Rusty water

[lefauxfrog.livejournal.com]

Dark brown water is flowing out of the faucets in my apartment this morning. I was about to contact my landlord until I found a warning about fire hydrant testing on somervillema.gov. I've left the faucets running for a while to see if it eventually clears up. So FYI.

http://www.somervillema.gov/alert.cfm?alert_id=312

September 21, 2010

Annual Fire Hydrant Testing

Begins Monday, September 27, 2010
The Somerville Fire Department is beginning the Annual Inspection of all fire hydrants in the city. This procedure requires the flushing of water from the hydrants as well as a check of the mechanical operation of the hydrants. The inspection program will take approximately two weeks to complete.

During the inspection, some sediment may be disturbed in the water mains causing rusty water at the taps in homes and business establishments. It is suggested that residents and business firms draw sufficient water for drinking and cooking. This rusty water condition is a temporary one, and will clear in a matter of a few hours. Although the water may appear dirty or discolored, it does not pose a health risk to city residents.

The annual inspection of hydrants throughout the city is necessary to insure their proper operation during an emergency situation.

The inspections will be conducted Monday through Saturday from 9:00 A.M. until 4:00 P.M. and in the evening, if needed, from 6:15 P.M. until 8:15 P.M.

The testing will begin on Monday, September 27, 2010, and will be concluded by Saturday, October 9, 2010.

During this two-week period, all hydrants in the city will be tested.

Anyone with questions regarding this procedure may contact the Somerville Fire Department at 617-623-1700 ext. 8120.

Comments

[geekpixie.livejournal.com]

There was a robocall and an email sent out last week about this as well. I had forgotten the exact dates though :)

[lefauxfrog.livejournal.com]

Ah, right. I found one in my mailbox dated August 30th. Thanks for the reminder.

Get on the CTY list

[mfinnigan.livejournal.com]

Trust me - hit the town website and sign up (phone and email) for the CTY alerts. Street closings, floodings (?!), fireworks, and rusty water.

[lefauxfrog.livejournal.com]

To followup, a woman at 311 told me the brown water might last until 8pm tonight. It hasn't gotten any better.

[jamiesquared.livejournal.com]

I got 2 robocalls and two emails on this. You should run your water a bit after the time they suggest.

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

In case this isn't common sense, while rusty water is generally safe it can and will stain clothing if you run your washer.

Also: insure!=ensure

[http://users.livejournal.com/_mattt/]

The rust is harmless. Except, as noted above, that it can stain clothing.

What you're seeing is the natural rust inside of the City pipes that's been dislodged all at once due to the changes in flow from the hydrant testing. This rust is always there. It's just normally affixed to the walls of the pipe and comes off slowly, so you don't notice it.

If you ever wonder how much rust you're drinking, just look at a dirty water filter after a few months.

It probably has an off taste. And of course, it looks unpleasant. But it is pretty much safe to drink if you can get past those. If you need tap water, I would suggest letting it settle for a few minutes, decanting, and running that through a coffee filter.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_meej_/]

I believe the City's robocalls said that if you notice rust stains on washed clothes, DO NOT DRY, and call the City's 311 line for a free helping of rust stain remover.