This article will discuss drain field safe dishwashing detergents and the effects they have on our home. Living in the country is the perfect life for anyone. You get to enjoy beautiful, quiet pathways and forest trails. At home, you can have simplicity and modernization at the same time. Of course, you have appliances that help you with your daily chores like the dependable dishwasher. Through the years, the dishwasher has successfully evolved into something like a silent robotic assistant that takes care of your dishes and utensils. You won’t even have to dry them off with a towel anymore. But with the installation of the dishwasher, is your drain field bound to suffer whenever you use it? Are there drain field safe dishwasher detergents that could help you be assured in this regard?
The homes in the country have their very own septic systems that treat the wastewater produced every day. If the property has no dry well, the dishwasher is usually connected to the septic system so that the grey water it produces is disposed of properly. When dishwasher detergents are brought up, it is really not a problem for the drain field at all. Technically, all detergents are very dilute already by the time they reach the septic system, particularly the drain field. The soap content becomes too mild that the resident bacteria are not affected at all.
One big issue that you have to be concerned about between the dishwasher and the drain field is the water load increase. Time is always important to every homeowner. Multi-tasking is usually performed to make sure that every second is used properly and productively. The dishwasher is often used heavily in the household because of the mealtimes and also occasional gatherings that take place in the home. The sudden increase in water load stirs up the sludge layer in the septic tank. The solid waste materials then get dispersed into the drain field, resulting to heavy blockage and eventual failure. The drastic increase in water load is even more aggravated when the washing machine and the dishwasher are used simultaneously. And just imagine how the water load increases when these appliances are used during heavy rains, when the rain gutter drains directly onto the drain field. Disaster, isn’t it? To prevent the problem of increased water load, a dry well should be installed near the septic area to accommodate the grey water from both the dishwasher and the washing machine. The rain gutter should be diverted away from the drain field as well.
When you choose drain field safe dishwasher detergents, always remember that the products should have very low amounts of surfactants and phosphates. It would be much better is you choose those who have no surfactants and phosphates at all and are totally biodegradable. In doing so, it would be mostly for the benefit of the environment. As you know, surfactants are chemical compounds that prevent the gills of fishes from absorbing the dissolved oxygen in the water. The phosphates encourage the fast growth of algae. This is called eutrophication. With the drastic increase in algal population, the dissolved oxygen diminishes an every form of life in the water systems dies off.
It would also help a lot if your do not use Rinse Aid when you use your dishwasher because this cleaning aid is full of surfactants that eliminate the water spots during the drying process. There are many biodegradable drain field safe dishwasher detergents out there that can do the same thing. Just be persistent and you will find them.
Remember that hand washer detergents should not be used for the dishwasher because they are very high in surfactants and produce a lot of suds that will interfere with the cleaning process. The suds will just pour out of the dishwasher. If you accidentally used hand washer detergent, turn off the dishwasher and spray salt solution at the suds to tone them down. Then drain the dishwasher and start all over again, using the right drain field safe dishwasher detergent. We hope this article helped the reader to better understand drain field safe dishwashing detergents and the effects they have on our home.