Why Is My Shower Water Yellow or Brown? In Plain Words

What EPA calls these standards

EPA says it has established National Secondary Drinking Water Standards that set non-mandatory water quality standards for 15 contaminants.

EPA says it does not enforce these “secondary maximum contaminant levels” (SMCLs). In EPA’s words, they are established as guidelines to assist public water systems in managing their drinking water for aesthetic considerations, such as taste, color, and odor.

EPA says these contaminants are not considered to present a risk to human health at the SMCL.

EPA also puts the reason for the standards this way: these contaminants are not health threatening at the SMCL, and public water systems only need to test for them on a voluntary basis. EPA believes that if these contaminants are present in your water at levels above these standards, the contaminants may cause the water to appear cloudy or colored, or to taste or smell bad.

EPA groups the problems from these contaminants into three categories: aesthetic effects — undesirable tastes or odors; cosmetic effects — effects which do not damage the body but are still undesirable; and technical effects — damage to water equipment or reduced effectiveness of treatment for other contaminants.

What EPA says about color itself

On color, EPA says color may be indicative of dissolved organic material, inadequate treatment, high disinfectant demand, and the potential for the production of excess amounts of disinfectant by-products. EPA also says inorganic contaminants such as metals are also common causes of color.

EPA says, in general, the point of consumer complaint is variable over a range from five to 30 color units, and most people find color objectionable over 15 color units. EPA also says rapid changes in color levels may provoke more citizen complaints than a relatively high, constant color level.

EPA lists the standards related to color as: Aluminum, Color, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Total Dissolved Solids.

The EPA table rows that speak to yellow and brown color

These are the rows from EPA’s Table of Secondary Standards, with the figures exactly as EPA prints them. In the table, mg/L is milligrams of substance per liter of water.

• Color: Secondary MCL of 15 color units. Noticeable effect above the Secondary MCL: visible tint.
• Iron: Secondary MCL of 0.3 mg/L. Noticeable effects above the Secondary MCL: rusty color; sediment; metallic taste; reddish or orange staining.
• Manganese: Secondary MCL of 0.05 mg/L. Noticeable effects above the Secondary MCL: black to brown color; black staining; bitter metallic taste.
• Total Dissolved Solids (TDS): Secondary MCL of 500 mg/L. Noticeable effects above the Secondary MCL: hardness; deposits; colored water; staining; salty taste.
• Aluminum: Secondary MCL of 0.05 to 0.2 mg/L. Noticeable effect above the Secondary MCL: colored water.

Read plainly: EPA’s own table ties a visible tint to the Color row, a rusty color and reddish or orange staining to iron, a black to brown color to manganese, and colored water to Total Dissolved Solids and to Aluminum. A yellow or brown tint in the shower is the kind of color change these rows describe — but this page cannot say which row, if any, matches your water. That takes your supplier’s results or a laboratory test.

What Virginia Cooperative Extension adds about iron and manganese

Virginia Cooperative Extension’s publication “Iron and Manganese in Household Water” (Virginia Household Water Quality Program) says iron and manganese are naturally occurring minerals found in certain rocks and soils that can be dissolved by groundwater. It also says corroding iron or galvanized steel pipes may also be a source of iron in household water.

The Extension publication says iron and manganese are primarily associated with nuisance problems such as staining of clothes and plumbing fixtures or objectionable taste, and that iron and manganese are similar chemically and therefore produce similar problems.

It also says: typically, neither iron nor manganese presents a health risk to humans when present in a household water supply; however, a portion of the population suffering from hemochromatosis (excess iron in the body) may be especially sensitive to iron in drinking water.

Two patterns the Extension publication describes

These are the only appearance patterns printed on this page, because they are the patterns an official source read for this page actually states. The Extension publication describes iron and manganese as usually either dissolved (in solution) in water or found in particulate form, and it describes the two forms this way:

• Dissolved, or in-solution: ferrous iron and manganous manganese are present when tap water appears clear at first but develops black- or rust-colored particles that settle to the bottom of the container when the water is left standing for a while. The publication says particles develop because the ferrous iron and manganous manganese react with air, chlorine, or other oxidants to form ferric iron or manganic manganese.
• Particulate, or colloidal: ferric iron and manganic manganese are present when the iron or manganese is in the oxidized form. The publication says particles in suspension in the tap water result in water that has a brownish-black, rust, red, or yellow color.

The same publication says both iron and manganese can affect the taste and color of the water and food prepared with the water; that iron will typically cause reddish-brown staining of laundry, porcelain, dishes, utensils and glassware; and that manganese causes similar brownish-black staining.

No pattern about hot water only, and no pattern about nearby water-main work, is printed here, because neither official source read for this page states one.

The route: EPA’s “What Can You Do?” steps

EPA heads this part of its page: “If you are concerned about the presence of secondary contaminants in your drinking water supply, here are a few suggestions.” The steps below are EPA’s, in EPA’s order.

• First, identify your local public water system. EPA says: if you pay a water bill, the name, address, and telephone number of your supplier should be on the bill. If you do not pay a water bill, then contact your landlord, building manager, or the local health department — they should know.
• Second, contact your local public water system. EPA says to inquire about your supplier’s monitoring for secondary contaminants, and to ask for the list of secondary contaminants which are being monitored in your water supply. EPA asks: does the water being delivered to the public meet these SMCLs? And EPA says: if you have not yet received notice from your supplier, ask how you can get a copy of the monitoring results.
• Third, read any public notice carefully. EPA says: if you receive a public notice from your local public water system regarding other drinking water standards — read it carefully — and follow any instructions closely. If you have questions or concerns, contact the person from the water system who is indicated in the notice. If that person is unavailable, contact either the state drinking water program or your local health department.
• Fourth, contact your state drinking water program if your water supplier is unable to provide the information you need. EPA says to ask if your water supplier is consistently in compliance with both primary and secondary drinking water regulations, and to request a copy of monitoring results that were submitted to the state by your supplier. EPA says your state drinking water program is usually located in the state capital (or another major city) and is often part of the department of health or environmental regulation.
• Fifth, EPA says to support rate increases for your local water supplier, where necessary, to upgrade your supplier’s facilities to meet drinking water standards.

If you have a private well: the certified-laboratory route

EPA’s final step is for private wells. EPA says: finally, if you have a private well and you think that the well may be near a source of contamination or may have been contaminated — have your water tested by a certified laboratory. EPA says a list of certified labs is available from your state’s laboratory certification officer.

The Virginia Cooperative Extension publication points the same way for measuring iron and manganese: it says measurement of iron and manganese is most accurately made by a certified laboratory, and that when collecting any water sample, you should follow the instructions for proper sample collection carefully.

The Extension publication also repeats the same two EPA figures: the secondary drinking water standard for iron in drinking water is 0.3 milligrams/liter (mg/L) and 0.05 mg/L for manganese. It adds that water with lower concentrations of these metals may still cause staining problems.

EPA names the Safe Drinking Water Hotline as a place a list of the certification officers can be obtained from. EPA’s page, as read for this page, names that hotline but does not print its number on the page, so no number is printed here.