“What is the best disinfectant and odor suppressant for a sewage system?” someone asked

May we start by saying that “disinfecting” a sewer system can be extremely counterproductive, and can actually result in far more severe odor problems. A properly designed and functioning sewage system should not smell, and there are products you can use to supplement and improve the performance of your system.

The primary source of odors typically is hydrogen sulphide – that “rotten egg” raw sewage smell – and one way to dramatically reduce or eliminate that is by actively boosting the beneficial microbe activity. The best way to do that depends on the type of sewage system (e.g. septic tanks and fields, cesspools, municipal collection systems, ship or boat or camper holding tanks, etc.) It also is important to note that corrosion rates on the equipment and system are likely to be much more damaging when hydrogen sulfide is allowed to build up. So the odor is just part of the harmful side-effects of a poorly performing sewage system.

For example, for a sewer access point (a “manhole” for example) where a noticeable smell is noxious, a system maintenance worker can spray a “probiotic” solution of microbes into the hole, and the smell should almost instantly dissipate. The microbes attach to airborne molecules, to the walls and surfaces where waste has accumulated, and onto the surface of the solid and liquid waste in the sewer or cesspool. The microbes break down and metabolize the waste at the molecular level, converting it to benign byproducts that don’t have the bad odour.

Fats, oils and grease (FOG) and other solidified waste will take a longer time to remediate, as will a larger volume of liquid waste, but once the microbial colony is established, it can continue to work for weeks or months as long as the basic requirements are met (water, a “food” source, and other environmental conditions suitable for the microbes).

A homeowner can safely do the same thing (probiotic additive) on their own system and property, since at least some products marketed are safe for use around people, plants and animals, such as the archaea-based formula that Akaya uses. Akaya’s beneficial microbe products come in bulk powder form, as well as in tablet form for easy use in septic tanks, toilets and sinks. The microbes “eat” the kitchen fats and grease that accumulate in drain lines and pipes, and the sewage waste that can accumulate over time in waste pipes, instead of simply moving chunks of it downstream to the sewage collection system.

Most types of sewage treatment systems exist for the purpose of breaking down waste at the molecular level, so using a disinfectant would be counterproductive, and would disrupt or stop the beneficial microbial activity that you want happening. A disinfectant can be appropriate to use on exposed toilet surfaces, and other places sewage has splashed or spilled, but you wouldn’t want to dump a gallon of chlorine down your toilet thinking your sewage collection system is going to smell better.

For similar reasons, more wastewater treatment professionals and sewage treatment plant operators are realizing that there are very harmful side-effects and “collateral damage” that comes with using conventional chemical treatments such as hydrogen peroxide, which kills all microbial activity, good and bad. Chemical products that break up or emulsify fats, oils and grease are simply moving the problem further downstream, which can still be a problem if the same person needs to deal with it solidifying somewhere else. Solving the problem at the source can be much preferred to simply moving the problem, especially if you are still responsible for the “somewhere else”.

And the default conventional response of dumping in chemicals also can be quite expensive, whereas plant operators can enjoy a significant net cost savings from using the archaea-based formula, due to the collateral benefits of improved plant processes and effluent quality, and decreased electricity and sludge hauling costs. Homeowners enjoy a net cost savings by having fewer maintenance problems, and a longer time between pump-outs being necessary.

Clearly I work for Akaya, but there are innumerable “green” bioremediation products available from other manufacturers, including bacteria, enzyme and fungi-based products. Akaya primarily works with an archaea-based consortium of more than 100 types of beneficial microbes that are 100% non-GMO, and over decades of use have been demonstrated to be non-pathogenic and safe for use around people, plants and animals, both aquatic and on land.

Additional case study examples and specifics are outlined in other summaries on this blog; and FAQs and more information is available on our website: www.akaya.co.

Basically, nature figured it out billions of years ago. Applying this knowledge to a wide variety of industrial and environmental settings just makes sense.


- A lifelong sailor and water lover, Kevin Mirise lives and works on the coast in Cohasset, near Boston, MA. He’s a Director at a bioremediation and biorestoration company that uses beneficial microbes to naturally eliminate contaminants from water and soil.