In west Bradenton - Does your tap water taste awful lately? (house, utilities)

[thatdudebob]

I'm here seasonally in west Bradenton, just arrived a few days ago. I immediately noticed that the tap water in all the sinks tastes awful, like it's a mixture of rancid pond water and chlorinated pool water. I let it run a long time, and there's no change. It tastes toxic, and I don't dare swallow any of it, and even brushing my teeth makes me cringe a bit. I actually noticed a similar but milder "muddy" flavor coming on last spring, but only in the hot water. I know there was a blue-green algae bloom noted in Lake Manatee that was reported to make the water taste odd last May. But now it's a much stronger taste and in both the cold and hot water.

I'm just trying to see if it's only my house, or if it's a wider thing, or did anything happen when Irma went through? Any other ideas? Thanks.

[Sunshine Rules]

Have you contacted the Manatee County Utilities Department to ask about it? Once in a great while (usually late May or early June), my tap water will get an off taste. According to MCUD, it's because of algae blooms on Lake Manatee, the main water source for Manatee county. Don't know if that's your issue or not. My water tastes fine at the moment (here in south Manatee).

How old are your pipes? Older pipes can leach bits of metal into the water.

Another possibility is if you have a filtration system, have you changed the filter cartridge recently.

Since you are a seasonal resident, perhaps it could also be sediment in the pipes, especially if the water wasn't run during the summer months.

[thatdudebob]

Thanks for the comment. I haven't made any calls yet. I think I'll try that after the weekend.

I don't feel like leaching metal would arise so quickly to so strongly alter the taste, or happen all of a sudden in a 40+ year old house, though I wouldn't doubt if the pipes are getting iffy inside.

The water has no type of filtration anywhere.

I had suspected it could be sediment, particularly since the hot water was bad tasting last spring, and wondered if the hot water tank had accumulated some muddying material or some kind of algae growth. But now with all the sinks on all ends of the house tasting the same, hot and cold, I don't think it can be (only) that. I wonder what could affect all the pipes, everywhere. but still be local just to my house?

Hey, one thing I didn't try yet... drinking from the hose! Just gotta make sure I grab the one hooked up to straight city water, and not the reclaimed water irrigation one.

[macyny]

Don't drink from the hose. Its full of bacteria.
Get a RO system installed on your kitchen sink. I would never drink or cook with tap water in Florida. The findings I saw from the Country allows higher than normal amounts of toxins than the EPA allows.
I called Culligan and had them install a water tank under my sink. There's a small faucet on the top of the sink where I get the water I drink or cook with. Its well worth the money.

[Bahagal]

I'm in NW Bradenton; no problems here (MCUD water).