Grass growing on the mound septic?
Joe J
septic system? 2.5 acres and it's all grass and I would just like to let
some of it grow wild, maybe throw out a few thousand wildflower seeds and
cut in some walking paths and let a lot of the rest of the grass just grow,
including what's on the mound. Any negatives to not cutting the grass on
the mound?
Red Green
> Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a mound
> septic system?
It looks like shit? :-)
You want evaporation. Taller grass will shade the soil and reduce
evaporation to some extent. Can't quantify significance.
tra...@optonline.net
> "Joe J" <joe...@prodigy.net> wrote innews:iquaqq$j08$1...@dont-email.me:
>
> > Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a mound
> > septic system?
>
> It looks like shit? :-)
>
> You want evaporation. Taller grass will shade the soil and reduce
> evaporation to some extent. Can't quantify significance.
One would also think that grass growing two feet tall will take
up more moisture from the ground than grass that is mowed
to 3". But I think all that is a nit. The path of the septic leach
field should be down, not going up. So, I'd say letting the
grass grow doesn't make any difference to the septic
system.
RicodJour
>
> Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a mound
> some of it grow wild, maybe throw out a few thousand wildflower seeds and
> cut in some walking paths and let a lot of the rest of the grass just grow,
> including what's on the mound. Any negatives to not cutting the grass on
> the mound?
Nope. Just don't let trees and bushes get started. Long grass would
actually help prevent the others from getting started.
R
Frank
I cut grass over mine. Purpose is evaporation. Your system can't cover
a full 2.5 acres. Does not make sense to be that big.
DerbyDad03
>
> > Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a mound
> > septic system?
>
> It looks like shit? :-)
>
> You want evaporation. Taller grass will shade the soil and reduce
> evaporation to some extent. Can't quantify significance.
re: "It looks like shit?"
No, no...that's *inside* the septic system. He's taking about the
*outside*.
;-)
Caesar Romano
wrote Re Re: Grass growing on the mound septic?:
>You want evaporation. Taller grass will shade the soil and reduce
>evaporation to some extent.
No it won't. The taller grass will increase movement of moisture from
the mound to the air due to the taller grass providing more surface
area for transpiration.
--
Work is the curse of the drinking class.
willshak
"The grass is always greener over the septic tank". Erma Bombeck
(02/21/1927-04/22/1996).
--
Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
In the original Orange County. Est. 1683
To email, remove the double zeroes after @
willshak
> On Tue, 17 May 2011 17:40:36 GMT, Red Green <postm...@127.0.0.1>
> wrote Re Re: Grass growing on the mound septic?:
>
>
>> You want evaporation. Taller grass will shade the soil and reduce
>> evaporation to some extent.
>>
>
> No it won't. The taller grass will increase movement of moisture from
> the mound to the air due to the taller grass providing more surface
> area for transpiration.
>
agreed with.
willshak
fields are 400' long (4 at 100' each).
The field size is determined by the number of bedrooms, not bathrooms as
you may assume.
LSMFT
No reason. Raspberries grow real well in drainage fields and cesspools.
They love sewerage black water.
--
You don't have to be stupid to know stupid when you see it.
Frank
> Frank wrote the following:
>> On 5/17/2011 1:21 PM, Joe J wrote:
>>> Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a mound
>>> septic system? 2.5 acres and it's all grass and I would just like to let
>>> some of it grow wild, maybe throw out a few thousand wildflower seeds
>>> and cut in some walking paths and let a lot of the rest of the grass
>>> just grow, including what's on the mound. Any negatives to not cutting
>>> the grass on the mound?
>>
>> I cut grass over mine. Purpose is evaporation. Your system can't cover
>> a full 2.5 acres. Does not make sense to be that big.
> He's not talking about the fields. I have less than an acre and my
> fields are 400' long (4 at 100' each).
> The field size is determined by the number of bedrooms, not bathrooms as
> you may assume.
>
>
or a combination of the two. The evaporation fields are larger or with
more surface area. Around here, perc test may determine how many
bedrooms you are allowed and now alternate fields are also required.
The county would like to push everyone into being hooked up to the sewer
lines.
OP says he has 2.5 acres and I guess he could pick any part to grow
however he wants. My neighbors yard grows completely wild and I've seen
his septic up. OK now but was a problem when kids and in-laws lived
there. Neighbor across street got by with a cesspool as there was just
him and his wife but when a family with kids moved in they elected to
tap into the sewer line.
aemeijers
Depends. How 'civilized' is the township or whatever you live in? Around
here, if it can be seen from the road or the neighbors, and somebody
bitches, you can get a civil-infraction 'noxious weeds' ticket.
Yer preaching to the choir about high grass, though. Maybe you can get
local college to put in plugs of whatever the local version of
non-invasive prairie grass and field plants is. Call it a botanical
restoration site or something. If I had had the money to get acres
instead of this damn subdivision lot, the only areas I would mow would
be a fire break around the house/pole barn, and stripes alongside the
driveway and out where it meets the hardtop road, to ensure drainage and
visibility of oncoming traffic and animals that I would otherwise run over.
--
aem sends....
willshak
> On 5/17/2011 5:49 PM, willshak wrote:
>> Frank wrote the following:
>>> On 5/17/2011 1:21 PM, Joe J wrote:
>>>> Are there any reasons besides looks, to mow the grass growing on a
>>>> mound
>>>> septic system? 2.5 acres and it's all grass and I would just like
>>>> to let
>>>> some of it grow wild, maybe throw out a few thousand wildflower seeds
>>>> and cut in some walking paths and let a lot of the rest of the grass
>>>> just grow, including what's on the mound. Any negatives to not cutting
>>>> the grass on the mound?
>>>
>>> I cut grass over mine. Purpose is evaporation. Your system can't cover
>>> a full 2.5 acres. Does not make sense to be that big.
>> He's not talking about the fields. I have less than an acre and my
>> fields are 400' long (4 at 100' each).
>> The field size is determined by the number of bedrooms, not bathrooms as
>> you may assume.
>>
>>
> Yes. There are basically two kinds of fields, seepage, and
> evaporation or a combination of the two. The evaporation fields are
> larger or with more surface area. Around here, perc test may determine
> how many bedrooms you are allowed and now alternate fields are also
> required. The county would like to push everyone into being hooked up
> to the sewer lines.
Yes, if sewer lines are installed that could service your house, you may
be charged, even if you elect not to hook up.
I live in a rural area, and there are no sewer lines within miles of me.
As I remember (in 1984), the local law was 100' per bedroom. I only have
3 bedrooms, but the GC put in 400' of fields.
Here, it costs around $400 to empty the septic tank. I also have a dry
well for gray water (sinks, clothes and dish washers, and showers) which
costs about the same.
I also run off a 325' deep well, so I take the water out of the ground
in one place and return it to the ground in another place. I only pay
for the electricity for the pump. Fuel Oil and Propane are delivered by
trucks. The only company utilities I have come in from utility poles,
like electricity, telephone and cable TV/Internet, the last only
available after 1984 when I had the house built.
>
> OP says he has 2.5 acres and I guess he could pick any part to grow
> however he wants. My neighbors yard grows completely wild and I've
> seen his septic up. OK now but was a problem when kids and in-laws
> lived there. Neighbor across street got by with a cesspool as there
> was just him and his wife but when a family with kids moved in they
> elected to tap into the sewer line.
bob haller
>
> - Show quoted text -
long term it might be a good idea to cut the grass at least once a
year.
otherwise opportunistic trees may begin growing and their roots cause
drainage troubles long term./
no doubt this question should be answered by whoever services pumps
the OPs septic tank
willshak
> On Tue, 17 May 2011 17:41:17 -0400, willshak <will...@00hvc.rr.com>
> wrote:
>
>
>> "The grass is always greener over the septic tank". Erma Bombeck
>> (02/21/1927-04/22/1996).
>>
>
> greener and use that to help locate the septic tank.
>
> In his usual response: "I'm color blind." He catches me all the time.
> Once I told him to turn at the red car. "This car?" And he grins.
> Freaks me out at red lights <G>
>
> ( I think he a red/red color blind?)
>
Well, he knows that the red light is at the top, or should.
Robert Neville
> The path of the septic leach field should be down, not going up.
If it's traditional field, I agree. If it's one of the newer advanced treatment
fields, I disagree. They lay the spider pipe in those systems fairly close to
the top of the mound. Ours was quite damp until the grass grew in over the first
summer. And as one of the reasons we chose this location was specifically to get
away from ground maintenance. There's no way I'm going to do any mowing!
Joe J
"Frank" <frankperi...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:iqug19$th5$1...@dont-email.me...
No, just the system would be the dividing line from cut grass, to let grow.
It's a "standard" size mound
LdB
As someone else suggested you should cut the grass occasionally. You
don't know how deep the root systems of wild plants will go. No doubt
there will be some that will get into the field and clog the thing
up. I keep the grass cut at least 30 feet back from my septic field.
I let the area beyond that grow wild as you want. The amount and
variety of growth is quite surprising and it changes over the years. I
have no idea whats growing out there for the most part but the Aspens
are moving out there through their root systems. They will eventually
take over the wild area. I plan to keep them back at least 50 feet
from the field, more if I ever see any evidence of them coming up
close to the septic field.
LdB