Disposing of residential liquid waste safely and legally can be a challenge. Too many people attempt to deal with it themselves and end up contaminating their drinking water or poisoning their plants. If you are on the grid, then your sewer will take care of some – but not all – of your liquid waste. Here are some septic regulations to consider:

1. Never pour anything down storm sewers. Storm sewers are designed solely to carry away rainwater to prevent flooding. Nothing that goes down a storm sewer is treated for pollutants.

2. Never pour flammable liquid down the sink, toilet or drain. Believe it or not, this can cause a fire when the flammable liquid mingles with gases produced by solid sewer waste – including if you use a septic tank. You should always dispose of flammable liquid waste such as lubricants or paints by having it picked up by a disposal or recycling service. (Also, avoid using flammable liquids as much as possible).

3. Never pour oil (cooking or motor) or grease down the sink. It can block your plumbing – instead, it should be soaked up using paper towels or similar and put in the trash. Also, it will collect in your septic tank and make it need cleaning more often.

4. If you have a septic tank, then your liquid waste is separated from sludge and oil and ends up in a drain field. There should be no puddles of water in the drain field – if there are, call a professional.

If you have wastewater collected on your site, you should never try to dispose of it yourself. The temptation to leave it be or direct it into a storm drain is high. Instead, call a professional such as EarthCare to help you dispose of your liquid waste properly, safely, and legally by following septic regulations.