I was pleased to note in the November 2008 issue of Onsite Installer that both the editor and Albert Royster are providing publicity on the value of measuring the sewage flow into an onsite treatment system.
I have been suggesting this for many years in my Answer Man column in Pumper magazine, but my suggestions seem to have generally fallen on deaf ears. There certainly does seem to be reluctance by the onsite industry toward measuring home sewage flows.
I believe hydraulic overload is a common reason for what is often called the failure of onsite sewage treatment systems. I believe most homeowners will recognize that there is a limit to the amount of sewage that can be sent to the septic tank. Education will certainly need to be a part of a program for homeowners with water meters.
The amount of water that carries sewage to the onsite system can be measured easily and inexpensively. A water meter with plus or minus one percent accuracy is entirely adequate and relatively low in cost. If all the water used in a house goes through a water conditioner, then the meter is simply placed on the inlet line to the conditioner.
In other situations, the water pipes to the outside sill cocks and other water uses need to be isolated from the water meter. This can easily be done by the plumber when installing the water piping system. Existing piping systems can usually be modified to meter only the water that is used for household purposes.
At one time, I checked with sanitary engineers about measuring the actual sewage flow from a home. I was informed that to measure an intermittent and variable flow from a single household would be very difficult, expensive and probably not too accurate. Also, there would be many problems with cleaning and maintenance that a homeowner would not be prepared to do. Their recommendation was to meter the water carrying the sewage that ultimately ended up in the sewage tank.
Another benefit of metering the water use and sewage flow from individual households would be the ability to evaluate new technologies for distributing effluent. Water meter readings would tell if the soil absorption system really could be downsized.
I hope Onsite Installer continues to provide publicity to the industry on the value of having a water meter on each onsite treatment system. Information obtained from water meter data will be valuable to future design procedures in the industry.
