Can you dump skimmer waste down the toilet?

[Bosreef]

Wait wait wait..... where was she suggestion where would the alternative be?

 

[Snoopy 67]

I know one fellow that lets it dry then feeds it to his fish.

 

[ca1ore]

Its really not a big deal unless you've got a ton of reef gallonage.

Dropping 20 gallons of salt water into a 1000g septic tank that typically has 750 gallons of water in it and has about 500 gallons of water a day going through it just isn't meaningful.

There are a couple of states that require the waste line of softeners to be discharged into septic tanks - and they don't seem to have any higher failure rates than any other states.


The one thing I wouldn't do is dump about 500 gallons of salt water into a septic tank all at once - fresh water floats on salt water, and if they don't have time to mix, you'll float all sorts of 'stuff' into your leaching fields.

All good points (thus my use of the word 'potential'). I used to do quite sizable water changes (100 gallons per) and tried to avoid putting that into the septic tank. Did not seem to affect the trees local to the 'dumping' point though.

 

[jd371]

I was dumping it in the slop sink in the laundry room, but the smell would linger even after a few hours. I now just flush it down the toilet, no more smell.

 

[dadnjesse]

The bigger potential problem is the salt water from water changes. Most septic tanks are concrete, which does not take kindly to the corrosive affects of salt.

Also if you dump it in the sink the salt is going to eat your metal drain plug

 

[rob taft]

As noted, I put my skimmer waste down the drain or toilet but I don't put the raw waste water output from the RODI down the drain nor do I dump the saltwater from a water change down the septic system. I have a modern sand mound system as many folks do in FL, so I prefer not to have the saltwater pumped out to the drain field via the in tank sump or high water pump. I also have my water softener line discharging to the outside i.e. not the septic system.

I drain the water change water out to the gravel driveway and put the RODI waster water in the garden or lawn or woods.

 

[harley32907]

crap is crap

 

[JAMreef]

OMG! I Can’t... not sure why I find this so funny. I say it’s like you said, it smells like s*** and looks like s*** so it’s only natural to assume it would be okay to put it in the toilet.

Loved reading some of these comments!

 

[mann1139]

I have been dumping skimmate into a septic for 10 years without issue.

As said above, more concerning is sending 100s of gallons of water, whether salt or fresh. That's going to cause more of an issue.

 

[Dburr1014]

I know one friend who had his septic pumped/inspected. The company said he had a crust of white stuff all over and didn't know what it was. My friend thought it was salt creep cuz he would send his WC water down the drain.
I personally throw it on my lawn. WC water and skimmate. No ill effects.

 

[Texas Rick]

I use it for my garden and gives me juicy and delicious fruit and vegetables!

 

[mtfish]

I am on septic tank, I have a mesh strainer on my sink in the fish room, anything small enough to get through goes to septic. Big chunks get puts in the trash. Salt water changes for me can be up to 100 gallons a time. When they put the septic tank in I had them dig a 4 ft x 4 ft x 4 ft hole near the fish room wall. Drain from fish room feeds into this hole that is backfilled with pea gravel and has a perforated pipe at the bottom. Wife has a flower garden on top. I drain all salt water into this hole. Guess I am building a salt dome down there (it has been almost 8 years). I would not drain salt water into septic, myself.