FLINT, Mich. – If your water service has been shut off and recently restored, your pipes need to be flushed for 30 minutes to ensure your safety.
Water sitting stagnant in pipes may contain lead, copper and other sediments that are not safe for drinking and cooking.
Most households will be able to properly flush their pipes themselves using the following steps:
• Remove all aerators, screens, filters, and showerheads (including laundry tubs in basements) for cleaning/replacement.
• Check to see if you have a water softener in your basement; if you do, be sure to bypass it prior to flushing.
• Locate your water heater and close the inlet valve if possible.
• Once steps 1-3 are completed, begin turning on the cold water starting with the lowest level of your home. Then begin running cold water on the upper levels. Continue this until ALL faucets in your home are running at the same time.
• Set a timer for 30 minutes, making sure to monitor for any flooding.
• Water may be discolored during the flushing period, but if the discoloration continues after 30 minutes, contact your water supplier for more information.
• After the 30 minute flushing period, turn off the faucet(s) in the lowest level of your home and continue to turn off your faucets in the same order you turned them on.
• If you bypassed a water softener, review the manual or contact your equipment supplier for help beginning a “regeneration cycle.”
• Return to your water heater and re-open the water supply valve. At this point, is recommended that you flush your water heater. Check the heater’s owner’s manual for help with this process.
• After flushing the whole house, it is recommended that you flush kitchen and bathroom taps one at a time for a minimum of 10 minutes each.
• If you have not already done so, clean or replace all removed aerators, screens, filters and showerheads. Then, reinstall each one. A guide on how to clean your aerators can be found here.
• If your refrigerator has a water dispenser, run it for five minutes straight into a bucket or large container. (It is okay to stop briefly to dump the water into the sink as the container gets full.) Dispose of this water- do NOT use it. After, change the filter on the water dispenser.
• For ice makers, let the ice container completely fill up, then dispose of the ice. Do NOT use this ice. Clean the container out and replace any filters.
• If you use humidifiers or a CPAP machine or any other device that uses water, DUMP out the old water, RINSE out with flushed water then REPLACE it with the flushed water.
For more information, please visit Michigan.gov/MILeadSafe or visit https://www.michigan.gov/EGLE