Septage

The partially treated waste store in a septic tank is called Septage. It generally consists of all the household wastes that are disposed of through a homes plumbing system that do not drain out into the soil or are converted to gases by the special bacteria in the septage tank.

Disposing of septage in the United States is becoming an increasing problem as people build homes outside of city sewer systems. Septage waste can be transported to local waste water treatment centers, used by farmers for fertilizer, or stored in large Septage Waste Storage Facilities for later treatment or use on crops.

Septage Makeup

Septage is generally split into three parts in a septic tank.
* Scum which floats to the top and is generally where the bacteria that treat the waste live.
* Effluent which is the semi-treated liquid that comprises the majority of the material in the septic tank
* Sludge the solids which collect at the bottom of the tank

Sources of Septage

Septage is the material pumped out of a septage tank or onsite sewage facility. Septic tanks can be residential or non-residential. Non-residential sources can include wastewater from commercial/industrial development, Grease interceptor as well as other sources such as Portable toilet waste, RV waste and boat waste.

Septage waste is removed from these septage tanks by specialized trucks designed to pump the septage out of the tank, these trucks are knows as a septage truck, pumper trucks or honey truck. These truck then transport the septage to a treatment facility.