Septic Tank Repair in the Triangle
Celebrating 30 Years of Service; Est. 1996
Septic system repair starts with a pump-out and a look inside
Slow drains, gurgling, wet ground and odors can come from the tank, the filter, the distribution box, the lines or a pump. The cheaper causes come first, so we pump the tank. That lets us see the walls, the baffles, the outlet tee and the effluent filter, and we watch the flow into the box to see whether the lines are taking water.
Then we tell you what we found. Plenty of calls that sound like a dead drainfield turn out to be a full tank or a clogged filter. If it is more than that, we say which repair you need and what it involves, and you decide. We do not sell a repair the system does not need.
We are an NC Level IV installer, certificate 3402. Call (919) 481-6929 and tell us what you see. If sewage is coming up, emergency septic service is available 24/7, any time of day or night.
What the symptom usually means
Find the line closest to what you are seeing. The first list is the symptom and its usual cause. The second list is the repair, with the page where we explain it.
- Slow drains and gurgling: usually a full tank, or a clogged filter or outlet tee
- Wet or soft ground over the field: the drainfield, or ground saturated by rain
- Sewage odor outside: a cracked lid or riser, or a problem at the box
- Backup after rain: saturated ground, or a field that is failing
- Alarm on the panel: a pump or a float switch
- Roots in the line: roots have found a joint in the pipe
- Distribution box repair and replacement
- Drainfield repair and replacement
- Root blockage removal
- Pump and control panel repair and replacement, just below
- Emergency septic service
- Septic tank pumping
Pump and control panel repair and replacement
On a pump system the usual failures are the float switch, the pump and the control panel.
- A float switch that sticks, tangles or fails, so the pump never gets the signal
- A pump that will not start, will not shut off or runs without moving water
- A control panel that has failed, or an alarm that no longer sounds
- Replacement when the pump or the panel is past repair
A silent alarm is a backup waiting to happen. The alarm tells you the pump chamber is filling faster than the pump empties it. If it is switched off, dead or ignored, the next warning is sewage in the house or the yard. When it sounds, silence it, note which alarm and which light, and call (919) 481-6929 any time. Emergency service is available 24/7.
Baffles, outlet tees, lids and risers
Some repairs are small, and we do them on the spot during a pump-out, while the tank is open. A baffle steers the flow in and out of the tank, and a broken one lets solids pass toward the box and the lines. The outlet tee holds scum back, and a cracked or clogged tee does the same damage. When we find either one broken, we tell you and replace it.
A cracked, sunk or collapsed lid is a repair too, and a good reason to add a riser, so the lid sits at the surface and the next visit does not start with a shovel. For risers and filter cleaning, see our residential septic service page.
Septic repair near you in the Triangle
We are based in Durham and repair septic systems in ten counties. These town pages say what we see in the ground there.
Not on the list? Call (919) 481-6929. We repair systems in Wake, Durham, Orange, Chatham, Johnston, Harnett, Franklin, Granville, Person and Lee counties. Grease traps and lift stations are on our commercial septic service page.
When a septic repair needs a county permit
Permits come from your county environmental health office, not your town. A drainfield repair or replacement needs a county repair permit, and so does a replacement tank. A distribution box replacement may, because the box is part of the drainfield side of the system, and the county decides what counts as a repair. Pump, float and control panel work usually does not. We tell you what applies before we dig, and we pull the permit.
The offices: Wake County Environmental Services for Raleigh, Garner, Apex, Wake Forest and the rest of Wake; Durham County Public Health Environmental Health; Orange County Environmental Health in Hillsborough; Chatham County Environmental Health in Pittsboro; and the Johnston County office for Clayton. Selling a house with a system that needs work? A septic inspection puts the findings in writing before the buyer’s side asks.
Ask about our discounts
* Only one discount can be applied at a time
Ask when you call which discount fits your job.
Septic repair questions
What homeowners ask when something is wrong.
Can you repair my system instead of replacing it?
Often, yes. A broken baffle, a clogged tee, a failed float, a tipped box and a stretch of root-filled pipe are all repairs. Replacement makes sense when the tank is cracked or rusted through, or the field has failed across its lines. We tell you which it is and why. See tank replacement if it comes to that.
Do you have to dig up my yard?
Sometimes. Pumping, filter cleaning and most tee and baffle work happen at the lids, and we dig to them if they are buried. A box, pipe or field repair means digging where the part is. A riser means the next visit needs no digging at all.
What does a repair permit involve?
A drainfield repair or replacement needs a repair permit from the county environmental health office, and a replacement field starts with a soil evaluation. We tell you what your county needs before we dig. The state rules are 15A NCAC 18E.
My alarm is going off. What do I do?
Silence it, note which alarm and which light, and use as little water as you can. Then call (919) 481-6929. Emergency service is available 24/7, and it covers an alarm on a pump system.
How do I know if it is the tank or the field?
Start with the tank. A full tank or a clogged filter backs water into the house, while a failing field shows as wet, smelly ground over the lines that stays wet in dry weather. We pump the tank and watch the flow into the box, and that tells us which it is.
Do you repair systems you did not install?
Yes. We open it, see what is there and tell you what we found. We also pull the county permit record for the address, so you can compare what was permitted with what is in the ground.