Water Quality Complaint Form
If you have issues with your water, you can let us know via our “Water Quality Complaint Form”.
Taste and Smell
Our water is produced to the highest quality, but you might occasionally notice it has a different taste or smell.
Disinfectant/Plastic Type of Smell
An unusual disinfectant or plastic smell is likely to be caused by household plumbing and not associated with PWC.
All connections to your water supply should have a “back flow connector” so water within the hoses of a common household appliance such as a dishwater or washing machine cannot return to the mains supply and reach your tap.
Flexible hoses: Flexible hoses can also deteriorate over time and release traces of chemicals that can cause ‘chemical’ type tastes and odors that are particularly noticeable with hot drinks.
Kettles: An unusual ‘medicinal’ or ‘plastic’ taste in hot drinks can be caused by a kettle heating element. This is particularly noticeable in new kettles.
Why does my water taste or smell earthy?
An earthy taste may be the result of your water standing in the pipework for a long period of time.
Run the tap for 2 – 3 minutes to remove any water that has been standing in the pipes and improve the taste.
Why does my water taste or smell metallic?
A metallic taste to your water is likely to be a reaction between the water and pipework in your plumbing system, which can be more noticeable if the water has been standing for some time.
Water Pressure
Water pressure is a measure of the force pushing water through our mains and into your property. Your water pressure might be low for a number of reasons:
- If it is hot water only, then it is likely to be a plumbing issue. Check your whole home: if it is only one room then it is likely to be a plumbing issue
- Check to see if your internal stop-tap is fully open.
- At busy periods high demand in the early evening and morning can effect water pressure
- Check with your neighbors, to see if they are using more water than they normally do, or they turned off an outside stop tap to maybe repair a leak on a shared water supply
- In Your Area: We have a Twitter feed which is constantly updated on our home page. Or you can visit our Facebook Page to find out if there is an issue in your area
If you still have low pressure – let us know.
Appearance
At our testing station, we carry out hundreds of tests on samples taken from our facility to ensure that your supply of drinking water is to a very high standard.
Why is my water cloudy or milky?
If the water is cloudy or milky then it is likely because air has got into the water supply. This might have happened due to a burst water main, or by your internal plumbing.
To check if there is air in your supply, pour a glass of water and let it stand for a few minutes; the glass should clear from the bottom because the air bubbles rise to the surface.
Why does my water look dirty or orange/yellow?
This might be due to a change in direction within the main pipes. It can happen if work is taking part in your area, but is very rare since we are always reviewing the condition of our water pipes.
Please run the kitchen tap until the water runs clear. If the problem persists please contact us.
Chlorine
PWC adheres to World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) Water Health Quality standards with regard to levels of chlorine.
Chlorine is added during water treatment to kill any harmful bacteria. The very low concentrations are continuously monitored and ensure the quality of drinking water is maintained until it reaches your tap.
Water leaving our treatment works will contain less than one part per million of chlorine and this will reduce further before reaching your home.
Users sensitivity to the taste and smell of chlorine can vary
Levels of chlorine might vary if we have been working on the pipes
The taste of chlorine might be more noticeable when water use is high, this is because the water is reaching you quicker and has not been standing in the pipes for any length of time.