Septic service for Clarksville and Montgomery County
Pumping, inspections and repairs for homes on septic.
We pump septic tanks, inspect systems for home sales, install risers and track down the cause of backups, odors and wet spots in yards across Clarksville and Montgomery County. When you call, you talk to the people who do the work.
What we can help with
- Septic tank pumping
Routine pump-outs, filter cleaning and a written note of what we saw in the tank. - Inspections
For a home purchase, a sale, or a system you are worried about. - Repairs and backups
Broken baffles and lines, slow drains, odors and backups. - Drainfield problems
Soggy yards, surfacing water and fields that cannot keep up. - Pumps and alarms
High-water alarms, effluent pumps and floats. - Risers and lids
Finding buried tanks and bringing the lids up to grade.
How often should you pump?
Use the estimator below for a starting point, then let us measure your tank at the next visit.
Pumping interval estimator
How it works: Penn State Extension estimates each adult adds roughly 60 gallons of sludge and scum to a tank each year, and recommends pumping before those layers fill about 30% of the tank. We add 50% for a garbage disposal as a rough allowance. This is a planning estimate, not an inspection. Source: Penn State Extension, Septic Tank Pumping; EPA suggests most household tanks be pumped every 3 to 5 years.
Septic systems in Montgomery County: what is different here
Most of Montgomery County sits on limestone. That bedrock dissolves over time, which is why the county has so many sinkholes, springs and losing streams. Over it is usually a silty topsoil with a red, clay-rich subsoil that drains slowly once it is wet. For a septic system that means two things: drainfields can saturate in a wet winter or spring, and wastewater that is not treated well in the soil can move into groundwater through cracks in the rock. Keeping the tank pumped so solids never reach the field is the cheapest protection a homeowner has.
Clarksville averages roughly 50 inches of rain and snow-melt a year, and the wettest stretch usually runs from late fall through spring. If your drains slow down or the yard over the field stays soggy only after long rainy periods, tell us. That pattern points toward a field that is struggling with water, not a tank that simply needs pumping.
Permits and records in Tennessee
- Subsurface sewage disposal systems in Tennessee are regulated by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Water Resources. A new system, a repair that changes the system, or an addition that adds bedrooms generally needs a TDEC permit before the work starts.
- TDEC lets owners search for existing system records. A permit drawing is the fastest way to find a tank before anyone digs. See TDEC SSDS homeowner FAQs.
- Before any excavation (risers, line repairs, field work), Tennessee 811 must be contacted so buried utilities are marked. Tennessee law requires the request at least three working days before digging. See Tennessee 811.
- Pumping a tank does not need a permit, but the hauler must take septage to an approved disposal site.
Questions we hear every week
Will pumping fix a backup?
Sometimes. If the tank is simply full, yes. If a line is broken, the outlet is blocked or the field is saturated, pumping only buys a few days. We check before we recommend a repair.
Do septic additives help?
Penn State Extension and the EPA both say additives are not needed and are no substitute for pumping. Save the money for a pump-out.
What do you need from me?
Your address, roughly when the tank was last pumped, what you are noticing, and whether you know where the lids are. Do not open the tank yourself; the gases inside are dangerous.
More answers are on our FAQ page, and typical prices are on the cost page.