Replaced Water heater now cold water brown

[Tom18202]

Hi,

On Sunday my water heater broke and leaked all over my basement. I replaced the tank yesterday afternoon, and now all of my water is brown not just the hot water. I tried to flush the system and let it run for a few minutes and it still is showing up tinted brown. This morning when I woke up if i let the sink fill with hot water it is clear(my guess is any rust build up my have settled to the bottom of my hot water heater, and needs to be drained). However my cold water started off clear for the first few seconds and then started to produce brown tinted water. PS i have city water and when I use the outside spicket that is the first line off the main it looks clear.
I am not a plumber although I am pretty handy so I don'd know all that much about plumbing terminology, so please dumb down anything that might use advanced terminology. (i did have the water heater professionally installed from my oil heating and cooling company).

Thank you,
Tom

 

[havasu]

Any time you disrupt your water system, you will get discoloration for awhile. What type of piping do you have for your water? How old is the house?

 

[Tom18202]

How was built in 1945ish, however most of the visible piping is copper, There is 1 pipe that looks black. How long should i let the water run/flush to try and clear this out. Its funny cause this morning the hot water was clear and the cold water was still brown-tinted.

 

[havasu]

To flush the coloration from the line, turn on all the cold water taps in the home for a minute or two. That should stop the unsightly color. You also may have to remove the aerator screens from the faucets to make sure the sediment has been removed from the lines.

 

[Tom18202]

I will try that when i get home from work today. I tried flushing it last night and this morning for 5 minutes but only had 1 faucet on I will run them all for a few minutes tonight. thank you for your help, hope it works.

 

[havasu]

Keep us posted with the results.

 

[Tom18202]

Thanks Havasu, got home turned on water was tinted brown let everything run for a few minutes now everything is clear. Actually seems clearer than prior to replacing the water heater. Not sure if by everything coming off the pipes flush them out either way thanks.