Clear your worries and your water
Rust in your hot water tank or pipes can cause solids to get into your water and turn it brown.
Iron and tannins can disrupt your water supply and cause discoloration and a bad taste.
A broken well pump or screen can allow sediment and other contaminants to leak into your water.
A well that is not deep enough will let surface water in and turn your water brown and musty.
If you’ve turned on your tap and noticed brown or murky water leaking out, there might be an issue with your well or plumbing system. While brown water is not often harmful to your health, the causes behind it can cause your water to develop a very unpleasant taste or smell. Locating the source of the problem helps you to take the necessary steps to fix it and return your water to crystal clear.
There are a few common causes of brown well water. Most aren’t harmful to human health, but it still pays off to get them addressed quickly so that you can have better-tasting and smelling water in your home.
If brown water is flowing out of your taps, your hot water heater may be rusty. Hot water heaters are often designed to be rust-resistant, but they are not rust-proof. One of the ways they resist corrosion is with the air anode rod inside the tank that rusts first. If this rod gets too rusty, it can cause discolored water.
If the anode rod is the culprit, you can call a local plumber to come replace it. However, if your entire hot water tank has rusted, you’ll likely need to replace it.
Iron deposits may be another reason your water is brown. When iron mixes with oxygen, it forms iron bacteria that’s deposited throughout your plumbing fixtures which turns the water brown.
One of the initial signs of iron deposits is your toilet bowl turning red, orange, brown, or gray. While it is harmless to your health, it can cause your water’s taste and odor to change.
Iron can also enter your water supply through:
Rainwater
Corroded iron pipes
Melting snow
Iron-filled soil
To fix this, try water softeners to clear iron from your water.
When your pipes rust, dissolved solids can leak into your water, which often causes a reddish-brown tinge.
If you see brown water coming out of your taps, it’s important to have it tested to determine the source of the rust and discoloration. There may only be pipes in certain areas of your home that have rusted or it may be the entire pipe system. If this is your issue, it’s often recommended to replace your pipes.
If your well is not installed deep enough into the ground, surface water can leak into your water supply. Surface water is not as clean as the groundwater your well normally sources, so it can make your water turn brown and develop an earthy or musty odor.
If surface water is leaking into your well, you’ll likely need to hire a professional to address the issue and potentially drill a deeper hole for the well.
Tannins often come from decayed organic material such as leaves and soil. Rain causes water to pass through this material and carries it to your well. Tannins aren’t harmful to your health, but they can produce a foul smell and unpleasant aftertaste.
To remove tannins from your system, you can invest in an anion exchange or carbon filter that will clear them out. Before purchasing either of these, consider running a water test to ensure that tannins are the cause.
Water softeners use resin beads to attract positive ions and remove hard minerals from your water supply. These beads typically last between six to ten years, but when they wear out they can cause your water to have a brown tinge.
If the resin beads haven’t been replaced in a while, this may be your issue. You can simply replace the resin bead or consider investing in a new water softener.
If the screen of your well is worn out or damaged, it can allow silt and sediment to leak into your water supply. It’s normal if silt and sediment are found in the well water aquifer, but they shouldn’t leak into your supply as it can cause your water to turn brown and cloudy.
If you’re finding silt and sediment in the supply, replace the screen quickly as this can allow other harmful contaminants to enter your water too, like E. Coli. You can also have a filter installed in your water system to clear out any sediment.
If your well pump gets dislodged, it can fall to the bottom of your well or attach to the side. This can cause it to suck up sand or sediment that will turn your water brown and cloudy.
If this is the cause of your discolored water, you’ll have to contact a local well pump repair service to lift or replace the pump. The cost of a well pump replacement ranges from $975 to $2,750. You can also ask the contractor how to avoid having this issue happen again in the future.
If you’ve got brown well water all of a sudden that’s not gone after one of the fixes above, you have a problem that calls for professional assistance. While brown well water isn’t always dangerous, in certain cases, harmful bacteria may have leaked into your water supply, which could affect your health.
A well pump professional in your area can help. After running a complete water test to determine the cause of the problem, they can also:
Repair your well casing or pump: If there’s a problem with the components of your well, a pro will take care of these first.
Treat your water: Water treatment, like shocking your well, can purify your well water once a pro has fixed any physical sources of contamination.
If the problem is minor, brown well water might clear in just a few hours. However, if it’s caused by a more serious defect, such as sediment in your system or a broken well casing, it won’t pass until a pro has fixed the issue. Even then, you may still need to shock your well, after which you’ll need to wait a week before testing the water.
While the specifics vary based on what kind of problem you’re experiencing, the average cost to repair a well pump is $1,000. However, your actual costs could be as low as $370 or higher than $1,600. Along with the cost of parts and labor, the exact issue that needs repair also impacts the price.
Some causes of brown well water—like excess tannins or dissolved iron—don’t pose a health risk. In other cases, harmful bacteria might be the culprit. If your well water has suddenly turned brown, it’s a good idea to use a home water test kit to get a better sense of what’s going on with your water. Consider calling a professional for an expert opinion before drinking the water and hoping for the best.
