Our Santa Monica Plumbing Team Does PipeWork

If you've been dealing with an orange tinge in your tap water recently there could be several reasons for it. To really determine the source you'll need the help of a professional plumber. Our Santa Monica plumbing team has seen rust caused by water heaters, galvanized steel piping, well water, municipal water delivery and a host of other problems that can introduce iron into your water supply. Our team will start by checking the type of piping that you have in your home. If you have copper, PEX or PVC piping, the source of the iron is not the pipes themselves. Galvanized steel piping, on the other hand, does rust from the inside out. Seeing rusty water from a galvanized pipe means that not only iron is present, but lead as well. This is a situation that needs to be taken care of immediately to avoid lead poisoning.

Water Hater Repair and Replacement

If your pipes are fine, the next place to check is the water heater. Most water heaters are simply large steel cylinders that hold water that is heated by an electric element or gas flame. When the water is heated the oxygen in the water becomes more reactive and attaches to the interior face of the steel causing it to rust. Some water heaters have a glass lined interior to help prevent this but the majority are equipped with a sacrificial anode. Our Santa Monica plumbers will check this piece of equipment to make sure it is working properly to prevent the interior of the tank from rusting. If the water heater isn't the cause of the rust in your water we'll move to the next possibility – rust coming into the home from an outside source.

Water Main Check

Our Santa Monica plumbers will go directly to the source by checking water at the water main or well pump. If there is rust in the water at this point, the source is outside of your home and not in your control. If this is the case, removing the rust from your water may require installing a water softener system equipped with a special rust removing salt. This way, all of the water that enters your home system will be treated before it reaches any of your taps or appliances.