Growth has been natural for Sweet Breeze Farms and Excavating in Shreve, Ohio. Owners James “Skeeter” Martin and wife Pat have learned that one good job often leads to another. That has been a key to their approach in building a thriving on-site business on what started as a farming and excavation business.
The farming began in 1981. Soon, Martin was using his farm equipment to install subsurface tile drainage lines and surface diversions. Neighbors saw his skill and success and asked him to do similar work for them. In 1999, the business formally expanded to include excavation services.
“The transition was a natural one,” says Martin. “Our business is always growing.” When a contractor called about a basement and an onsite system, Martin went to installer classes so he could “do it right.” Seeking out training got him greater prominence in the contractor community, and calls for his services increased.
Martin attributes the “work following work” experience to his attention to detail and a commitment to doing the job right just once. “We always do our best,” says Martin. “First, it is the only way we operate, and second, you never know what other jobs will emerge from a job well done. Pricing a job fairly also brings repeat business.”
Rules and opportunities
Today, from their base in Shreve, about halfway between Mansfield and Canton, Sweet Breeze serves customers within a 45-mile radius. The business mix includes roughly 30 percent advanced system installations, 15 percent repairs, 20 percent service, 30 percent general excavation, and 5 percent real estate transfer inspections.
The office is near the convergence of five counties, and the company works in all of them. Each county has its own take on site suitability and installation.
Martin finds that regulations can bring opportunities. “Some counties are more forward looking, some are less so,” he says. His business has embraced most changes with an expanding service menu. “We present customers with a broad range of solutions, offering technologies that can address almost every site challenge,” he says. This is far different from the one-size-fits-all model some regulators and installers present. Similarly, Martin recognizes that some sites can’t support any onsite system, regardless of the technology. He believes that putting in the wrong system is not finding a solution — it is creating a problem. “Helping a landowner understand the value of not building may be the most positive thing I can do for that person,” Martin says.
Ohio’s efforts to write new regulations have not always been smooth, and the installer community hopes the roughest part is behind them. While the new regulations set minimum treatment and absorption area requirements for various soil characteristics, Martin knows that not every house can be successfully served by a system that meets only the minimum requirements. “When lifestyle, family size or other unusual conditions are present, we encourage up-sizing the system to match the atypical demand,” he says.
Martin has seen systems fail to reach their life expectancy when they receive flows typical for the owners’ lifestyle, but well above regulatory minimums. “This is an experience I don’t want,” he says.
Broad menu
Martin has installed traditional box-and-rocks systems using septic tanks, aggregate, and large-diameter perforated pipes. Some are entirely gravity distributed, while others are split, with the treatment tank downslope from the home and the absorption area upslope. In those systems, a lift pump moves septic tank effluent to a small receiving tank, from which gravity takes over.
Martin has installed advanced treatment systems from Norweco Inc. and Jet Inc., two other Ohio businesses that have provided installation and maintenance training. He also installs sand filters. The company has enjoyed success using the EZflow aggregate from Infiltrator Systems Inc. The product combines perforated distribution pipe and expanded polystyrene geosynthetic aggregate. Martin finds it is easier and faster to install than rock aggregate. “Savings from faster installations can translate into lower installation prices,” he says. “This product is especially suited for constrained or steep sites.”
Martin is intrigued with pressure distribution systems. Having installed both demand- and time-dosed systems, he sees advantages to time-dosing and feels it may be a means to reduce absorption area square footage. As new technologies gain regulatory approval, Sweet Breeze will continue to grow its knowledge, skills and resources.
Embracing change
While regulators and foresighted installers are embracing the change, homeowners are dragging their feet, Martin observes. Whether it is fear of the unknown, the higher cost of advanced systems, or stubbornness, the effect is the same.
Martin must spend time educating landowners with reluctance rooted in uncertainty. Where none of the traditional systems are allowed, there now may be one or more technologies that can make a lot buildable. Not surprisingly, those owners quickly become converts to new technology.
Even when a technology may be feasible, the cost to overcome unfavorable site conditions may make development unaffordable. However, it is not always the cost of installation that can stop a project. The ongoing operation, maintenance and management costs can be the deal breaker.
“Education is essential,” says Martin. For his own education, he relies on NOWRA and the Ohio Onsite Wastewater Association, and on manufacturers for technology or brand-specific training. Martin finds that every jobsite can bring learning opportunities for him and his crew. Similarly, each site presents opportunities to educate future system owners about the single most essential operating system on their property. In Martin’s experience, better-educated homeowners are better customers.
The long haul
Emerging regulations that call for continuing operation, management and maintenance programs require long-term relationships between homeowners and service providers. To offer management services in the five counties where Sweet Breeze operates, the company needs someone on staff who holds a Class 1 operator’s license. Martin holds such a license. 1There are more than 3,300 aerobic systems in Homes County, where the Sweet Breeze is located, and most are not covered by a service agreement. Martin has about 200 systems under contract, and he expects those contracts to grow by about 12 percent per year. If there is a shortage of qualified service providers, the company’s service business could grow even faster. “We have seen companies and ‘man-with-a-backhoe-and-dump-truck’ operations move into and quickly out of the installation and maintenance businesses,” Martin says. He suspects many such owners get out because they lack knowledge and find the learning curve too steep. Others simply price themselves out of the market. Sweet Breeze, meanwhile, has identified opportunities and moved toward them by expanding its comfort and competence zones.
The inspection component of a management program will also drive minor repair work and system upgrades. Sweet Breeze welcomes these projects because they open the door for long-term relationships.
The family way
Such relationships fit well with the family approach Sweet Breeze takes to the business. Daughter Erika is the office and accounting manager. Her husband, Jason, manages the farming and excavation services sides. Another son-in-law, Brent Sheldon, is an equipment operator for system installations. Two other employees, Dave Hawkins and Norman Tipton, keep the equipment running when not operating it themselves.
“For onsite installations we try to work exclusively on tracked equipment,” Martin says. That minimizes soil compaction and lessens negative impacts on a site. The equipment roster includes a 2000 CAT 315 trackhoe, a 2006 Yanmar 35 mini-excavator, a 2006 John Deere 328 tracked skid loader, and a 1995 CAT D-4H dozer. Assorted trucks and trailers are ready to move equipment from site to site. Two Ford F-250 pickups support the general excavation, system installation and service work.
Martin is rightfully protective of his reputation. If he feels that a system cannot meet its design goals, he will not install it. “I have walked away from some jobs for just that reason,” he says.
Active with FFA and 4-H, he provides educational opportunities for young people. He also supports the local soil and water conservation district’s work. All these activities make him visible in the community. Advertising is solely by word-of-mouth. “We have and expect to continue growing every year,” Martin says. “Our success is a gift from our community.”
