Maintaining Your Onsite Sewage Disposal System

Maintaining Your Onsite Sewage Disposal System

The moment you step out of urban environments you’ll find onsite sewage disposal systems are in wide use throughout BC. The Capital Regional District (CRD), the Saanich Peninsula, and western communities all the way to Port Renfrew rely on onsite sewage disposal. There are many methods to discharge effluent from the treatment system into the environment. These include gravity dispersal, shallow drip dispersal and raised sand mounds to provide a vertical separation for adequate removal of remaining pathogens.

Summertime is the best time to inspect your field

Generally, summertime is an excellent opportunity to see the outline of your disposal field and to gauge the performance of your onsite sewage disposal system. It’s then when surrounding grass areas turn brown from lack of summertime precipitation. Take this opportunity to inspect the condition of your disposal field. Are there any areas which are noticeably more damp than others? This can be as little as excessive growth of grass, to surfacing of water like a puddle. A broken pipe could be the problem in more serious cases, as water floods the field each time a pump cycle occurs. This is the time to call a service provider for repairs.

You can complete minor repairs with little fuss and get your system operational again with little impact. Opportunities for further inspection and potentially flushing of the disposal laterals may be considered in conjunction with the service provider. When was the last time your septic tank was pumped? The septic tank is designed to settle solids and provide slow treatment and breakdown. This creates a sludge settling on the bottom of the tank and as it rises, the treatment capacity of the septic tank diminishes. A good operating system should be pumped every 3 to 5 years. More frequently if there is high usage of the system.

Watch for plant growth patterns

As noted in the photographs, the first system is obvious as that is where the vegetation grows. The field is in good condition, and the field is the only source of moisture at this time, hence the growth. The second photograph is from a wetter community and you can still see the disposal laterals. This field is in good condition, and routine maintenance ensures a reasonable operating life for the system.

Feel free to call MSR Solutions to discuss your onsite sewage disposal issues. We are more than happy to assist you and provide support as required.

See our Services page for a listing of all our services.

Meadowood Community Centre

Meadowood Community Centre

Herold Engineering retained the services of MSR Solutions to design a potable water and a septic system for the Meadowood Community Centre, located in Qualicum Beach, BC. MSR Solutions prepared two filings for Meadowood Community Centre for the Vancouver Island Health Authority (VIHA). This was part of MSR Solutions scope of work including: Sewerage System Regulation (SSR) Filing and Source Water Approval with a Construction Permit.

The lot chosen for the new community centre is mostly vacant. It was once used as a gravel pit and only has a small playground on the property. Some of the features the new park will have include areas and equipment for children to play, sheltered picnic tables, natural landscaping and the community centre built with portables from School District 69.

Septic tanks equipped with effluent filters, an equalization tank, and a pressurized disposal field comprise the wastewater treatment system. A well will be drilled on site to supply the facilities with drinking water. In the meantime, a potable water tank, installed and filled by a bulk water hauler approved by VIHA, will be on site.

MSR Solutions conducted a site investigation to determine a suitable the location for the disposal field. We dug five percolation test pits and recorded the percolation rates. The MSR representatives determined the most suitable location for the septic field. MSR completed a full site inspection report with information pertaining to each test pit. The report included where the optimum location where the field should be constructed.

Future Site Investigations Planned

Another site investigation will take place to commission the system once the water and wastewater systems are completed. MSR Solutions continues to communicate closely with the client and the Regional District of Nanaimo to complete the works on time and on budget.

Cottages on Osoyoos Lake, Oliver, BC

Cottages on Osoyoos Lake, Oliver, BC

Cottages on Osoyoos Lake is a 300-home residential development on Osoyoos Lake.

We were retained to design a water treatment plant and wastewater treatment plant co-housed in a single treatment building and obtained approval from Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC). Wastewater works include screening, equalization, chemical nutrient removal and flat plate membranes from WesTech Engineering. Discharge is to rapid infiltration basins and subsurface drip irrigation. We provided construction oversight and commissioning support.

We continue to provide ongoing operation support.

See our Wastewater Treatment Services page for more information on what MSR Solutions can do for you.

Port Renfrew CRD – Water System Upgrades

Port Renfrew CRD – Water System Upgrades

An ongoing project to upgrade the capacity of the water system in Port Renfrew, BC to allow for continued growth within the community.

The first phase of the Port Renfrew project involved upgrading the well pump, booster pumps and the associated piping and controls in order to increase the water supply available to the town. The second phase will involve upgrades to the town’s storage capacity by adding a second reservoir, providing increased water supply for fire protection and emergency storage.