Does anyone else on the Orchid forum live or work out in the country
where the only sewage disposal available is a septic tank? If so, do
you know whether disposing of everyday liquid waste materials
generated in the manufacture and repair of jewelry are harmful to a
septic system? If they are, what do you do about such waste
materials?
Del Pearson of Designs of Eagle Creek in Beautiful South Texas,
where the lack of some services is more than made up for with the
enhanced quality of life.
Jewelry waste liquids shouldn’t go down the drain whether one has a
septic system or not. Ideally, they’ll be hauled away as hazardous
waste. Some towns have a hazardous waste drop off day.
Short of that, pickle can be neutralized with baking soda, then more
baking soda added until it’s more or less a solid, then put it in a
container and throw it away as solid waste in your garbage.
What other liquid wastes do you have?
Elaine
Elaine Luther
Metalsmith, Certified PMC Instructor
http://www.CreativeTextureTools.com ™
Hard to Find Tools for Metal Clay
I also live in the country with a septic system, and have worked on
the assumption (possibly incorrect) that the jewelry wastes WOULD
damage the system - or at least upset the little organisms working
away in my septic tank! When I built my studio we put in french
drains, with long fields of gravel, and my studio “gray waste” goes
into those. I have also seen studios that had a gray waste holding
tank, and someone (can’t remember who - maybe the honey wagon folks)
would come periodically and empty it. Note: the french drains were
designed to feed away from the pond and well!
Beth in SC
Regarding having a septic system- I just don’t take chances. All
chemicals, city or country should be disposed of responsibly. It all
goes into our water… in one way or another. I take my stuff to my
local pick up of hazardous household chemicals. The county solid
waste dept. sponsors it. They have never had a problem with anything
I’ve given them and it is free. They will usually have a few times in
the summer that you can take your chemicals for disposal. Good luck-
I hope they have it in your area.
Take care,
Stephanie Swanson
When I built my studio we put in french drains, with long
fields of gravel, and my studio "gray waste" goes into those. ...
Note: the french drains were designed to feed away from the pond
and well!
Beth, this kind of drain will not protect your groundwater from
contamination. You run the risk of contaminating not only your own
well, but everyone else’s in the area as well.
Sojourner
Short of that, pickle can be neutralized with baking soda, then
more baking soda added until it's more or less a solid, then put it
in a container and throw it away as solid waste in your garbage.
Why do you think that toilet bowl cleaner (sodium bisulfate) needs
to be "neutralized? Do you pour baking soda into your toilet bowl
and dry it and spoon it out before removal to a landfill? I don’t.
I just flush it. What do you use for a toilet in the meantime?
Is swimming pool water “neutralized” at the end of the summer? How
about all of those hot tubs? What about foods that are pickled
As for the bluish color that my pickle acquires, I have no doubt
that it is copper. We have even heard from someone that recycles
this copper sulphate for granulation. I doubt that I lose a full 1
gram of copper in my pickle over a one year period, as this is
material that has been etched from only the surface and very near
the surface of my work. I strongly suspect that a lot more copper is
leached from the copper plumbing in my house by the wate rthat I
purchase from the local water authority.
I would agree that one needs to be very careful of what one throws
into their septic system, but before we carry on with more
discussion of “proper sodium bisulfate disposal”, it might be smart
to find out what the facts really are. In the end, the landfills are
filling up pretty quickly and it seems silly to just add more
chemicals than are necessary (baking soda and kitty litter come to
mind, not to mention the newspapers and plastic bags to wrap it all
in) to the mix.
bruce
Bruce D. Holmgrain
JA Certified Master Bench Jeweler
http://www.goldwerx.com
@Red_Rodder
I have a home with a leech bed, many things are a no no for my
septic system. I use a disposal place in my local little town that
allows me flush my shop waste in to their treatment system. Most of
the stuff is neutralized before it goes to the town treatment
center.
You have to be really careful these days depending on where you
live, we all live down stream from somebody who maybe flushing toxic
waste in to the water supply.
Jerry
Sojourner’s right… the chemicals will leech down into the ground
water level and possibly into the local aquifers. Much like
pestisides, etc.
Craig