# Septic tank alarms



## Tinstaafl (Jan 6, 2008)

It's really great when we hear The Rest of the Story; thanks!

So it sounds like the alarm sensor circuit is pretty sensitive. Any water outside of a laboratory is a fairly decent conductor, so with those butt connectors right up against each other, and damp, there would definitely be some leakage current.

Ideally, in the future you might want to not only stagger the splices, but fill the heat shrink with silicone to help keep moisture out.


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## aj50 (Apr 23, 2017)

+1 on this. For reference: Septic was recently overflowed back into house after being powered down for a while, so water had reached top of tank unit. SJE Rhombus TD unit was showing a red light but dim with no audible alarm when power was restored and tank pumped down. Splice box had completely filled with water/effluent. After draining and drying, all was well.


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## Robin F (Jul 4, 2017)

I know this is an old post, but its worth saying for anyone who hasn't yet figured it out: "DO NOT MAKE ANY CONNECTIONS INSIDE THE SEPTIC TANK RISER! PERIOD!!!". The corrosive methane and other gases, combined with the high humidity environment will cause you nothing but trouble. Technically speaking, it is also considered a hazardous environment, so any relevant code rules would be pertinent. The simple solution is to locate the connections OUTSIDE the tank riser. Generally we do this by installing a 2" PVC conduit with a cable seal (specific for this application, our local irrigation and plumbing supplier stocks them). This is important, as you need to keep the corrosive gases from migrating out of the tank. We then sweep up into an "irrigation box" but with the grey "Electrical" lid. We leave as much slack as possible on the leads for the pump and floats as it makes it easier to remove them for servicing. From the sub grade box we sweep above grade to a safety disconnect switch and usually to an outdoor rated alarm as well. Be sure the pump and alarm are on separate circuits and NOT a 3wire circuit. If the pump seizes and trips the breaker, you still want the high limit alarm to sound before the sewage backs up into the house! They're not pretty things, so its nice if the alarm can be hidden in the landscaping. It is much better for servicing to have have the alarm located outside too. We live in an area with a lot of vacation homes, so not having to enter the house for a service call is a bonus. (PS if the HO has a security system, you can tie the septic alarm into one of the security panel zone inputs and have them notified remotely if the high limit goes. BIG bonus to HO who are not there full time.) If anyone is unclear on this technique, I can post some pics. Cheers.


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