Septic Pumped

I contacted Herrin's about getting the septic tank pumped and they managed to squeeze me in while the guy was in the area. Otherwise, who knows when he would have come.

It worked out well because the day before and the day of were both warm, so there were no concerns about leaving the tank exposed. I managed to find the opening and clean the area around the door, readying it for its big cleaning.

The next day, the couldn't tell me when he'd be there, so we kind of had to sit around and wait for him. He finally arrived in the late morning, while the kids were playing upstairs. I closed all the windows and had planned on sitting back and letting the guy do his job, but curiosity got the best of me, and I had to take a peak.

When he lifted off the lid, I was expecting to be knocked off my feet, but in all honesty, it really wasn't that bad. The kids said it smelled terrible from up on the second floor. According to N, "It reeked." I don't know, I was standing right next to it, looking straight down into the abyss, and while I wasn't about to jump and go for a swim, I wasn't devastated.

It didn't even look that bad. I thought I'd see the gory details, floating nuggets and assorted refuse, but it really just looked like muddy sludge.

Maybe I'll leave it at that. I chatted with the septic guy, and he gave me a quick lecture on the merits of adding a concrete stem to the opening, but I wasn't sure if that was to make my life or his life easier. Whatever be the case, if I have to dig it out every 4 years, it's not such a big deal. I can live with that.

In the meantime, our tank is clean. He said it looked fine, which was good enough for me. Now I can use the bathroom with peace of mind, which is important when you consider that these are sacred moments and better left unaffected by worries about your tank.

Until the next time, thanks for reading.