Aquarium Waste Water

[Sea Witch]

I'm curious. Is there any use for the aquarium waste water? I used to use waste FW aquarium water to water my plants.....

And for those with a septic field, do you put your water down the drain?

[ALang]

Hello! Nice to have another lady reefer!
We have both a septic tank and field. Every time I empty my SW into my drain, I expect something very nasty to happen.
We lived on an acreage for 4 years now, so far so good, crossing all fingers and toes. But I only change out about 10-15% every two weeks, 15-25 gal-ish.
And I most times use the Python water changer (left from my FW days) to siphon it out, so there's some FW mixed it there, hopefully enough to dilute the SW so my new septic tanks won't collapse.
Lenny.

[fishytime]

water your driveway weeds with it......its generally not recommended to put saltwater into a septic field.....a septic back-up due to a collapse of the bacteria is an expensive fix......your a gambler huh Lenny?

[ALang]

Nuh...a gambler I am not.
But there's not too much one can do with it.
Fine, in Summer I can gather up the buckets and try to feed them to those nasty weeds, but sometimes, time is severely lacking.
So in winter time I have no where to put that either.
Maybe I should have stuck to FW, huh??

[fishytime]

Originally Posted by ALang

But there's not too much one can do with it.
Fine, in Summer I can gather up the buckets and try to feed them to those nasty weeds, but sometimes, time is severely lacking.
So in winter time I have no where to put that either.
Maybe I should have stuck to FW, huh??

not an enviable situation for sure........glad your into the salt tho and to heck with the septic field!.....I cant remember what its called now but there is a product that is supposed to help boost the bacteria......it might be worth a call to a septic qualified plumber to see what he thinks...

[The Grizz]

I have the same issues here Lenny, my septic is a gravity feed gravel bed. This year I am going to tap into my whole house RO system waste water side to drain to as to not fill the septic tank & put in a pump into both septic tanks to force feed the gravel bed I asked the septic truck guys about dumping SW into the tank and he suggested doing a triple dose of the septic chem every month but that would equal about $300 a year instead of $100.

[ALang]

Yes, I hear ya. And the SW isn't great for the driveway, either is it?
Short of trying to dilute some when doing water changes, or maybe smaller changes more often to hopefully minimize some of the damage...
Wish I was back in the city instead of sharing space with the coyotes, deers, and moose!

[The Grizz]

If there is a way you can drain into the wet side of the septic tank that is the best option. All the bacteria is on the solid side where it breaks down the solids.

[Sea Witch]

Thanks for the help, you'all. I'm not sure how I'll handle it yet. I have a gravel driveway, but I'd hate for it to leach into the grass eventually....don't want to collapse my septic system either.....

[Maverick00]

drain for me, then I leave the water running for abit. If i wasnt renting i would probably see what other options are available...