How to prepare your septic system for a Nevada winter.

Nevada winters don't get the press that Midwest winters get, but anyone who's lived through one in Fallon, Stagecoach, or the Reno-Sparks valley knows the cold gets in. Overnight lows sit in the teens for weeks, and the wind never asks permission. Your septic system was built for it, but a few October chores can keep a small problem from turning into a frozen, expensive January.

Here's what we recommend our customers do every fall.

1. Pump before the ground freezes.

If you're due, or close to due, for a pump-out, get it on the calendar before the first hard freeze. Once the ground around your access lids freezes, the soil locks up around the tank and digging gets miserable. We can still do the work; it just takes longer and costs more.

A typical residential tank wants pumping every 3–5 years. If you don't remember when yours was last done, that's probably your answer.

2. Insulate the line from the house.

The shortest, shallowest run of pipe between your house and the tank is the part most likely to freeze. If you've ever had a slow drain on a cold morning, that's why. A few practical things help:

• Leave snow on the leach field. Snow is insulation. Don't shovel or plow over the field if you can help it.
• Don't compact the ground above the tank or field. Driving over the area pushes the frost line deeper.
• Run a little warm water once a day during cold snaps. A dishwasher cycle or a shower keeps things flowing.

3. Fix slow drains now, not in February.

A slow drain in October is a clogged drain in February. Cold thickens the grease, sludge, and biomat in your lines and your tank's outlet. Anything that's already partially restricted gets worse fast. If something is draining slow, call us, we'd rather diagnose it now than after midnight on Christmas Eve.

4. Add a riser if you don't have one.

Risers bring your tank's access lid up to ground level. In a Nevada winter, that means we can pump or service without breaking ground in frozen dirt. Tuf-Tite risers install in an hour and save us, and you, every time it's cold.

5. If a line does freeze, don't pour boiling water down it.

It feels like the obvious fix and it almost never works. Boiling water can crack the pipe and the freeze usually isn't right at the top. Call us; we have the equipment to thaw the line safely. While you wait, conserve water, every flush adds pressure behind the freeze.