the surface. The oxygen in the air bubbles goes into the water for the microbes, while the rising bubbles mix with the water.

A pretreatment tank, generally referred to as the trash tank because it removes materials that microorganisms (microbes) cannot degrade.

The aerobic treatment process includes four main components that work together to purify wastewater:

Aerobic units, which are certified as Class I aerobic systems, treat wastewater well enough to be used in conjunction with spray systems, which distribute treated wastewater over lawns. They are the most common way to treat wastewater for spray systems.

Aerobic
Aerobic units treat wastewater for homes and small businesses using the same process, only scaled down, as our municipal wastewater treatment systems use. They remove 85 to 98 percent of the organic matter and solids from the wastewater, producing effluent as clean as that from municipal wastewater treatment plants, and cleaner than that from conventional septic tanks.

Conventional gravity flow septic systems cannot be installed in clay soils, shallow soils, rock, soils that become saturated during wet periods of the year, or soils with a high water table.

The conventional gravity flow septic system is usually the most inexpensive system to install and operate for on-site wastewater disposal.

The size of the tanks and distribution system are based on the number of bedrooms in the house and the type of soil where the distribution system is installed.

The soil provides most of the wastewater treatment. Soil particles filter solids and organic matter from the wastewater. Microbes living in the soil break down the solids and kill the bacteria and pathogens in the wastewater.

trenches, plastic chambers or plastic pipe installed underground to hold the wastewater leaving the tanks until it can seep into surrounding soil.