Does your home have a septic tank rather than connect to a city sewer system? If so, you may be wondering what you can do to keep the septic tank problem-free. While septic tanks have a fairly long lifespan, there are certain behaviors that you can do that will shorten its lifespan or cause premature pumpings. Here are some tips to follow if you own a septic tank.

Learn When To Pump Your Septic Tank

The first thing you should do is learn how often you actually need to pump your septic tank. There are pumping schedules that you can follow, which recommend how often to pump a septic tank based on the size of the tank and how many people are in your home. By following the schedule, you'll not waste money on premature pumpings and you won't deal with the issues that result from having a septic tank start backing up into your home.

Be Careful With What You Put Down Drains

You really need to evaluate your behaviors when it comes to what goes down the drain in your home. Having a garbage disposal in your kitchen doesn't necessarily mean you should put anything down a drain that you can grind up and fit down the pipe. Stay away from putting food down the drain when you can, and always scrape dirty plates into the trash or a container for composting. Oil and grease should never go down a drain and should be collected in a jar and disposed of with your trash. Switch to using septic system-safe toilet paper, and don't flush anything else down your toilets. This includes wet wipes, feminine products, and paper towels.

Keep The Drainfield Dry

The drainfield is where all of the liquids from the septic tank leave and go into the ground, which is why you want to take steps to leave this part of your yard as dry as possible. If not, the ground will be saturated with water and the liquids will have nowhere to go. Try to divert rain gutters so that they empty in a different spot that is far away from the drainfield. You can also avoid watering the grass in this area or even set up an inflatable swimming pool that will eventually be drained nearby.

All of these small tips can go a long way in keeping your septic tank problem-free over the years. For more information, contact a local septic tank repair provider like American Septic Service.