Customer Reviews

Country Plumbing: Living with a Septic System

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is informative as far as it goes and might be most useful for someone with an older system. But it was written in the early 1980s. A lot has changed since then. In particular, the book doesn't cover any of the newer systems that are used more and more nowadays in some parts of the country -- sand mounds, aeration systems, lagoons, etc.

Where else does one find out about the care and feeding--literally--of a septic system? This book is humorously written by an author who clearly knows his, um, feces. Having just bought a house with a septic system, I am finally relieved to find a book that sheds light on the dark necessity of living in the country. This could become a conversation piece in our neighborhood.

We are currently living with a septic system, and I thought it was about time I learned something about them. This book is perfect for my needs: it is short, very informative, and even hilarious at times. My only prior knowledge of septic systems was acquired during childhood: our house in a rural village sat in the lowest point of our neighborhood (a swamp, actually) and everyone else's septic system used to drain down into our basement in the spring. I can't begin to tell you how happy we were when the village finally built a municipal sewage system.

This book explains very clearly how to deal with emergencies, which is probably the first thing we country plumbing folks need to know.

(I also discovered we're using a sink plunger on the toilet, and should go out and buy one with the circular thingy in the middle.)

There are very clear instructions and diagrams on (1) how to build your own septic system; (2) how to find your septic tank if you moved into a house where the subject hadn't been raised; (3) how to maintain your septic system; (4) what to do if something goes wrong (this part of the book gets down and dirty: never, ever open something called a 'cleanout plug' quickly.)

"Country Plumbing" also explains how to build a good privy. Here is my favorite bit of advice on this subject:

"If the privy is to have a lot of traffic, attach a large plastic funnel to the wall, with a short plastic pipe running into the main hole. This will help tall soldiers with short rifles to score better, and improve the area around the seat considerably."

This book is bathroom reading at its most instructive.

Not all houses were built with the idea of plumbing in mind. "Country Plumbing: Living with a Septic System" is a guide for those in those houses designed before modern plumbing and the reality of having to live with the solution many turn to - a septic system. An updated edition, this guide elaborates on what people need to know to legally, responsibly, and sanitarily deal with their own waste. "Country Plumbing" is a solid guide to septic management, and a top pick.