Do risers break tank insulation?

Question:

I recently had my septic pumped. I told the (technician) I wanted to install a riser so we didn’t have to dig up the lids every time we pumped. He said that wasn’t a good idea in cold climates because of heat loss in the septic tank. He argued that the bacteria “slowed down” if the tank didn’t maintain temperature.

Am I nuts? I haven’t heard this before. Is he right?

Answers:

Looks like an opportunity for someone to make an insulated lid and riser system. I know here in northern Wisconsin the septic tank lid is the last place to accumulate snow and the first place to lose it. There is certainly heat loss through the lid — especially plastic lids. I routinely insulate my system with straw prior to winter to keep it from freezing in case we have a winter without much snow cover. Warmth does also promote bacterial growth.

It would seem to me that the colder the system, the slower the bacteria works or multiplies. It would also seem that the colder the septic water gets, the slower the bacteria reaches a cellular level. Isn’t that why food lasts longer in the refrigerator and longer still in a freezer? If that were the case, then I would conclude that septic solids in colder climates break down more slowly and they would require pumping more often.

I wonder if in really cold weather like northern Minnesota, Alaska and northern Canada that the septic tanks are insulated — at least around the sides and on top?

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When I installed my system, I put 2 inches of foam insulation over the top of the tank and inlet pipes before backfilling.

Is a bigger vacuum tank in order?

Question:

I have 2,000-gallon and 2,500-gallon vacuum tanks on my trucks and I’m thinking about buying a 3,600-gallon service truck. Most of my business is residential. I’m curious what kind of responses others get from residential customers to that size of truck. What’s too big?

Answers:

I have one 2,000-gallon tank on a tandem axle and two trucks with 3,600-gallon tanks. We do about 1,200 homes a year. I might get four or five homes a year where I have to trim some tree limbs to get in. We keep trimmers on the truck. We encounter one or two jobs a year where the trucks are just too big. We carry 180 feet of 3-inch vacuum hose on the trucks.

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Your report on limb trimming is right. Most large trucks also have tall exhaust stacks that can get in the way. If you’re going to do mostly rural jobs, keep your trucks down to a 2,500-gallon or 33,000-pound gross vehicle weight … unless you don’t mind all the scratches and dings a large truck may suffer.