Let me explain something nearly all septic companies won’t: there are two types of people in this world. Those who assume septic systems are simply “buried containers for waste,” and those that have had raw sewage gurgling into their property at the dead of night. I discovered this distinction the difficult way in 2005—standing in mud, shivering in a Washington downpour, as my siblings and I aided a weathered installer restore our family’s collapsed system. I was a teenager. My hands ached. My pants were destroyed. But that evening, something crystallized: This ain’t just manual labor. It’s families’ lives we’re protecting.

Nearly all companies begin by servicing tanks. We began by constructing them—literally. Back in the beginning of the 2000s, when most kids were glued to Xbox, Art Nikolin (our ops manager) and his family were excavating trenches under the watchful eye of a septic expert their father hired. Hour by hour, that installer recognized something in us. Maybe it was our stubborn refusal to give up when a PVC pipe burst at 9 PM. Or how we’d sit and homepage argue about soil absorption rates like kids argue about pizza toppings. By 2008, we were not just helpers—we were certified installers. But here’s the kicker: we learned this business from the ground up.

See, 90% of septic operations begin with service. They know how to pump a tank but could not tell you why the absorption area failed three years after setup. We got our hands dirty from the bottom up. Literally. I remember this one rough summer—2006, I think—when we put in 17 systems across Snohomish County. One homeowner’s yard had soil like concrete. The “pro” crew before us quit. But our mentor taught us a method: hydrate the ground overnight, dig at sunrise. We finished by noon. That system? Still running flawlessly 18 years later.

Jump to 2023. We get a call from a panicked homeowner in Woodinville. Their fresh septic system—installed by a “budget” crew—collapsed during Thanksgiving dinner. Raw sewage seeped into their landscaping. The company ghosted them. We showed up at 10 PM. Art took one look at the tank location and sighed. “They put it above the house? Gravity does not work that way, friends.” By morning, we’d redesigned the complete layout. Protected them $20K in landscaping restoration too.

This is what sets Septic Solutions LLC unique: we build systems like we’re the ones gonna live with them. Because in a way, we did. That initial tank we put in as teens? Our family depended on it for a long time. Every pipe we placed, every tank we set, had skin in the game. When you’ve eaten dinner 10 feet above a septic field you installed, you do not cut corners.

I’ll get honest—septic work ain’t glamorous. But you’ll find an craft to it. In 2015, we tackled a nightmare job near Lake Stevens. Rocky terrain. Limited budget. Three other companies insisted it could not be done without explosives. We put in a week hand-digging around stones, fine-tuning the drain field precisely. The client teared up when we completed. Not because it was cheap—but because we saved her hundred-year-old oak tree.

Our secret? We are not just installers. We are historians of soil. We know which brands of PVC fail in Washington’s freeze-thaw cycles (avoid the blue-striped brand). We’ve memorized which counties have clay that will choke a drain field in 5 years. Heck, we even redesigned our tank baffles in 2019 after seeing how grease buildup cripples pumps. Tiny tweak. Huge impact. Maintenance teams appreciate us for it.

You need stats? Fine. Since 2010, 92% of our systems have gone 10+ years without significant issues. But numbers do not stink when things go south. Ask Mrs. Henderson from Monroe. Her last installer used inferior aggregate that transformed her leach line into a concrete tomb. We dedicated New Year’s Day 2021 breaking it out. She mailed us cookies for a twelve months.

Here’s the harsh truth: most septic failures happen because someone ignored a step. Did not test the soil properly. Used substandard tanks. Misjudged the water table. We’ve personally fixed hundreds of these failures. And every time, we remember another lesson. Like in 2022, when we decided on adding twin risers to each install. Why? Because Randy, our head tech, got sick of watching homeowners destroy their lawns during checks. Now maintenance is a brief job.

I can’t lie—this work wears on you. Art’s got a snapshot from our initial commercial job in 2009. We look like kids playing in Tonka trucks. Today, we’ve crow’s feet from squinting at soil reports and laugh lines from clients who became friends. Like the elderly couple in Bothell who demand we stay for lemonade after all service calls. Or the brewery in Everett whose tank we improved last fall—they branded a beer “Septic Solutions Sour.” (It’s… an interesting taste.)

So yes, we aren’t not the most affordable. Or the showiest. But when a storm cuts power and your tank’s backing up? You aren’t going to care about coupons. You will want the crew that have been there, done that, and still smell like lingering regret. The team that responds at 2 AM because we’ve all been that homeowner standing ankle-deep in crisis.

Thinking back, it is funny. That installer who trained us as kids? He quit years ago. But his words still echo in our heads each time we disturb ground. “Push deeper,” he used to say. “Future you will thank past you.” As it happens, he hadn’t been just talking about septic tanks.