As a septic professional you get many questions like, will caustic soda harm leach fields? That afternoon, you were supposed to meet your co-worker at a local bookstore/coffee shop. It was a weekend and you guys planned to do some shopping and spend the rest of the day at the spa afterwards. You really needed the pampering. The entire month was filled with hectic schedules and difficult errands from your boss. It seemed like you went from assistant to slave in just frequent buzzes of the intercom. You were like a zombie that lived on coffee and bagels. You deserved to be cared for that weekend. While you waited for your companion, you decided to kill time by reading something from the nearest shelf. It just so happened that the book you grabbed was all about caustic soda and the leach field. It was a relevant subject for you because your leach field’s treatment was the day after. It was going to be a good read for you because you needed to know about what was going to happen to your leach field.
Caustic soda is a chemical compound that is white and comes in the form of granules, fifty percent solution, pellets, or flakes. It is also called lye or sodium hydroxide that absorbs the carbon dioxide in the air that is why it should be placed in an air tight or vacuum container. Caustic soda is soluble in ethanol, methanol, and water but insoluble in non-polar solvents and ether. This chemical compound is a strong base that is meant to neutralize acids. It is also very corrosive to human skin so if you are going to handle caustic soda, you should be well protected. Also be careful in combining this with other compounds because this is exothermic. It can cause fire and can even melt aluminum and glass.
When it comes to your leach field and will caustic soda harm leach fields? Caustic soda is not harmful at all. This is because when it comes in contact with acids like hydrochloric acid (commonly found in septic systems when you use strong acids in cleaning your home), salt and water are produced. As you may know, water is harmless to the septic system. The minute amount of salt by-product doesn’t harm the bacteria and improves their performance instead. Sodium hydroxide is also found in water softening systems that most homes have. The discharge produced in the process improves the percolation rate of the soil in your leach field. Since bacteria thrive in non-acidic environments, adding caustic soda greatly improves the living conditions of the resident bacteria in the septic system that improves its efficiency.
Sodium hydroxide can really do your leach field good because of its ability to break down organic tissues that can be frequently found in sinks, drains, toilets, septic tanks, and leach fields. As you know, these parts of your home and property always fall victim to clogs brought about by hair and human waste. Caustic soda could really clear these parts and your leach field as well to assure a smooth run of your septic system.
Caustic soda could also be used in treating crude oil, drilling mud, preparing food, and breaking down amphoteric compounds and metals. If you are fond of going to salons, sodium hydroxide is used there to relax the hair and straighten it. You often thought that having your hair straightened was just with the help of the salon equipment and a secret mixture of chemical secrets. Reading the book on caustic soda really enlightened you of its beneficial effects especially when it came to caring for your leach field.
After an hour of reading that book, your co-worker finally arrived. She said that she had to come by the pet grooming salon to drop off her chi weenie. She promised to treat you to lunch to make up for her being late. That appeased you very much and after that, you started your shopping therapy. It was a nice girl’s day out—educational and relaxing at the same time. It was really a good thing that you co-worker was late because if she wasn’t, you wouldn’t have read the very useful book and may have answered the question of will caustic soda harm leach fields?
