Rust from the tap: who is to blame for bad water and how to make the UK solve the problem

Every resident of the metropolis at least once faced with an unpleasant situation: you open the tap, and from there pours a murky liquid of dubious color and smell. Such water is not only not suitable for drinking or cooking dinner, but also can quickly disable expensive household appliances. Most often in such communal troubles we habitually blame the water utility, but the real culprit may be much closer to our apartment. About how the water passes to our homes and who is responsible for its quality at each stage, said the specialists of the Interregional Department of Rospotrebnadzor in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region.

Three stages of cleaning and responsibility of the water utility

Before getting into our cups and pots, water from a natural source undergoes a serious multi-stage preparation at special facilities. The basic process involves lightening, discoloration and mandatory disinfection. If the initial composition requires additional measures, specialists can apply technologies to remove excess iron or fluoride.

- explained in the sanitary department.

According to federal law, resource supplying organizations are obliged to strictly monitor the epidemiological safety of water. Laboratory quality checks are carried out by the water utility regularly: at the fence stage, before feeding to the general city network and at various points of the system itself.

Intra-house pipes: the area of responsibility of the UK

Once clean water reaches the walls of an apartment building, responsibility for it passes into other hands. Intra-house engineering systems of cold and hot water supply are part of the common property of residents, which means that the management company must monitor them.

— emphasize the experts of Rospotrebnadzor.

A Hidden Threat in Your Own Apartment

Sometimes the consumer becomes the culprit of dirty water. Today, many St. Petersburg apartments have multi-stage individual filters for cleaning. However, owners often forget about their regular maintenance. If you do not change the filter elements in time, the system accumulates bacteria and dirt. As a result, the filter begins to work harmfully, catastrophically worsening the chemical, microbiological and taste characteristics of water.

What to do and where to complain

If dirty water flows steadily from your tap, and the management company is inactive, the problem should not be let go of itself. Petersburgers and residents of the Leningrad region can send an official appeal to the Interregional Department of Rospotrebnadzor. Specialists will check, establish the true causes of pollution and force responsible persons to eliminate violations. In addition, you can check the quality of drinking water at a specific address using a special interactive map of drinking water quality control in the Russian Federation.

Earlier, MK in St. Petersburg wrote about how future parents can check their health in St. Petersburg for free.