Ri-Industries logo

The Smart Way to Water Your Garden

by Ri Industries

You may have heard the saying, “The grass is always greener over the septic tank.” The moisture and nutrients in the drainage field of your septic tank help to fertilise your garden the natural way.

By taking interest in a Ri-Industries septic tank or aerobic waste water treatment system, you are already well on your way to conserving water and energy for your home. What you may not know is that the benefits of a septic tank or waste water treatment system do not stop with installation. Ri-Industries can help you water your garden the smart way, even after all of the wear and tear of daily use.

How to water your garden, the smart way:

#1: Use Ri-Treat to Irrigate Your Garden

The Ri-Treat Waste Water System works to clean and reuse your waste water from the toilet, kitchen, and laundry to irrigate your garden. Ri-Treat features a high quality irrigation kit for more effective irrigation. This system is certainly a cost-efficient and environmentally friendly way to keep your garden looking green and healthy.

#2: Water your garden only when it needs it

While the Ri-Treat system can efficiently recycle your waste water for your home, it’s up to you to decide when your garden needs watering. To find out if your lawn needs water, use this rule of thumb: stick your finger about 4 cm into the soil, and if the soil is not moist, it is time for a shower!

#3: Put your garden on a schedule

For those of us who do not have time to stick our fingers in the soil every day, it is recommended to water your garden deeply and infrequently (about 2.5 cm a week). But how do you measure how much water your lawn is soaking in? For this, you can use a rain gauge or a cup of water placed in your garden and a ruler. Run your irrigation system for about 15 minutes, check the amount of water left in the cup or rain gauge, and you can do some quick calculations to find out how much water per hour is coming from the sprinkler.

#4: Water early

When you use your irrigation system, some of the water will evaporate before it even hits your garden. To make sure that your garden drinks up the highest amount of water possible, try watering very early in the morning, sometime between 4 am and 9 am.

As always, the most important tip for using your irrigation system the smart way is: location, location, location! Make sure that you are watering your garden, and not the pavement or the letterbox. To discover more sustainable living options from Ri-Industries, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Ri-Industries logo

Guidelines for Planting Your Garden Around a Septic Tank

by Ri Industries

Your septic tank is made up of a main outlet, a holding tank and a drainage field. The tank receives wastewater from your home plumbing system where it collects for a certain length of time until it exits the outlet and empties into the drainage field. There are certain plants that will fare better on or around your drainage field. So, what plants are good or bad for your wastewater treatment system? Here are some helpful “do’s” and “don’ts” for planting a septic tank friendly garden:

DO stay shallow

While being “shallow” is not considered a positive personality trait, it is very important that you stay shallow when it comes to planting your garden over a Ri-Industries septic system. A septic tank is generally installed about 0.6 to 0.9 meters underground, meaning you do not want the root systems of your small plants or shrubs to extend below this depth. The best plants to use near drainage fields are flowers, grasses, and small groundcovers that will not grow deep enough to disrupt the pipeline of your septic tank.

DON’T plant trees too close to your septic system

While Ri-Industries septic tanks are made from 40 MPa concrete, and the engineer-designed tanks are built to withstand anything, contractors generally believe that no tree is safe to plant too close to a septic system. This is because the root system provides a tree’s primary way of absorbing water, and those roots will extend toward the most abundant source of water in your yard. This means that if a tree is planted too close to a septic system, its roots will grow in the direction of the wet drainage field around it. Trees with smaller, less complex root systems are less of a risk to plant near the septic system, but especially try to avoid planting gum trees, cypress trees, maples, or willow trees anywhere near your Ri-Industries septic tank.

DO use shrubs that don’t require a lot of water, or are drought tolerant

Hydrophilic (water friendly) plants will grow deep into the ground, searching for moisture. The root system of water-loving shrubs can become entangled in the pipes of your septic system if planted too close to your drainage field, and cause problematic clogging. Try planting smaller shrubs whose root systems won’t cause a disturbance to your Ri-Industries septic pipes.

DON’T plant veggies near your septic tank

Fruits and vegetables should be planted at least three meters away from the drainage field of your septic tank to avoid bacterial contamination. This seems fairly simple, but it is also important to keep in mind as you plan out your planting!

DO plan ahead

Lay out the location of your shrubs before you start any digging. Plant shrubs near the end of septic tank lines where the soil is drier, or at least three meters away from the drainage field. You can also plant shrubs at the base or on side slopes of the septic mound, still keeping at least three meters away from the septic lines. Bushes planted downhill will absorb water and prevent erosion. Plants with shallow root systems can be planted right on the drainage field, while trees with deeper root systems should be planted at least 15 meters away.

Have any questions about how to design the perfect garden around your septic tank? Don’t hesitate to contact us with questions.

Septic tanks home

How to Know if Your Septic Tank Needs Maintenance

by Ri Industries

When it comes to your septic tank, it can be nice to have a professional by your side to help you with septic tank maintenance. How do you know it is time to call in a professional? Inspecting your septic tank between pumping schedules is just as important as calling in a plumber or someone from your local council when you need help. Follow these quick guidelines for a routine at-home septic tank check-up. These tips can help you catch any potential problems early on, sometimes even before they happen.

Ri-Industries septic tank

When it comes to the septic tank in your home, you made need to ask some questions:

How often does my septic tank need pumping?

Most septic tanks need a pump-out every four to five years. In the meantime, you should check your tank for buildup every one to three years until you achieve a predictable maintenance schedule. The most common cause of septic tank problems is negligence, so make sure to keep annual or bi-annual inspection on your household to-do list.

What is my role in keeping my septic system safe and working properly?

As a septic tank owner, it is your job to make sure the house drains and tank don’t leak. It is also your job to make any needed repairs and get the tank pumped or de-sludged when it becomes too full. One of the key steps to keeping your Ri-Industries system well maintained is ensuring your system is regularly checked.

Can I inspect the septic tank myself?

If you are feeling particularly ambitious, you can try an at-home inspection yourself, but keep in mind septic tanks may contain toxic or flammable gases.

Step 1: To perform this process, you will need to remove the inspection cover and leave the inspection site uncovered for a few minutes.

Step 2: Check that your effluent water is working. If it is clogged, try rinsing it with a hose or replacing the filter cartridge if the clog is especially bad. (Note: You should wear protective gloves to protect from exposure to harmful substances)

Step 3: Make sure there are no abnormalities on your lawn, such as especially damp or overgrown areas, or odd smells.

Step 4: Lastly, make sure all the drains in your house (toilets, sinks,, tubs) are working properly. Slow flushing drains may signify that your system needs maintenance.

What are signs of septic tank distress?

Your septic tank is probably in need of attention if the air around it smells unusual, or if the ground is wet and forming pools in downhill areas of the lawn. You can also tell if the septic system needs work if there is darker grass growing on or around the area surrounding the septic tank.

Ri-Industries recommends that you speak to your Local Council Health Inspector to understand maintenance requirements of your local area as you consider septic tank repair. Do not hesitate to call a plumber if you think your septic tank is showing signs of disrepair or distress. For more information about maintenance, contact us with questions at [email protected] / 08 8444 810, or through our Contact Us page.

Ri-Industries logo

5 Ways Ri-Industries Can Help You Recycle Water for Your Home

by Ri Industries

About one-third of the world’s population is affected by water scarcity. Thankfully, your septic tank is just one of the many environmentally-friendly ways to recycle water around the home. Recycling water using a septic tank and other methods can be a way to revitalize your local environment while conserving precious resources for the community at large. Here are some quick and easy ways Ri-Industries can help you recycle water and take advantage of the water table surrounding your home.

Water Recycling Tip #1: Use the Ri-Treat System to Reuse Water to Your Best Advantage

The Ri-Treat waste water treatment system discharges household waste into a controlled area and aerobically decomposes waste. This system is a way for homeowners living in a non-sewered area to reclaim their waste water and reuse it around the home.

Water Recycling Tip #2: Use a Ri-Treat Waste Water Treatment System on Your Garden

The on-site Ri-Treat waste water system allows you to reuse and recycle your water resources and make great savings, all at the same time. Ri-Industries supplies a surface garden irrigation kit with every Ri-Treat system, meaning you can recycle household waste water to keep your yard looking fresh and healthy.

Water Recycling Tip #3: Let Ri-Industries Collect Your Rainwater

Reclaiming and reusing your water isn’t limited to waste water; take advantage of every step of the water cycle by using concrete rainwater tanks to collect and filter the rainfall in your backyard. Rainwater tanks have the advantage of being a natural alternative to treatment plants that use chemicals to filter water, and can be used for a number of different domestic and rural purposes.

Water Recycling Tip #4: Reuse Your Bathwater

Consider upgrading an existing septic in your home by asking your plumber to install a separate Ri-Industries septic tank to catch the water you wash down your bathroom sink, shower or bath. While this water isn’t fit for drinking, it can be used for irrigation, watering the houseplants, or simply flushing the toilet.

Water Recycling Tip #5: Use Your Water Wisely

With the Ri-Treat waste water system, along with Concrete Rainwater Tanks and Septic Tanks, Ri-Industries makes it easy for you to conserve and reuse water to your best advantage in and around your home. But the next step is up to you—when you wash fruit in your sink, save the rinsed water to use on your lawn afterward; instead of tossing out the water that you used to boil your vegetables, use it to make soup instead. Every little effort can make a big difference.

By taking advantage of these five tips, as well as the other services Ri-Industries has to offer, you can use the water in your home to the best of its potential. Not only that: recycling water around the home is a natural and environmentally friendly way to give back to your local eco-system. For more information on how to reuse and recycle the water supply in your non-sewered area, please check out our website or call 08 8444 8100.

9 Tips on How to Take Care of Your Septic Tank

by Ri Industries

Your septic tank may not always be top of mind when you’re considering home maintenance, but it’s an important part of your home and something not to be overlooked. Properly caring for your septic tank will extend its life and value, while helping to keep septic tank costs down. Follow these nine easy steps to septic tank care, and you’ll help maintain your septic tank even longer:

Septic Tank Care Tip #1: Don’t throw rubbish down your toilet.
It’s so tempting to flush rubbish down your toilet, but it’s very unhealthy for your septic tank system. When you flush items such as cat litter, facial tissue and paper towels, you can clog your septic tank. Use your litter bin for these items.

Septic Tank Care Tip #2: Don’t pour grease down the drain.
If you pour grease down your drain, it could clog your septic tank drain field. Grease doesn’t allow the soil around your drain field to absorb liquids, which could cause a back-up and result in the added expense of digging a new drain field.

Septic Tank Care Tip #3: Purchase the right kind of garbage disposal.
Consider investing in a top-of-the-line garbage disposal, which will do a better job grinding your food waste. The more ground your food, the better it will be absorbed in your septic tank system.

Septic Tank Care Tip #4: Repair leaky faucets.
Water that is wasted through leaky taps puts a strain on your septic tank system (not to mention, it also increases your water bill!). Be sure to repair leaky tap right away.

Septic Tank Care Tip #5: Don’t pour household chemicals down the drain.
Dispose of motor oil, antifreeze, paint, pesticides and potent cleaners properly. They should never be poured down the drain because they kill bacteria that breaks down solids in your septic tank.

Septic Tank Care Tip #6: Never drain your pool or hot tub water into your septic tank system.
Chlorine from your pool or hot tub can break down the important solid-busting bacteria in your system, just like household chemicals can. Additionally, adding a large influx of water into your septic tank can cause your drain field to flood.

Septic Tank Care Tip #7: Perform an inspection of your septic tank on a regular basis.
The frequency of a septic tank inspection depends on the manufacturer – it can range from three months to three years. Some septic tanks can be inspected by the consumer while others need to be inspected by a technician. In any case, be sure to have your septic tank system evaluated on a frequent basis to catch any minor repairs before they become costly ones.

Septic Tank Care Tip #8: Pump your septic tank.
Most septic tanks need to be pumped every 3-5 years. The frequency depends on how many people are in your home. The more people living in your house, the more often you should pump your septic tank.

Septic Tank Care Tip #9: Take care of your drain field.
Make sure all water is diverted away from your soakage area. Additionally, only landscape your soakage area with grass. If you want to add plants, be sure to only pick ones with shallow root systems. Finally, never park a vehicle on top of your soakage area. Vehicles can put a strain on your soakage area and may lead to ruptured pipes.

By following these nine tips, your septic tank system will last longer and work more efficiently – all while helping to prevent costly repairs. Should it be time to replace your septic tank system, don’t hesitate to contact us with questions on [email protected] / 08 8444 8100.