mosquitoes breed in septic systems

mexican sewage systems

NoSh*t ?

fishbrain the wwtp operator - watch out east cape!

fishbrain:
have had three houses with septic tanks, flushed my TP at each one, and never used diesel in tank. you are a one dumb bunny. pouring diesel into a septic tank. keep up the good work, fishbrain.

p.s. waiting to hear which WA state treatment plants use diesel,... what engineering firm designed the plants? i think WA state licenses treatment plant operators - did you get a license? i doubt it!

diesel layer covering water in tank!

do not put diesel in a septic tank
it WILL ruin the system

a septic system needs air
some systems even include an air pump

vents only need to be on the toilet and sinks
(like on the roof)
not on the tank

if you have mosquitoes...there is another problem
maybe leakage...

nerver open a tank unless you HAVE to

Probably not a good idea. It will have a negative impact on the aerobic bacteria colony living in your septic tank both by depleting available oxygen and coating the discharged solids, making them much more difficult to break down in the system by the same bacteria.

There is a reason why all municipal wastewater districts put strict limits on oil and grease content of wasterwater discharged to the sewer. Based on your stated experience, that is something you should really know.



I have lived in homes with septic systems for a major part of my life and have never witnessed the mosquito problem. Not saying it couldn't happen, but...



[Edited on 4-10-2011 by BajaGringo]

When I was young on Saturday nights...I'd be doing the town.


Now.....I just sit here and read about poop all night

Go watch some Rockford Files.. and see how the "Valley" and the "freeways" looked in 1975... vacant land all over the place... really a time warp... watch out, ya might see some "green flashes"...

Damn, can't believe used to think it was crowded back then...

The same species of mosquito that transmits West Nile virus among other viuruses is very happy breeding in the organic paradise that is a septic tank. If they have any access at all they will find their way in and begin breeding so please screen off those vents with fine mesh material. They did a study up in Orange County California to see how far mosquitoes would fly through a narrow pipe to get to a stagnant water source and they ran out of pipe (over 100') before they found the limit they would fly. Don't underestimate these little buggers!
PS I work for a large mosquito control program so this is the kind of stuff I deal with everyday.

Those were the Days !

Wastewater sytems are usually vented through the roofs of homes.

Quote:

Originally posted by Cypress Wastewater sytems are usually vented through the roofs of homes.

If you eat enough beans, you could instal one of those eternal flames on your roof, like a refinery?

Still in same neighborhood, Dennis. My landlord owns most of it. (He's old, old-fashioned, and Mexican.) The homes look like a million dollars (much more, if in CA), so I did not expect to have a drop in lifestyle, but the homes are badly built (which I knew), and the landlord is not too helpful (which I did not).
It's a touchy situation, as I really don't want to alienate him or his (big) family, since they are almost the "only game in town" (i.e., this part of PB).

[Edited on 11-26-2012 by MsTerieus]

[Edited on 11-26-2012 by MsTerieus]

I sprayed the entire yard with malathion, yesterday. I think it killed everything but I haven't checked, today, other than to spot one mosquito flying around the living room. (The spraying was the 3rd or 4th time I have sprayed the outside, with either malathion or with Home Defense, because before the mosquitoes - and still - I have been inundated with ants. Of course, I've been spraying the inside of the house too, and using baits, for the ants.)

At this point, I probably should worry more about pesticide poisoning than mosquito-carried disease.

Quote:

Originally posted by MsTerieus since they are almost the "only game in town" (i.e., this part of PB).

as somebody said to somebody else, "Put a sock in it!"

relocate to Baja Home Building section

Mulegena

Must be an industry zinger.

Thanks, Bajaguy and Dennis. I did not know about the Dept. of Tourism. I emailed Xavier with my question and he replied quickly. (Initially, he said he was in the process of having someone in his office REPORT this "health problem" to the authorities. I replied that I did not wish to do that, at this point, I just wanted the info.) Xavier asked someone with whom he works to provide me with info on who I should contact, if need be.

Meanwhile, the (malathion-soaked) rag I shoved into the leaky lid seems to be doing the trick.

Quote:

Originally posted by Bugman The same species of mosquito that transmits West Nile virus among other viuruses is very happy breeding in the organic paradise that is a septic tank. If they have any access at all they will find their way in and begin breeding so please screen off those vents with fine mesh material. They did a study up in Orange County California to see how far mosquitoes would fly through a narrow pipe to get to a stagnant water source and they ran out of pipe (over 100') before they found the limit they would fly. Don't underestimate these little buggers! PS I work for a large mosquito control program so this is the kind of stuff I deal with everyday.

I am the one who is responsible for bringing up this subject concept and trying to get people to screen off septic systems and house vents.

At my webpage www.la-ventana.info under how to stop mosquitoes with a 10 cent screen.

A bit of common sense. Yes how else do they breed, in baja sur we have 2-5 days of rain a year and it is is windy or dry so water does not sit for breeding.

I discovered it when I bought down here in 1999, first thing I did is modified my septic system from a standard one to allow me to flush toilet paper and have it break down. A reason you do have a vent on the tank is to prevent back-flow problems in case the pipes were not the right large enough diameter, else you can have a condition were it sucks the water out of your house traps. So I also put in a clean-out door on the system. Because it was built in the summer when I was not here first thing I did was open the trap to inspect that chamber 1 was holding liquid. And when I opened it a bunch of mosquitoes flew out at me. First thought is ick if they are breeding in that yuck. So immediately cover the vent and in a week no more mosquitoes on my property.


Then a year later a very large campground not far from me was infested with mosquitoes. I gave them a present of the non-believers and said cover the 4 inch septic vents and you will not have mosquitoes. They did and what they told me was in the morning they looked in the white pipe and it was black, there were thousands wanting out. In a week they literally went from you could not be outside in the evening to almost nothing. This has been repeated there a few times when the screens fall off over the years.

When the two hurricanes hit one month apart i think in 2003 this allowed standing water and we had an epidemic of dengue and I came down to my local area to see if I could get them to do something, talked to the Ejido and they said they would hold a meeting, but never did. So read in the world health organization that adults are generally not a good way to effect change, so went to the schools and talked to the kids and gave them screen and wire. The kids were amazing; they went and did as many as they could. A friend who lived in the village said he went from 100s of mosquitos in his house to about 5 or so a night. Again this happens fast about a week you see the difference. This mosquito has a typical range of 100 yards.

Remember in the desert they need a place to rest that has humidity. (that is why on plants that give off moisture they will rest on the bottom of the leaf. (a friend of mine was in the military and he was involved in mosquito testing to prevent biological warfare using mosquitoes, so learned a lot about the behavior from him, how they see in infrared track carbon dioxide) so mosquitoes fly back to the septic system that is also an ideal resting place that has the moisture levels they need.

I have people reporting to me they have seen cracks in septic tanks where clouds of them fly out here in the baja at dusk, same with a report of a septic tube where they could see a cloud of them flying out.

Also I have a link to a florida home where they could not figure it out, they leave the home in the summer and lock it up and find many dead mosquitos and alive when they return in winter. It was finally figured out that the sink water traps dry out and they enter the home from there and this was on a city sewage system but they have a house stink tubes as all houses do in the USA mandated by code.

I was always told by medical people and experts that this dengue carrying AE mosquito cannot breed in septic systems so they dismissed my findings. Yet in baja sur this is the only mosquito we have all others cannot handle our environment to date. Well finally I found a article the department of defense did a study in Puerto Rico, and did find them in many septic systems. But not all, again some septic systems may have very narrow vent tubes and other variations in design. But as I mentions one septic system is capable of clouds. After all they tell you even a bottle cap with water will be a problem at a home after a rain.
Now what I tried to do was get funding from the Gates foundation to actually use this to our advantage. So we know they fly in so it is a natural lure/bait. So why not make this journey a one way one. I.E. a one way trap. That is what I am looking for funding for. Gates foundation denied me, why I do not know maybe it is not a sexy approach? If anyone has the connections to help me I would appreciate it.

I have many links on my website
www.la-ventana.info under mosquitoes.









[Edited on 6-3-2013 by laventana]

Quote:

Originally posted by laventana

Quote:

Originally posted by DENNIS Quote: Originally posted by laventana The vent coming straight up from the tank is unnecessary if the tank vents through the house plumbing. Why is it there?

I figured it was there only for illustration, but I thought there may be some here who don't know about such things and might benefit from it in the future.

SEPTIC

soil

Quote:

Quote: Originally posted by DENNIS Quote: Originally posted by Mulegena I'm guessing the short tank vent is capped and placed so the tank can be cleaned out. I figured it was there only for illustration, but I thought there may be some here who don't know about such things and might benefit from it in the future.

correct because most in my area are constructed this way, but if the piping is small diameter or they did not put in stink tubes (vents in the house ) which I have seen many times in the construction down here, you will need the bleed off tube at the septic tank. BTW in Europe they do not always use stink tubes. They use a product like this that can be found in the US at home depots. It is spring loaded. I put them in my place so I would not have to run stink tubes. Many people down here use their roof tops and boy you can tell who vent upwind stink tubes or not. There is also a spring loaded one designed for stink tubes and outside sun. Using these I did not have to have stink tubes all over just one that was not in a typical location.






[Edited on 6-4-2013 by laventana]