The deep freeze is taking a toll on septic systems.

Sewer service companies say they’ve had several calls to repair frozen systems.

“It’s been pretty much seven days a week,” Keith Valento with Smilie’s Sewer Service said. “The phone rings any time, day or night. People are having trouble.”

A cold winter with late-season snow is a one-two punch on septic systems.

“The snow actually insulants the frost and keeps it in the ground, so it’s going to be here awhile,” Valento said. “The problems are going to persist from now until whenever we get spring and it warms up.”

You can protect your system in the fall by putting straw or leaves over it to insulate the ground. The cost to repair a frozen septic system can run anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.

The state says more than 600,000 Minnesota homes and businesses use septic systems.

Minnesota’s Weather Authority has the latest conditions and forecasts for you HERE.