When your septic system catches a chill and ices up, there’s no coughing or sniffling. But there’s often no flushing either.
Now, cottagers closing up for a winter of polar temperatures and limited or unreliable snow cover can keep their septics cozy beneath Matt’s Sewer/Septic Blankets. Pegged over vulnerable water lines and septic components, these purpose-made synthetic covers trap the earth’s heat to reduce frost penetration, says Andrew Kirk, the Manitoba-based distributor.
The American-made product is “an insulated mat of woven fabric with a waxy coating to it. It’s partly water repellent, but it also breathes,” Kirk says, adding that most buyers are on the Prairies. Installation “is as simple as putting a blanket on the ground.” Blankets come in four sizes with prices from $150 for a 6-by-12-foot cover up to $400 for the largest 12-by-20-foot tarp. They can be bought online at septicblanketscanada.ca.
The reusable covers are easier to handle than traditional straw bales, says Kirk. He’s also sold blankets to insulate flower beds, veggie gardens, and delicate trees, even a Koi pond. That last one worked, by the way, “but it’s not a recommended use.”
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