Your home’s tap water must be colorless at all times. Whether you’re using it for showering, dishwashing, cooking, or drinking water, it must come out completely transparent. However, nothing can be more alarming than encountering tap water with a different color. When it possibly looks brownish, yellowish, or reddish, you probably have a rusty tap water problem.
In this article, we will share what rusty tap water entails and what you can do to fix this water problem:
How rusty tap water looks like
As mentioned above, rusty water will appear as brown, yellow, or red due to the excess sediments or minerals. In most cases, iron and manganese elements are present in water, which are responsible for the color itself, unpleasant taste, and nasty smell. As there are various causes of rusty tap water, take note of the following:
- Brown: If your water from various faucets goes brown all of a sudden, it may have to do with a problem with the city-operated water hydrant. The chances are that the water main breaks release sediment into the neighborhood water supply.
- Discolored hot water: If your hot water is discolored, the problem may be caused by the sediment or rust in your water heater tank.
- Discolored in some taps: If your cold water is only discolored from a few faucets, the issue may be due to a particular faulty pipe in your plumbing system.
How dangerous is rusty tap water?
It’s important to understand that rusty water is dangerous to one’s health due to various reasons. To understand its danger, here are the standards of drinking water regulated by EPA:
- Primary standard: This covers dangerous water contaminants, such as lead and arsenic. But it isn’t supplied to the general public, should they go over the maximum contaminant level.
- Secondary standard: This covers contaminants, such as iron and manganese. While these contaminants aren’t dangerous to the health in general, they will still affect the water’s taste, smell, color, and even stain clothing and cause skin rashes.
What to do when faced with rusty tap water?
If confronted with rusty water, here are a few key steps you can take:
- Brown water: If your hot and cold water goes brown all of a sudden, you must get in touch with your water supply company. As mentioned above, the problem is most likely caused by water main breaks, which is why experts must fix the damages so that no sediment gets into the household water supply.
- Discolored hot water: If your hot water is discolored, be sure to inspect your water heater’s tank. While at it, try to drain and flush the tanks to get rid of sediment buildup. If the problem persists, call a technician at Plumber Charlotte, NC, as soon as possible.
- Discolored water in some faucets: If your cold water is only discolored when it comes out of a few faucets, check your plumbing parts or components. The initial step to take is to run your taps at full pressure for 20 minutes until the water clears up. However, if the problem continues, contact a plumber to locate the problem’s source and fix it immediately.
Conclusion
At this point, you now know what rusty water entails and what you can do to address it. To that end, be sure to consider the valuable information discussed above and follow the steps in handling this water problem. Ultimately, the whole household deserves crystal clear water for everyone’s health and safety!
Are you having some problems with rusty tap water at home? Let us help you find the best plumbers in Charlotte! We’re an online directory for plumbers in the North Carolina area that also provides some plumbing repair and maintenance tips and tricks. For plumbing services, browse our website to get a list of local plumbing experts!
