A septic system is an on-site wastewater treatment system commonly used in rural or remote areas where municipal sewage systems are unavailable. When you flush the toilet or otherwise run water down the drain, that water does not disappear. In most cases that wastewater either flows to a municipal treatment facility through the city sewers, or in areas not serviced by city sewers, that wastewater flows to a septic system.
It typically consists of a septic tank (where solids are separated and broken down) and a drain field (where treated water is filtered and absorbed into the soil). When functioning properly, these components work together to treat the wastewater and return it to the environment in a sensitive way that minimizes its impact to surface features and to subsurface groundwater conditions.
When working properly, septic systems provide an excellent and long-term sustainable solution for domestic wastewater disposal. On-site sewage works are the septic system’s big brother, they are designed to accommodate flows greater than 10000 liters per day and are primarily found in commercial or institution applications.
The official name of a septic tank in the Ontario Building code is a “treatment unit “The official name of a septic bed in the Ontario Building code is a “leaching bed”