Dropping a tree over septic tank

Depending on size and limbs, it could be a problem but most likely not. To be sure though I'd not drop them directly on the tank.

Adios Pantalones said:

Thanks. What about the leach field?

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Do you know how far down the leach pipes are? I would not think it would be a problem unless you have a huge tree and the pipes are up close to the top of the ground. Did you break that tricycle you were riding?

The leach field pipes should be within a foot of the surface for the evaporation to work. I would spread some small limbs over the area to displace the load when it hits. Just be aware that often when a tree hits the ground, limbs break off and the stubs penetrate the ground.

I drop trees where i want them to drop, not where they want to drop.
I would not drop one on septic tank or leach field.

If your choices are your house, your neighbor's house, the garage or the leach field, I'd pick the leach field.
Unless you're a magician and can drop it a mile down the road.

I'd rather replace a pipe than a tank.

What's "good sized"? 30+"?

I would be most concerned about a limb getting driven into the ground and hitting a pipe in the leach field, not the overall impact rupturing a pipe. The odds of that happening probably are slim. I would be hesitant to drop it directly on the tank though.

If you have a couple you could further reduce the impact (literally) by dropping them on to of each other. Once the first one is down it would cushion / distribute the load of the others. It would be more work getting the mess cleaned up though...

"The leach field pipes should be within a foot of the surface for the evaporation to work. "

A common misconcpetion. In all but the most extreme cases of unconventional systems the effluent is designed to soak in and go down into the earth. That is, NOT evaporation but infiltration into the soil. The earth above the laterals must not be compacted since it is very important that oxygen be able to travel into the soil to provide the aerobic bacteria with life giving oxygen. Gravity drainfields are most fragile since they depend on a perfectly level lateral line to make sure the effluent is distributed evenly to the whole drainfield.

The biggest thing to worry about is the branch spearing into the soil and poking a hole in your system. Wait until the soil is dry and firm and then drop the tree avoiding the spears. Then use manual labor to limb and remove the tree, no machinery. Minimize the traffic over the drainfield.

Highbeam said:

"The leach field pipes should be within a foot of the surface for the evaporation to work. "

A common misconcpetion. In all but the most extreme cases of unconventional systems the effluent is designed to soak in and go down into the earth. That is, NOT evaporation but infiltration into the soil. The earth above the laterals must not be compacted since it is very important that oxygen be able to travel into the soil to provide the aerobic bacteria with life giving oxygen. .

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+1
Though transpiration of vegetation also contributes. Leach effluent should exit into a biologically active soil zone and oxygen is key to that.
Some systems, such as elevated mound systems do rely much more heavily upon evaporation than infiltration.

To give an example I dropped an 18" pine that had been topped from an accident/lighning strike. It was about a 30' trunk with no top and I dropped it near the pool filter. Long story short I crushed the pool return pipe as it landed. That pipe was about 2' underground, but sort of weird because it was on the edge of a bank. Whether I'd try it again depends on a couple things (my pipe was clean and easy to fix). It really depends on the tree, situation and a couple other things. I would MUCH rather crush a pipe than take a chance at damaging the tank.

How big is big? 12" tree with a decent top is not going to make that big a splash (think sewer tank, that's a nasty splash!).

begreen said:

Sounds like the tree needs to be close trimmed of all limbs first. Then taken down in sections to avoid impact. May sound like a pita, but what would damaging the septic system sound (or smell) like?

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I think the odds of it getting damaged are pretty slim...the problem is you may never know if any damage actually occurred. You could collapse a couple pipes and cut your leach field capacity down quite a bit and prematurely "wear out" a finger or two...but unless you had a wet spot develop it would be impossible to tell what really happened.

Repairing a broken finger isn't hard...but it is nasty. I did it once...but if I ever had to do it again I'd hire that chit out (literally and figuratively).

"Sounds like the tree needs to be close trimmed of all limbs first. Then taken down in sections to avoid impact. May sound like a pita, but what would damaging the septic system sound (or smell) like"


Perhaps that why the Pro's get good money to climb & rope down the limbs.

not sure if it is an option, but i would suggest waiting for winter when the ground is frozen if you have to drop it over the field.... certainly not an ideal thing to do and I would be very concerned about doing so.

that is definately a candidate to be 'pieced-down'. I've seen bigger trees (being felled with their branches on) snap a 5" diameter branch and drive said branch almost 4' into the ground (happened to us on a job last summer). Had to cinch it with a tow strap and pull it out of the ground with a truck. That was in an open field but had that been in someones yard over a septic tank it would have caused real damage. Better safe than sorry. If you want my honest opinion, I would get a pro get it on the ground for ya.. That's why we get paid to climb em.....

+1 on piecing it down! i've had 30" diameter oaks dropped (nothing was underground) and the trunk left a 2 ft deep rut! if there was a septic under there, i't be smashed. the cost of piecing it down is way less than the cost of a new tank.
you had to see the rut the 60" oak left when it came down. earth shattering when it hit. i dug out some of the limbs that had pierced the ground with a bobcat.

if there is no room to drop it elsewhere, you can limb it, piece down just enough trunk to clear a drop in some other direction and drop it there.

How about somebody hooking a rope to the top, and then hovering a helicopter above with tension on that rope so that once the cutters do their work the helicopter can simply lift the tree away? Heck, maybe you could dig a big hole somewhere else and the helicopter can just lift the whole tree out of the ground and transplant it.

Hiring a pro to climb and piece it down is of course the ideal solution. I've had it done on smaller trees near my house. It is not cheap and that pro will be earning his money.

+1 on Highbeam's suggestion. Go with the helicopter. It may be expensive, so what. We want pics though!