This is a great forum and I've learned a lot from it. Thanks to all those offering their "expertise"! :O) I have been a septic user for many years, but up until 4 years ago, my husband always took care of all of that. Now, I live alone and I've been given lots of confusing information about keeping my septic system healthy. I believe I have a 1000 gal septic system here with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. I always try to use environmentally correct household supplies and I have a front-loading washer and dryer. I also do not use a dishwasher or garbage disposal. There were two of us here for the first 3 years I've lived in this house, and now there is just me. I believe my septic was pumped when I bought the house in Dec. 2010, so it's been 4 years. I have used Rid-X in the past, and not that often, maybe once every 4-6 months, can't remember. And the last couple of times I used active dry yeast, which the last time was about a month or two ago. After reading all of the information here, I'm thinking I don't really need to add anything to my septic tank, as I don't put much, if any harsh chemicals into it. I'm hoping I can wait another year or two before I have to have it pumped out. Money is pretty well fixed here. LOL! Anyway, I just wanted to say that I appreciate having forums like this one, and knowledgable people on it, to help those of us who don't really know s--- from shinola about it! LITERALLY! LOL! You all have an awesome day! :O)

Danman1 - most things you power with a generator have 2 power requirements. 1 is running load, the other is starting load. I run a fridge, an air-conditioner, some lights, and a few fans. Occasionally we run a TV or radio and a computer for news and information pertinent after a major disaster (hurricane). Depending on what you choose to run, in practice you will realize it is likely not possible to draw 100% power all the time. The air-conditioner draws 1,500 watts running, but draws 2,400 when the compressor cycles ON. The fridge draws 850 running and 2,475 when starting. So here I am running the AC and the load is 1,500 watts I have a few lights on using 200 watts, and the TV is on drawing 150 watts. I have on 4 fans circulating the air in the rooms I am cooling keeping the temperature even using an additional 400 total watts. This is 2,250watts and easily handled by the generator. Suddenly the fridge turns on. This draws an additonal 2,475 watts during starting. I am now drawing 4,725 watts and that is below the 5,000 rated and 6,250 surge rating so I am good. I could turn on a few more lights, maybe turn on the radio too. But the point is the maximum I can really run has to be the start-up surges + what is running and this must not exceed the nameplate max surge. Since there is a very real possibility of the AC and the Fridge cycling together occasionally I need to make sure I am subtracting the total surge that would produce from the surge rating of the generator. That leaves me with 1,375 watts to power "non surge loads" such as lights and the radio etc. So If I max out the non surge loads and the AC and Fridge are running at their running loads I am using 3,725 watts. I also have the overhead surge for when and if the AC and the fridge cycle together. If you run exclusively non-surge loads (like all incandescant light bulbs) then I could run (50) 100-watt lights, or 50 miles of electric fencing. But it is impossible to run my generator at FULL LOAD continually given what I choose to run. The only exception to that is when we turn off the fridge and the AC, and run the water heater 4,500 watts along with the bath and shower lights, and the humidity fan. It draws a total of 4,750 watts but the water heater only heats for 20-30 minutes then it cycles off when the water reaches temp again. (Yes it is very noticable listening to the generator when the 4,500 watt load ceases and I am only drawing 250 now for a fan and a few lights.) If I had the water heater on drawing 4,500 watts, and I left the fridge breaker on, that would be 5,350 watts and not good for the generator, but what would be worse is the fridge being off, but the breaker on, and the hot water heater drawing 4,500 watts... suddenly the fridge tries to start. I say tries, because that would need 6,975 watts The max surge rating is 6,250. I do not want to try this and find out, but I think there may be a bright flash from the generator, and then everything plugged in would shut off. Everyones needs differ. I use my genset for emergency power during likely a widespread long term power outage. Fuel use is a factor so I do not load my generator up to the max running load less the surge requirements because it DOES require more fuel to operate at 3,500 running watts than it does at 2,475 running watts. How can we know this is true? Well, simply it requires more energy input to get more energy output. As to my using say a 5hp generator instead of a 10hp unit.. the 5hp unit may handle all the running loads, but it does not handle the surge requirement of the fridge and AC cycling, so it was ruled out. Hey, I would love a 5hp generator that could handle the surge loads AND run for 24 hours on 5-gallons. Nobody offers one though. If you find one, please post it here. Until then I am stuck with the larger engine running at part power normally, with the balance there for the starting loads that happen on and off.

Kristie, I don't think it's a matter of money. (How would you feel to think that you are sitting here today merely because some hotshot on Wall St. decided to give the economy a jump one year?) For rural families in farming and agriculture, it PAYS to have children. For families in the cities and suburbs, it COSTS. C'est la vie. You can't be led by your pocketbook. Otherwise, if finances stay tight, you and your husband may end your reproductive-potential years with your beloved children still backed up in time, unexpressed. But lest thou be overcome by schmaltz, there is another caution as well: is this h*ll of a tired old world something you want to bring them into? Wait a minute; that's schmaltz too. Well, to sanitize the philosophical discussion in a way that it does not provoke too many unstable emotions, I will couch it this way: The world contains 6,050,000 individuals. And there are enough problems with that sheer number as it is. The poorest of the poor (or the dirt flo' po', as they say in some locales) have many children. Sometimes because they don't know how to prevent conception, and other times because they simply want to have many children. In India the people believe in karma and reincarnation, and thus believe that by bringing many children into the world they are facilitating extra lives for souls who have in past times departed. This is a religious belief, of course. IMHO, after 9/11 it is just too late in the history of our nation to try to have a baby. Our nation is going to go through more h*ll. No, I don't believe what the administration says, those cocky Texas-accented remarks of "coming back stronger than before". And I don't believe that the Soviet Union really fell, either. It's just playing dead, and then they will suckerpunch us with some type of attack. However, before you call me a doom-'n'-gloomer and hit the back button, let me explain. Doom and gloom aren't the main point, just examples of things to take into consideration. When discussing the prospect of having children, balance is key. Balance practical logic, philosophy, and last of all, emotions. If you overdo practical logic, you will end up with dehumanizing, Communistic (I would have typed Naziesque but then I would have violated Godwin's Law), economic ways of thinking about people. If you overdo emotions (far more common), you will end up being led by your six/seven basic emotions to places totally irrational. Philosophy is the balance stick: your philosophy tells you where the right balance is between reason & emotions. Some disagree on where that balance is. Couples often "protect" unexpressed children by holding them back during times of economic adversity or other undesirable things. Others feel that "existence precedes essence", and that the privilege of life itself is more valuable than anything money can buy. After all, would YOU kill yourself because you got a small paycheck? (This line of thought states that only a position holding life itself in supremacy is a balanced position.) Others want to have them as early as possible regardless, because they want to know their children while still young, and share more years of their lives with them. A couple who have a child at age 20 get to share 20 more years of their lives with that child than they would if they had the child at age 40. Happy New Year, Kristie! And may the Year of the Dog be well filled with balance!

In the desert southwest, there's long been a problem of dust in the air (although the massive dust storms in places like Phoenix AZ that are so huge that day looks like night until it has passed...those are relatively new in size/frequency and science data indicates the region's dust inundation is worse than what was seen in the central/southern plains Dust Bowl period of the 1930's). It's a matter of prolonged severe drought killing plant life with even the deepest of roots in the ground, leaving nothing to keep the soil from being blown away by the winds. It's next to impossible for a house to be 100% air-tight, and dust can get in through the tiniest of cracks and crevices, not to mention any time you open a door to the outside. How often do you vacuum and dust the entire home? I know it's not terribly fun to clean, but those of us who lack the funds to pay someone to clean our house (or simply have decided to use them for other budget priorities instead of paying someone to clean our house) are responsible for doing the various tasks involved in cleaning our home(s). It may only seem like the accumulation of dust is limited to the kitchen, while soft surfaces such as carpet and upholstered furniture gather just as much if not more - accumulating dust that something as normal as walking around the room can grind down into the carpet fibers, so there's that possibility. A vacuum (even a Dyson if you don't regularly rinse the machine's 'on board' filters and allow them to fully dry before putting them back into the vacuum) will lose it's suction capabilities over time, and manufacturers don't make them to last forever anymore - they need people to buy a new one more often if they're going to stay in business! If you recently replaced your carpet, that can also be adding to the dust circulating through the house. We had water damage in our basement and had to replace the bottom 24" (give or take) of drywall plus the insulation behind it that the water remediation company cut out to prevent the water absorption by these materials from reaching any higher up the wall. In the process of putting in new drywall, mudding and sanding it, etc...there was SO MUCH fine white drywall dust that the central a/c-furnace filter was caked with it and it was all over the house. Because drywall dust is so fine it would have damaged my vacuum in the process of using it to clean that dust myself, the workers had to bring in their own heavy duty vac unit to clean everything up and of course replace the filter plus clean all the ductwork. The dust and pollens that are blown indoors after the area farmers have finished the harvest...those are an altogether different (and seasonal-ish) problem but at least I can vacuum that stuff off the floors and upholstery!