Septic service built for Hill Country ground

A conventional septic system is simple. Wastewater flows into a buried tank, where solids settle to the bottom and grease floats to the top. The liquid in the middle flows out to a drain field, where the soil filters and treats it. There are few moving parts, so most of the care is pumping the tank on a regular schedule and keeping the field clear of cars, roots and extra water.

An aerobic treatment unit, often called an ATU, does more of the work inside the tank. An air pump pushes oxygen into the water so bacteria can break waste down faster. The treated water passes through a chlorinator and is then sprayed over the yard or sent out through drip lines. These systems clean water well and fit on small or rocky lots, but they depend on an air pump, timers, floats, alarms and chlorine. When one of those parts fails, the whole system suffers.

We work on both types. Many calls start with a homeowner who is not sure which one they have, and that is fine. We will find the tanks, look at the setup and explain how your system works and what it needs from you.

Around Dripping Springs, Wimberley and Johnson City, the soil can be only a few inches deep over limestone or caliche. Water does not soak into solid rock, so a standard drain field may have nowhere to go. That is a big reason aerobic systems with spray or drip dispersal are so common here. On other lots, pockets of clay drain so slowly that a field stays soggy for days after a storm.

Slopes add another challenge. Steep yards shed rain fast, and runoff can pour across a spray area or wash soil off a field. The weather swings too. Long dry spells bake the ground hard, and then a heavy storm can flood tank lids and set off high-water alarms in a single afternoon. A system that looks fine on a calm day may struggle in either extreme.

Water quality is the part that matters most. Much of this land drains to Onion Creek, Barton Creek, the Blanco River and the Pedernales River, and parts of it sit over the Edwards Aquifer recharge and contributing zones. Many rural homes also draw from private wells. A failing septic system here can affect the water your family and your neighbors drink. That is why we take setbacks, leaks and surfacing water seriously, even when the smell is mild.

Every visit starts with a few questions. What are you seeing? When did it start? Have you had guests, heavy rain or extra laundry lately? Then we locate the system. On older properties the lids may be buried, so finding them is part of the job. Once the tanks are open, we check sludge and scum levels, look at the inlet and outlet, test the air pump, floats and alarms on aerobic systems and walk the field or spray area.

When we are done, you get plain-language findings. We tell you what is working, what is wearing out and what needs attention now. If a repair is needed, we explain why and lay out your options, including what can wait. We would rather fix the one part that failed than sell you work you do not need. If the right answer is a new system, we will explain how we reached that view and what the permit process looks like.

Texas requires aerobic systems to be maintained under a contract with a maintenance provider licensed by TCEQ. In Hays County, new aerobic systems come with an initial two-year contract, and the owner must keep the system maintained after that. When a home is sold, the county expects a maintenance contract to be filed for the new owner. Rules can differ in other counties and cities, so check with your local office.

Good records protect you. Each maintenance visit should note the date, what was checked, the condition of the air pump, alarms, chlorinator and spray heads, and any sludge readings. Those reports are what the permit office reviews, and they are what a buyer's inspector will ask for when you sell. We keep these records for every system we maintain, so you are not hunting for paperwork when a contract renews or a sale is pending. See our aerobic septic maintenance page for what a visit covers.