Published: March 29, 2008 08:21 pm            

JIMMY HAMRICK: A much-appreciated job

This is a job that doesn’t always stink.

“When you have somebody that goes in there to flush and it won’t flush, you will be the finest fellow of all. They greet you and say they are glad you made it,” said Jimmy Hamrick, owner of Hamrick Septic Tank.

His company has been carting off waste for almost 35 years. Hamrick said he didn’t have any ambition of installing septic tanks, or for that fact, cleaning them. But he said after a tragic accident he took job as a way to carry on his friend’s memory.

“I had a friend of mine that started using my backhoe to put in septic tanks,” Hamrick said. “After he died in a car accident I began to get calls, and I took it from there. Shortly after I went and got my license.”

Hamrick said his company is licensed, bounded and certified with Alabama Department of Waste Water. He said he holds an advanced three license, which allows him to install any size tank.

The septic tank business has gone through some changes over the years. Hamrick said when the business first started he would make the septic tanks.

“I used to manufacture the tanks, but it was hard to get people to do that, so now we order the tanks,” Hamrick said. “We do the installing, pumping, repair on field lines, basically the whole job.”

When asked why he has stayed in business so long, Hamrick smiled and slumped back in his chair and started laughing.

“I reckon once you get started you just keep on going,” Hamrick said. “You think being in it that long you would have enough to retire, but not me.”

Most people might think the septic tank business would be the same day-after-day. But Hamrick said the job offers more than the typical office job.

“You just meet a lot of different people,” Hamrick said. “You go out there and most of the time you can do the job in a day and then your at another job site the next day. You are not tied down to just one job site.” Of course, with all jobs there are some parts that Hamrick doesn’t enjoy. He said one of his biggest complaints he has is the lack of patience most people display.

“Over the years I have seen more and more people wanting us to come out as soon as they call,” Hamrick said. “They think we should be there when they get off the phone. But when you have a list of clients you have to see, it takes time to get out to everyone.”

Hamrick said he wants people to know he has guidelines and regulations he must follow. He said he has enjoyed working with the health department, but added people need to know the health department has the final word on septic tank installation.

“We’ve tried to be honest with everybody. It’s not my decision, but the health department issues permits to do work,” Hamrick said. “We have to do it. I enjoy working with the health department. We’ve worked hand-and-hand on some jobs that were close, but we made it through it.”

Hamrick said one of his favorite parts of the job is seeing the customers he served years earlier.

“I enjoy working for the public,” Hamrick said. “We put in tanks for people 27 years ago that call us now to install tanks for their newly married children. We have several second-generation customers, and soon we should have some third-generation customers.”

Hamrick said there are no typical days in the life of septic tank installer. But he said most mornings do start the same, with a flood of phone calls.

“A lot of times people will call me early in the morning before I get out on the job,” Hamrick said. “But on a normal day we will load up the pipes, backhoe and tank and head to the job site. We will dig out a spot and install the tank and field lines and the health department will then come out and inspect the work. Once they have approved it we will bury the tank and head back to the house.”

Naturally, once a tank is installed it only takes a matter of time before it needs to be pumped and cleaned. Luckily for Hamrick he does that, too. Hamrick said it generally doesn’t take a long time to clean a dirty tank.

“From the time we get there and can locate the tank with no problem and it’s not too deep in the ground, we can pump a 1,000-gallon tank in about an hour,” Hamrick said. “If it’s clogged up in the house, we hook up a vacuum line and pull the clogs out.”

Once the tanks are pumped and cleaned, Hamrick heads to the Cullman Waste Water Plant to dispose of the load. He said the plant treats septic tank waste the same as normal city sewage.

Over the years Hamrick has installed and cleaned hundreds of tanks. But if you ask him about the unusual items he finds floating on top of the sludge you will be in for a treat.

“We’ve have gone to people’s houses that they have flushed their false teeth down the commode,” Hamrick said. “‘By all means do your best to find those teeth,’ is what most of them say. You just have to pump a little and watch for the teeth. We had one lady whose grandson flushed her diamond ring. She said I know it will be costly, but the ring is expensive. We pumped it but never could find the ring. But we found the teeth.”

        

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