One of the biggest water quality issues that we face in the United States is the fact that our water infrastructure is extremely old. In many parts of the country, the pipes that are currently delivering water to homes have been in use for over a century. Many of these pipes are reaching their breaking point, literally, and creating quality issues for homes all over the country. Today we’re going to talk about how city pipes break, the contamination issues associated with a broken city water pipe and what you can do to protect your home’s tap water!
Three types of city water pipes
There are types of city water pipes:
“Water main” delivery pipes that carry treated water from treatment plants to our homes.
Sewage pipes that carry wastewater from our homes to treatment plants.
Runoff pipes that carry rainwater from streets to nearby water supplies.
Most often, the stories that you hear about broken city pipes are related to the first category. A water main pipe can burst, allowing pieces of the pipe and contaminants from the surrounding ground to seep into the already-treated water that is travelling to homes.
However, because all three types of pipes are found in close-proximity to one another (and even interconnected at some points), a break in any of the three types of pipes above can cause quality issues. Water from a burst sewage pipe, for example, can leak into cracks or holes in a nearby water main pipe. In addition, there have been instances of human-error while repairing or installing city pipes when water from one pipe is accidently connected to water from another pipe, leading to cross-contamination.
How do city water pipes break?
City water pipes can break for a number of different reasons, and each reason is exacerbated by the fact that our water infrastructure is so old. Some of the most common causes of a broken city pipe include:
- Temperature changes. Pipes naturally expand and contract when the weather heats up and cools down. When temperature changes are extreme, this can happen with too much force and cause a water pipe to break.
- Corrosion. As pipes get old, they begin to corrode both inside and out. This is especially true for pipes that are older than 60 years, which is true for a large percentage of the city pipes that are currently in use.
- Construction. Construction of the pipes themselves or nearby construction for other purposes can both cause a city pipe to break. A construction worker can accidently break a pipe while digging into the ground, and some pipes might not be properly sealed or connected after some repair work has been done.
What contamination issues does a broken city water pipe cause?
Some of the most common types of contamination problems that occur in tap water due to a broken city water pipe include:
- Chemicals
- Excess chlorine
- pH problems
- Bacteria, including dangerous forms like E. coli
- Microbial contamination
How to protect your home’s water from a broken city water pipe
The best way to protect your home’s water from a broken city pipe is to install a water filtration system and filter your water at home. Not only will a residential treatment system protect your water from busted pipes that get reported, but they will also protect your water from other contamination issues due to aging pipes that are either not addressed or are caught after they have already been affecting your home’s water quality for some time.
If you have any questions about a broken city water pipe, or if you’d like a water system serviced or installed in your home, contact North Carolina Water Consultants, your water softener and water filtration system dealer in North and South Carolina. We provide service all over the Carolinas, including towns like Matthews, Davidson and Kannapolis, NC.