Your King & Pierce County Septic System Professionals


If you are not on the city sewer system, you need a septic system that you can trust. Every time you flush a toilet, use a sink or tub, run the dishwasher, or wash a load of laundry, waste washes out of your house. That waste carries germs, microorganisms, bacteria, viruses and solid waste that unless properly treated and disposed of, can create a health hazard and a smelly, property-damaging mess.

Septic waste is not something you want to worry about. The right, well-maintained septic system will give you peace of mind. And with Lee’s Sanitation Service, you can rest assured that we are the septic system partner you can trust to address all of your sanitation needs quickly, professionally and with the very best customer service.

Since 1950, Lee’s Sanitation Service has been your septic system expert. We install and repair all elements of septic systems for homes and businesses, including septic tanks, drain fields and distribution boxes. We perform maintenance services from septic tank pumping and drain cleaning to pipe and pump repairs. And we are licensed onsite septic system inspectors. We can make sure your septic system is functioning properly so that you can rest assured that you will not see your waste once it goes down the drain.

How a Septic System Works


A basic septic system is relatively simple. It consists of three key parts: A septic tank, a drain field and a distribution box that connects the two.

Septic Tanks


When waste leaves your home, the sewage pipe deposits the waste into a septic tank buried underground. The septic tank has two openings called an inlet and an outlet and each of these openings has a baffle inside the tank to ensure that waste only moves in one direction: in through the inlet, and out through the outlet.

Inside the septic tank, solids sink to the bottom. This is called sludge. Fats and oils rise to the top. This is called scum. In between, waste water or liquid effluent collects. Aerobic (or air breathing) bacteria digest and break down the scum, while anaerobic (not air breathing) bacteria break down the sludge. Not all scum and sludge breaks down. This needs to be pumped out by professionals every three to five years. We typically recommend pumping at least every three years.

Distribution Boxes


The liquid effluent, which is the clearer, partially-treated liquid, leaves the tank through the outlet and is piped to the distribution box. The distribution box disperses the effluent into various lines that run into a drain field.

Drain Fields


The drain field, in general, is an underground system of perforated drain pipes lying in gravel trenches. The entire system is topped with topsoil and seeded with grass. The drain field allows the effluent to drain through the gravel and sink into the soil. However, where the gravel and soil meet, a naturally occurring layer of tar-like substance called a biomat forms. The biomat is made up of anaerobic organisms that feed on the organic matter in the waste water, breaking down solids and eliminating viruses and other hazardous organisms in the waste. When the water gets through the drain field biomat, it is clean and safe for the environment.


Give us a call today. For more than six decades we have been leaders in sanitation services throughout Washington’s King and Pierce counties. Let us be your septic system experts.