Particles and Residue

White or Cloudy Residue
The white or cloudy residue left on fixtures and dishes after water evaporates is made up of calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate.  These are naturally occurring minerals that do not pose a health hazard.  These deposits can appear to have slight shades of brown, green or blue, colored by very small amounts of metals found in your water pipes.  Carbonate residue can be dissolved by soaking with white vinegar.  Deposits found on dishes after a dishwasher cycle can be minimized by using a commercially available rinse aid and not using the heated dry cycle.  The heated dry cycle can bake the carbonates onto dishes. 

White Particles
Whitish particles found in water usually originate in internal household plumbing.  The whitish particles are a combination of calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate, known as pipe scale.  Calcium and magnesium carbonates are naturally occurring minerals and do not pose a health hazard.  Over long periods of time, these minerals deposits on the inside of internal household plumbing can flake off.  However, there are some instances that can accelerate the flaking off of scale:

  • If your home is plumbed with galvanized pipes, over time these pipes will corrode and gradually swell on the inside surface.  This swelling can cause pipe scale to flake off.  This scale can clog screens found on faucet aerators, shower heads and washing machine screens.  There is not an effective way to remove scale buildup from galvanized plumbing.  If the problem is severe, you may want to consider re-plumbing your home.
  • If your water was turned off for repair work, the pressure and velocity of water re-entering your pipes after it is turned back on can dislodge scale. 
  • If a water softener is installed, the softer water can re dissolve the pipe scale and pieces may begin to break loose.

The water heater is another source for whitish particles.  As the water is heated, calcium and magnesium carbonates precipitate out of the water, forming sand-like deposits.  Over time, these deposits can clog screens found on faucet aerators, shower heads and washing machine screens as the hot water is used.  To keep these deposits from accumulating, it is recommended to flush your hot water heater at least once per year.  Flushing your hot water heater annually can also help it to run more efficiently and extend the operating life. 

Brown or Orange Particles
Brown or orange particles are usually rust particles.  These particles can come from the inside of your home’s water pipes, or can sometimes come from the SLVWD water mains.  These particles are mostly made up of iron and are not a health hazard.  However, they can clog screen found on faucet aerators, shower heads and washing machine screens.  The physical appearance of these particles are: irregular in shape and size, can appear to be several different colors including black and feel very hard. 
Another less common source of brown or orange particles is a broken water softener.  A water softener contains many small round beads for softening water.  The screen mechanism that keeps these beads in the water softener system can fail over time and release these beads into your water.  The physical appearance of these beads is that they are similar in shape and color, feel very hard and look very similar to fish eggs.  If these water softener beads are noticed in your water, it’s recommended that you contact the installer of the water softener system for repairs. 

Black Particles
Black particles found in water typically come from one of three sources:

  • A broken water filter
  • A faucet washer or gasket that is degrading
  • A disintegrating black rubber flexible supply line hose, typically found on washing machines, hot water heaters and kitchen faucets.  Sometimes, these black rubber hoses are covered with a braided stainless steel mesh

In order to determine the source of these black particles, they first need to be characterized:

  • If the black particles are similar in shape and size, look similar to coffee grounds and are very hard, these particles are most likely granular activated carbon from the inside of an installed water filter cartridge.  Replace the filter cartridge, or contact the manufacturer of the filter for further assistance. 
  • If the black particles are solid, but have a ‘rubbery’ feel to them and only appear at one faucet, they are most likely pieces of a degrading faucet washer or gasket.  To solve this issue, replace the faucet washers.
  • If the black particles can be smeared easily between two fingers, they are probably from the inside of a rubber flexible supply line hose.  Over time, the free chlorine in the water causes the rubber to break down.  To solve this problem, replace the hose with a hose that has a liner that is identified as chemical or chlorine resistant.  Typically, these rubber hoses have a one to five year warranty.