7 Signs Your Drain Field Is Failing

1. Standing water or soggy ground over the drain field, even when it hasn't rained much.
2. Bright-green, fast-growing grass in one strip - the field is fertilizing the lawn with effluent.
3. Slow drains that come right back soon after a pump-out.
4. Sewage odor outdoors near the tank or field.
5. Backups during or after wet weather, when the water table is high.
6. Gurgling drains and toilets that struggle to clear.
7. Lush, spongy soil you can sink into over the field lines.

Why it matters on SC coastal-plain soil

When the seasonal water table climbs under sandy Pee Dee and Lowcountry soils, a tired field has nowhere to send wastewater, so it surfaces. Caught early, a field can sometimes be jetted, rejuvenated, or partially repaired for far less than a full replacement. Ignored, it becomes a $5,000-$20,000 job. If you are seeing these signs, get it looked at before it fails completely.