Allow me to explain something most septic companies won’t: there are two types of people in this reality. Those who assume septic systems are simply “buried containers for waste,” and those who’ve had raw sewage bubbling into their property at the dead of night. I discovered this reality the difficult way in 2005—standing in mud, shivering in a Washington downpour, as my siblings and I assisted a grizzled installer repair our family’s failed system. I was 14. My hands blistered. My clothes were ruined. But that night, something clicked: This ain’t just manual labor. It’s families’ lives we are preserving.

Most companies kick off by maintaining tanks. We began by constructing them—actually. Back in the beginning of the 2000s, when other kids were playing Xbox, Art Nikolin (our lead guy) and his family were excavating trenches under the careful eye of a septic veteran their dad hired. Project by project, that installer recognized something in us. Maybe it was our fierce refusal to quit when a PVC pipe burst at 9 PM. Or how we’d argue about soil absorption rates like kids debate pizza toppings. By 2008, we weren’t just helpers—we were qualified installers. But this is the kicker: we learned this craft from the ground up.

Look, 90% of septic businesses begin with service. They know how to clean a tank but can’t tell you why the absorption area failed three years after setup. We got our hands dirty from the bottom up. Actually. I remember this one brutal summer—2006, I think—when we installed 17 systems across Snohomish County. One homeowner’s yard had soil like granite. The “expert” crew before us walked away. But our mentor taught us a technique: hydrate the ground overnight, dig at sunrise. We finished by noon. That system? Still running without issue 18 years later.

Jump to 2023. We get a call from a terrified homeowner in Woodinville. Their recently installed septic system—constructed by a “cheap” crew—collapsed during Thanksgiving dinner. Raw sewage seeped into their yard. The company ghosted them. We got there at 10 PM. Art took one glance at the tank location and shook his head. “They put it above the house? Gravity ain’t gonna work that way, folks.” By dawn, we’d redesigned the complete layout. Protected them $20K in landscaping restoration too.

This is what puts Septic Solutions LLC different: we create systems like we’re gonna live with them. Because truthfully, we did. That original tank we installed as teens? Our family used it for a ten years. Every pipe we placed, every tank we positioned, had personal stakes. When you’ve eaten dinner 10 feet above a septic field you constructed, you don’t cut corners.

Let me get straight with you—septic work isn’t glamorous. But there’s an craft to it. In 2015, we tackled a horror show job near Lake Stevens. Boulder-filled terrain. Limited budget. Three other companies said it was impossible to be done without blasting. We put in a week carefully digging around rocks, repositioning the drain field precisely. The client teared up when we completed. Not because it was budget-friendly—but because we saved her century-old oak tree.

Our advantage? We aren’t not just installers. We’re storytellers of soil. We recognize which brands of PVC crack in Washington’s winter cycles (stay away from the blue-striped material). We have memorized which counties have clay that’ll destroy a drain field in 5 years. Hell, we even improved our tank baffles in 2019 after seeing how grease buildup cripples pumps. Minor tweak. Huge impact. Maintenance crews appreciate us for it.

You looking for stats? Sure. Since 2010, 92% of our systems have lasted 10+ years without major issues. But data won’t stink when things go south. Ask Mrs. Henderson from Monroe. Her former installer used inferior aggregate that turned her leach line into a cement-like tomb. We spent New Year’s Day 2021 jackhammering it out. She mailed us cookies for a twelve months.

Here’s the ugly truth: most septic failures take place because someone ignored a step. Did not test the soil correctly. Used substandard tanks. Got wrong the water table. We’ve fixed countless of these failures. And each and every time, we record another learning. Like in 2022, when we decided on adding twin risers to each installation. Why? Because Randy, web site our lead tech, got frustrated of watching homeowners wreck their lawns during checks. Now maintenance is a quick job.

I can’t lie—this work ages you. Art’s got a picture from our earliest commercial job in 2009. We seem like youngsters playing in Tonka trucks. Today, we’ve laugh lines from studying at soil reports and laugh lines from clients who are now friends. Like the elderly couple in Bothell who require we stay for lemonade after every service calls. Or the brewery in Everett whose tank we upgraded last fall—they called a beer “Septic Solutions Sour.” (That’s… an unique taste.)

So yes, we’re not the lowest priced. Or the flashiest. But when a storm cuts power and your tank’s backing up? You will not care about coupons. You’re going to want the team who have been there, done that, and still smell like lingering regret. The team that responds at 2 AM because we have all been that homeowner stuck ankle-deep in disaster.

In retrospect, it seems funny. That installer who mentored us as kids? He retired years ago. But his voice still echo in our heads every single time we break ground. “Dig deeper,” he used to say. “Future you will thank past you.” Turns out, he was not just talking about septic tanks.