What lurks in my pipes?

[kitfox]

Location is Glendale, Ca.

I was cleaning out a faucet screen to change the adapter for a water filter when I noticed this black mud looking stuff in the screen. I cleaned it out and noticed that it stained my hands really badly.

All I had to wash it off with was baking soda, but upon contact with baking soda and water the black "sludge" turned purple and stained my hands. It was quite difficult to get off with repeated washings as the sludge was quite penetrating.

I would like to know what this black stuff is in the water pipes that reacts with baking soda to turn purple because I'm genuinely concerned about my health. I contacted poison control and they just said "sorry buddy, no clue"..literally.

Anyone ever see this stuff before? Know what it is?

 

[KULTULZ]

Here is a recent similar thread- http://www.plumbingforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7157

 

[havasu]

Many municipalities in Southern California are experiencing this. Your first phone call should be to your water department. Please let us know what they say.

Take a look at what recently occurred in a nearby city...

http://abc30.com/news/black-water-coming-out-of-faucets-in-socal-neighborhood-/494878/

 

[speedbump]

That sure looks a lot like sulfur. It's not harmful, but it sure doesn't look nice. Apparently your municipality is using well water and they aren't getting the sulfur out. Lots of wells have sulfur and the black water is there as well. We can remove the odor it causes, but the black stays in the water. It coats pipes then flakes off in little pieces like you see in that video.

 

[havasu]

I was watching a news clip where the water supplier employees were telling an auditorium full of concerned residents that the water was fine and safe to drink. One lady brought a cup of this sludge and asked all the water employees to take a sip. They all declined!

 

[speedbump]

Isn't it amazing how that happens???

I honestly don't know how the city gets the black out of well water. Not to say that all well water has sulfur, but a lot do. Here we have county water, all from wells and at 600' which is where most of them are, there is a bunch of sulfur at that depth. You never see it in the water though. Maybe soaking it down through a bed of sand and alum takes it out, I'm not sure what else would do it.

I took a water plant operators course, but it never really addressed sulfur.

When I was doing the well work myself, I would always drink water out of the well before I even hooked it up to the house. It wasn't always pumped off completely clear, had a little black or orange in it from minerals, but it was cold. Never killed me. I could burp sulfur for an hour or so though.

 

[Chris]

If this was recently I know Glendale is in the process of replacing miles and miles of old pipe with new ductile iron pipe. Depending on where you are I know near the oakmont country club they have been working hard. La Canada and country club area. This may or may not have anything to do with anything but I know disturbing the old pipes stirs up stuff.

 

[speedbump]

This may or may not have anything to do with anything but I know disturbing the old pipes stirs up stuff.

And that's a fact!