Home / Interactive tank
Learn your tank.
Every part of a septic tank, what it does, and what we check on it when we pump.
Interactive
Inside a septic tank
Tap a number to see what each part does, and what we check on it every time we pump.
01
Inlet baffle
Where waste arrives from the house. The baffle turns the flow downward so solids settle instead of racing across the top of the tank.
A cracked or missing inlet baffle is one of the most common things we find.
Know your tank
What is actually in there
Your tank separates waste into three layers. Only the middle one is meant to leave. Pumping removes the other two.
01
Inlet baffle
Where sewage enters from the house. It slows the flow so solids can settle instead of rushing through.
02
First compartment
Where the separating happens. Only the clear middle layer should pass into the second compartment.
03
Second compartment
Holds the effluent filter, the last stop that keeps solids out of your drain field or dosing tank.
04
Outlet baffle
Sends clarified wastewater on to the drain field. A missing or broken one is a common reason fields fail early.
05
Inspection pipe
On two-compartment tanks we pump both sides, so we can see both baffles and the condition of the walls.
Air space
Room for a surge, so a blockage does not back up into the house
Scum
Grease, fats and oils that float
Effluent
Clarified water, the only layer that should reach the drain field
Sludge
Solids that settle. This is what we pump out
A typical two-compartment tank in cross-section. Scroll and the layers fill in the order they build up.
Speak with a septic expert
Septic trouble does not wait. Neither do we.
Call any time. A live person answers 24/7, and emergency calls cost the same as daytime ones.
Request a call back