Septic tanks are designed to work at full capacity. The outlet pipe leading to the leach field is slightly lower than the inlet, which allows the liquid level to rise near the top at normal functioning level. On average, it takes less than a week to fill a septic tank to capacity. The thickness of solids in the tank determine when the tank needs to be cleaned. If the liquid level in the tank rises above the outlet pipe, that indicates a problem with the leach field or the pipe en route to it.

Years ago, farmers coined the term while using wagons to transport manure. We used to call it the honeywagon, but changed the spelling because the .com was already registered to a music group with that name.

The bee is just a cute symbol that helps people identify the truck as a hunnywagon. See our "Bee History" page (coming soon!.)

Almost never, the vent pipe is in the line before the septic tank and attempting to pump at that location will merely vacuum the plumbing. Only once in a while will there be a vent installed as a cleanout directly over the tank.

There are many different styles of septic tanks out there. But usually a good place to start looking is two feet out from the vent pipe. See our "Septic Tank ID" page.

Most households I recommend every 3 to 5 years. There are many variables that should be considered and I've created a chart to better explain this topic (see "Pump-out Frequency table" to the left).

The design of a septic tank has baffles that retain the solids. After many years of neglect, the baffles allow solids to pass through to the leach field. In a normal sized system, it may take many years to completely destroy the leaching system. When it finally fails (and it will), the poor owner will find a septic tank nearly impossible to pump and in most cases, a leach field that will need to be replaced costing thousands of dollars.