Dropped $180 on a septic tank additive that did absolutely nothing

Bought a 6-month supply of that enzymatic stuff from the hardware store in Concord that claimed to break down solids and keep my system healthy. After a year of using it (and losing 180 bucks), my plumber said it's basically snake oil and the bacteria already in the tank do the same job for free. Anyone else get suckered into buying one of these magic potions for their house?

3 comments

3 Comments

vera_lewis14d ago

Gonna respectfully disagree a bit here @wyatt_shah85. I mean yeah a lot of those products are garbage but there's actually some research showing specific enzyme blends can help if your system is legit struggling or you've got a bunch of kids flushing wipes down. Not all of em are equally useless, yknow.

wyatt_shah8515d ago

I actually read a Consumer Reports article a few years back that tested like 8 different septic additives and none of them showed any real benefit. The study basically said a healthy tank does all that work naturally with the bacteria from your own waste. So yeah, your plumber was right, you paid $180 for some expensive science fiction.

nina14715d ago

So you're telling me the Consumer Reports tested EIGHT different additives and NONE of them worked? That's wild. I gotta ask though - what exactly were they measuring to prove they didn't work? Like were they checking sludge levels before and after or just doing some lab test in a beaker? Because I've seen those ads claim their bacteria "eats 30% more waste" but nobody ever explains HOW they're measuring that. It's probably just made up numbers to sell bottles.