Septic Tank Pumping in Bessemer & McCalla, AL

Alabama Septic Tank Services pumps septic tanks for homes and businesses in Bessemer, McCalla, Hueytown, Hoover, Brookwood and Tuscaloosa. Our technicians are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at (205) 426-1310.

Every septic tank fills up. Solids sink to the bottom as sludge, grease and light material float on top as scum, and only the liquid in between should flow on to your field lines. Bacteria break some of the solids down, but not all of them – so every few years the tank has to be pumped. Skip it, and the solids start washing out into the drain field, the one part of the system that is most expensive to replace.

For most homes, every 3 to 5 years. The right interval depends on:

• the size of the tank (many homes here have a 1,000- to 1,500-gallon tank),
• how many people live in the house,
• whether you use a garbage disposal (it adds a lot of solids),
• and how much water the household uses.

If you do not know when your tank was last pumped, it is probably time. We have opened tanks that had gone 18 and even 30 years without service – by then the tank is mostly sludge and the field lines are at risk.

1. Locating the tank – even when you are not sure where it is. Sometimes the lid is right under the grass, sometimes we dig between 4 inches and 4 feet to reach it.
2. Opening both compartments. Most tanks have a baffle wall; we pump both sides, not just the inlet.
3. Breaking up the sludge with water so the bottom of the tank comes out with the rest.
4. Checking the tank while it is open: cracks, the inlet and outlet baffles, the effluent filter (cleaned when there is one), roots and missing pieces.
5. Checking the flow to the field lines when something looks wrong – we tell you what we see and what it means.
6. Closing up and cleaning up – lids back on, holes filled, yard and driveway left clean.

We like the homeowner to be there if possible, so we can show you the tank and answer your questions.

• Sinks, tubs and toilets drain slowly, or gurgle.
• Sewage smell in the house or around the tank.
• Wet, soggy spots or unusually green grass over the tank or field lines.
• Sewage backing up into the lowest drain in the house.

Backups and sewage in the yard are urgent – see our 24/7 emergency septic service.

Pumping prices depend on the size of the tank, how deep it is buried and how easy it is to reach, and how far we drive. Part of the price is the safe transport and disposal of the waste. We tell you the price up front, before any work starts – and we accept all major credit cards.

Tired of digging up the lids every time? Ask about a riser at ground level, and see how to make the next pumping wait longer in septic maintenance.

Some older homes still have a cesspool or cesspit instead of a modern tank. We pump and service those too, along with commercial septic tanks. Restaurants: see grease trap pumping.