Another common name that some people use in place of draining fields are leaching fields. These two components of a septic system are one in the same, and only differ in their names alone. Even though the leaching fields are one of the major components of a septic system, they do not maintain or repair as much as other parts of the system, and they do not need them as frequently. It is not uncommon for a leaching field to go fifteen or twenty years without experiencing problems.

Leaching fields are responsible for taking waste water that comes from the home and settles in the septic tank and pushes through pipes in the yard which will help naturally filter the water that was removed from the waste material. This is very important in saving water and ensuring that it will go back into the water table. If a leaching field fails, homeowners will have a serious problem on their hands that needs to be correct sooner rather than later.

There are a few different signs that a homeowner’s leaching fields are starting to fail them. One of the first signs that people notice is that drainers are slower at removing water, and also plumbing may begin to back up.  Another common sign is when sewage odors start coming from these places, but also from the septic tank and leach fields on the outside of a home. Even though the leaching fields might be showing signs of failure, it could just be a clog in the system, and not that the whole draining fields need to be replaced.