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SEPTIC SYSTEMS HOME
SEPTIC INFO ARTICLES
Drainfield Location
  Why Look For the Drainfield?
  Using Septic System Records
  Where to Look
  Areas Not Likely
  Locate Piping Precisely
  Excavating to find Drainfield
  Surprising Leachfield Locations
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Excavation photo digging up the septic systemHow & When to Dig (Excavate) to Locate Septic Tank or Drainfield
InspectAPedia®  -    

  • How to find the septic drainfield or leach field or septic tank
  • How & when to dig to find septic system components
Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at InspectAPedia.com/appointment.htm.

This article and our accompanying septic system location videos explains how to find the leach field or drainfield portion of a septic system. We include sketches and photos that help you learn what to look for, and we describe several methods useful for finding buried drainfield components. (Septic drain fields are also called soil absorption systems or seepage beds.) Also see How to Find the Septic Tank. More videos on septic system location & maintenance are at SEPTIC VIDEOS.

Citation of this article by reference to this website and brief quotation for the sole purpose of review are permitted. Use of this information at other websites, in books or pamphlets for sale is reserved to the author. Technical reviewers and content suggestions are welcome and are credited at "References."

This is a chapter of Inspecting, Testing, & Maintaining Residential Septic Systems an online book on septic systems.

© Copyright 2009 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

A Guide to Finding the Drainfield - Part 7

How to use Excavating to find Drainfield Trenches & Their Condition

A homeowner might dig a test hole where s/he thinks a leach line is present based on the site observations above.

The depth of a leach line may vary by site conditions but normally would be 24" or so.

A septic contractor might take a different approach and simply dig a trench across the property, figuring that the soil cut will come across the buried line.

The dig-across-the-whole-property approach might be reasonable only if we already know that the system has to be replaced, since the backhoe is likely to destroy the buried piping when it "finds" it.

Why we Like Digging by Hand First and Excavating by Backhoe Second

Most people prefer to use equipment to dig at building sites - it's faster, physically easier (to operate a machine than to wield a shovel), and it is probably more profitable. Certainly in many instances a backhoe is the only reasonable way to dig. But we prefer to try digging first by hand whenever possible. Hand excavation does the least damage to a building site when looking for septic components because:

  • Hand excavation does the least damage to the site, yard, plants, etc.
  • Hand excavation can begin gently, right by the building wall, without even waiting for equipment to show up
  • Hand excavation can be done by an energetic owner or her friends (but see SEPTIC & CESSPOOL SAFETY first)
  • Hand excavation avoids destroying steel septic tanks and covers (but see SEPTIC & CESSPOOL SAFETY first)
  • Hand excavation (or a careful backhoe operator) won't leave you with a newly "explored" but now totally destroyed septic system - so you cannot use the building plumbing and are pressured to accept whatever repair bid the contractor offers. (Trying to get septic repair cost estimates before any excavating is tough because the contractor knows that there are too many unknowns - but press for upper reasonable limits on cost)

Where to Excavate to Look for Septic or Sewer Components

But eventually, it's time to excavate - because your hand digging was fruitless or because you've found that extensive exploration and septic repair are probably needed. Usually an experienced excavation contractor has a pretty good eye for guessing at where another excavator would have dug to place a drainfield trench, D-box, or other septic system component. Walking the site and ruling in or out probable areas can significantly reduce the extent of excavation necessary.

How to Think First and Dig Second - Narrowing the Search for the Drainfield

PHOTO of a back hoe being used to dig up and locate septic system components during a sewer line repair.


See  Where to Look ,  
Areas Not Likely
, and  
Visual Clues to Location
for details on narrowing down the search for septic components before you dig.

Septic Excavation Case Illustrated - step by step excavation to replace a sewer line

Our sewer line case study shows the steps in finding and excavating septic components in detail at Sewer Line Replacement Procedure - details of when, how, and why to replace a buried drain line between a house and septic tank

Digging up a Failed Drainfield

Of course, if the leach field already needs replacement, one can probably find the end of a leach line by noticing where effluent is breaking out to the surface.

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Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

SEPTIC DRAINFIELD LOCATION
  Why Look For the Drainfield?
  Using Septic System Records
  Where to Look
  Areas Not Likely
  Locate Piping Precisely
  Excavating to find Drainfield
  Surprising Leachfield Locations
  SEPTIC VIDEOS show how to find the drainfield and tank

Detailed Guide for Finding Other Septic System Components

SEPTIC SYSTEMS HOME
HOW TO FIND A SEPTIC TANK
SEPTIC SEARCH SAFETY
WHO KNOWS SEPTIC LOCATION?
FIND MAIN WASTE LINE EXIT
DISTANCE TO TANK
POSSIBLE SEPTIC TANK LOCATIONS
  VISUAL CLUES LOCATE TANK
  WHERE TO LOOK
  SEPTIC TANK DEPTH
SEPTIC TANK LOCATING EQUIPMENT
SEPTIC TANK COVERS
DOCUMENT TANK LOCATION
DRAINFIELD LOCATION

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SEPTIC SYSTEMS HOME

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