Drainfield Repair and Replacement in the Triangle
Celebrating 30 Years of Service; Est. 1996
Why Triangle drainfields fail
A drainfield is a set of buried lines where liquid from your tank soaks into the soil. It works only as long as the soil can take the water.
Around Durham, Morrisville, southern Cary and Apex, the soil is dense Triassic clay. It drains slowly, and when it is saturated in winter and spring a field with no spare capacity backs up. Age counts too. Older fields have had decades of load.
Then there is what happens in the house and the yard. A leaking toilet sends the field more water than it was sized for. A garbage disposal fills the tank with solids faster, and they carry over to the field when the tank is not pumped. Cars and equipment parked over it compact the soil and crush pipe. Roots grow into the lines. A field that failed after years of no trouble usually had one of these behind it.
Failing drainfield signs
These are the signs we see most:
- A wet, spongy or unusually green strip of lawn over the lines, even in dry weather.
- A sewage smell in the yard near the tank or the field.
- Slow drains throughout the house, not just one fixture.
- Gurgling pipes and toilets that flush slowly.
- Water that stands on the field for days after rain.
- Sewage backing up in the lowest drain, or surfacing in the yard.
These can also come from a full tank, a clogged filter or a bad distribution box, which is why we check those first. Sewage in the house or yard is an emergency: see emergency septic service.
Drainfield repair and replacement: what we check and what it means
We start at the tank. Is it full? Is the outlet tee in place? Is the effluent filter clogged? Then the distribution box: is it level, cracked or full of roots? Many calls that start as a failed drainfield end as a pump-out, a filter cleaning or a box repair, which cost less than a new field. See septic tank pumping.
Drain field repair means fixing part of the field: replacing crushed or root-filled lines, reconnecting lines that have separated, or repairing the box that feeds them. See root blockage removal. Replacement means a new field, designed to the soil on your lot. Which one you need depends on what failed, how much of the field is gone, and what the soil allows.
Both go through the county. A repair or a replacement needs a repair permit from the environmental health office, and replacement starts with a soil evaluation so the county can see what the ground can handle. Wake County Environmental Services and Durham County Public Health Environmental Health cover most of our work, and Orange, Chatham and Johnston counties have their own offices. We tell you what your county needs before work starts.
A repaired field should last for years when the tank is pumped on schedule, because solids that reach the field are what plug it. We will not promise a number of years. It depends on the soil, the water use and what is left of the old field.
Field work is covered by our septic repairs and residential septic service. Where we do this work: septic repair in Durham, septic repair in Raleigh, septic service in Chapel Hill, septic pumping in Cary, septic repair in Apex and septic service in Clayton.
Drain field repair questions
What homeowners ask before they decide anything.
Is it my drainfield or my tank?
Often it is the tank. A full tank or a clogged effluent filter backs water up into the house. A missing outlet tee lets solids out into the field and plugs it. We check all three first. Call (919) 481-6929 and tell us what you see.
Can a failed drainfield be repaired, or does it need replacing?
Sometimes the lines, the box or a section can be repaired. If most of the field is saturated or collapsed, replacement is the honest answer. We tell you which after we look.
What does drainfield replacement cost?
The price depends on the site, so we look before we quote. It moves with the size of the field, what the soil evaluation calls for, how much has failed and how easy it is to reach. We also give senior, veteran, neighborhood and multi-tank discounts.
Will the field recover if I use less water?
Cutting back can help a saturated field after a wet spell. If the cause is a failed line, a clogged field or a broken box, the problem comes back.
Do I need a permit to repair a drainfield?
Yes. The county issues a repair permit, and a replacement also needs a soil evaluation. We walk you through it.