Although waste treatment equipment is nearly always necessary for most commercial spaces, choosing the appropriate one and knowing exactly what you need can be difficult. It can be time consuming looking in detail at the functions, operation, and ideal user profiles of various pieces of equipment. In this article we break down the benefits of both Septic Tanks and Sewage Treatment Plants.
Septic Tanks, What Are They?
Septic Tanks are tough, watertight tanks that are often buried underground. They’re designed to receive and hold sewage and wastewater from either businesses or homes. They’re often made of either fibreglass, plastic or sometimes concrete and are mostly found as part of a system to safely dispose of waste in buildings that either have insufficient drainage or that aren’t connected to a mains sewerage network, usually those in particularly rural areas.
How Septic Tanks Work
It’s important to know how septic tanks work, and the process itself has several steps. It starts by receiving the wastewater from either a toilet, sink, shower, or any other type of drain. This flows down the pipes and into the Septic Tank. All the different products in the tank settle differently, with solids settling at the bottom and things like grease or oil settling on the top layer.
Following on from this the natural bacteria/microorganisms within the tank begin to breakdown the solids at the bottom and degrade the organic materials in the top sludge and scum layers.
The middle layer between the top and bottom is usually just wastewater without any solids remaining (known as effluent). This product in the middle is what gets passed out of the septic tank and into what is known as a drain field or sometimes leach field. The natural soils in the earth do the last part of the filtration system before it makes its way back to the groundwater.
Septic tanks are not allowed to discharge into water course or ditches.
What Is a Sewage Treatment Plant?
Sewage Treatment Plants are not to dissimilar septic tanks in the sense that they process and filter wastewater and products to reduce contaminants, allowing properties to safely manage their waste. However, they’re better designed to deal with much bigger properties than just households or small businesses. Usually, any property with six or more occupants requires a treatment plant.
How Does a Sewage Treatment Plant Work?
Rather than just storing waste sewage treatment plants operate by purifying wastewater and sewage. By utilising special aeration techniques, these plants create bacterial growth, allowing for the breakdown of contaminants within the wastewater.
This means that once cleaned, treated, and filtered, the water then finds its way back into rivers, streams and eventually the ocean, perfectly suited to the environment without causing any contamination or damage. As one can imagine, untreated sewage has seriously negative effects on overall health and the environment, which is why its essential businesses take their wastewater management seriously.
Which Option Will My Business Benefit From?
Whether you need a septic tank, or a sewage treatment plant completely depends on the size of your home or business and how much waste you produce. A septic tank is usually used for homes or very small businesses that don’t produce large quantities of wastewater. However, sewage treatment plants are better for scenarios where large quantities of wastewater or contaminants are being produced and need dealing with on a bigger scale. Often the decision on which tank to use will depend on how the final effluent is being discharged.
Are Commercial Systems Different to Residential Solutions?
Absolutely. Commercial systems usually have a much more technical and intense process to deal with the larger volume of waste it must process. They also have much stricter rules and regulations due to the higher risk of environmental contamination. Residential solutions often only deal with smaller amounts of wastewater and much less dangerous contaminants.
The Legislations Around These Products
The rules and regulations around sewage and septic tanks are important to stay up to date with.
Firstly, you are responsible for the tank or plant if you own the property or if your property shares the system with other properties (you are then jointly responsible with the other owner). Depending on your tenancy agreement, certain renters may also be responsible.
You cannot discharge untreated sewage or effluent from a septic tank into a watercourse, and if your discharge causes pollution (even by accident), the Environment Agency will offer you help and advice to fix the problem. However, if you do not report it or don’t try to fix the problem, you may receive a penalty or charge.
