THE water at various locations around Bathurst has again come out of the tap black and gritty.
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Wayne and Nicole Millsteed in Windrayne were shocked this week when water poured out of their taps a rich brown colour.
The couple said they have had to suffer dirty water time and time again.
This time they took photographs to prove it.
Getting ready for work, Ms Millsteed turned on the shower and was disgusted to see the water come out brown. They checked all the taps and it was the same story throughout the house.
Western Advocate reporter Jacinta Carroll, who lives in Llanarth, said the water in her bath on Monday night was so black her husband thought she had been trying out a new beauty treatment using ground coffee.
But no, that was how the water came out of the tap.
When she went to wash the bath out afterwards the residue left behind was all gritty.
Murray Arnold, who lives just outside the CBD, thought his water on Monday night looked so much like a good drop of red that he put it in a wine glass and took a photo.
The water was black for about three hours before it started running clear.
“I was astonished by what came out of the tap,” he said.
“I suspect it was a combination of iron, dirt and rust.
“It’s not the first time. It has happened on and off for years, but this is the worst I have ever seen.
“The water was as dark as wine,” Mr Arnold said.
Mr Arnold said the water comes out brown about every six months or so and wonders if it has something to do with the metal pipes.
He said council might be able to fix the problem by installing a plastic sheath inside the pipes but no doubt that would be very expensive.
His two girls also live at the house and he said he wouldn’t let them drink it.
“We are not game to drink the water straight out of the tap,” Mr Arnold said.
“I’ve installed a carbon filter on the drinking water tap – it does help, it takes some of the smell out.
“If we had been using the washing machine last night when this water came through it would have certainly stained the clothes and wrecked the machine.
“It’s just not on. You might see something like that in India, but not here.”
