WHY IS THE WATER IN MY FAUCET NOW DIRTY?

Have you ever opened a faucet only to find the water to be murky brown, rusty orange-red, or containing small particles, so why is the water in my faucet now dirty?

Not yet, so don’t panic. While having unclean water occasionally does point to a plumbing issue in your home, there may also be other causes.

The following are the typical causes of abruptly unclean water in a house:

1. city upkeep of neighborhood plumbing systems
2. Your tank water heater is corroded.
3. old pipes in the plumbing
4. an unreliable water main

Below, we’ll go through each of these scenarios in more detail and discuss when it makes sense to call in a plumber with experience.

Why do faucets release dirty water?

1. Ongoing maintenance of local plumbing systems by the city
Your city needs to maintain its water lines from time to time.

The issue is that silt, grime, and rust can accumulate in large quantities in city water pipes. These particles may be disturbed and stirred up into the water supply by the pressure changes caused by city plumbing repairs.

These contaminate may therefore go from city water lines to your water supply line.

When you turn on the water, you might witness unclean water spewing out with all those impurities.

When you first turn on the water, you can also experience an initial “sputter” or interrupted flow.

The good news is that this issue will resolve itself, most certainly in a few hours or less. You should avoid using your water heater until the issue is resolved to preserve the cleanliness of the water inside of it.

You might want to think about implementing a point-of-entry water filtration system for your home to help prevent similar water quality issues in the future (that are beyond your control).

This kind of system is often put in the basement of your home and filters all of the water entering your home from the water main line.

2. Your tank water heater is corroded
If not for two crucial characteristics, your water heater would quickly rust through completely:

The interior of the tank has a glass liner.

The sacrificial anode rod

Inside the tank of your water heater lies a rod consisting of zinc, magnesium, or aluminum known as the sacrificial anode rod.

The rod ends up drawing the forces that cause corrosion because zinc, magnesium, and aluminum corrode more quickly than the other metals in your water heater.

By corroding, the rod essentially “sacrifices” itself so that the remainder of your water heater won’t.

However, if they are worn out, your water heater may begin to corrode.

These rods only last 3 to 5 years. Rust flakes may end up in your hot water supply as a result of this.

When the hot water is switched on, orange- or red-tinged water that leaks from a faucet is a surefire sign that there is a problem.

It is possible to find the appropriate sacrificial anode rod replacement and change it yourself if you are skilled with plumbing.

Additionally, a plumber is well-equipped to handle this task for you.

If changing the rod doesn’t fix the issue, your water heater can have a serious corrosion problem that makes it vulnerable to leaks. It’s normally advisable in that case to begin looking for a replacement water heater before a significant leak happens.

3. Outdated plumbing pipes

Your home may have galvanized steel water supply pipes if it was constructed before the 1960s. Galvanized steel pipes have a protective zinc coating to prevent rusting of the metal.

Unfortunately, as the pipes age, the coating begins to peel off, and corrosion starts on the interior of the pipes, where it can’t be seen.

As rust begins to accumulate inside a pipe, chunks may flake off into your water supply and taint the water that emerges from your faucet. In this situation, hiring a plumber to repipe your house with a more durable material is recommended.

4. A busted water main

Your home is connected to the water pipes in your city by your water main line, an underground pipe.

Water main lines can last for a very long time, however, they occasionally fail because of issues like earth disturbances, shifting soil, or invasive tree roots.

When this occurs, the soil may begin to contaminate your otherwise clean water source.

You must call a plumber to fix or replace the pipe if your water line breaks.

Excavation—digging into the ground to carry out the repair or replacement—will most likely be required.