First Post, Help Needed

[EganPlumbing]

My friend has just bought a big old farm house and has a major problem.
I went initially to fix most of the taps in the house as they were leaking and leaving a blue/green deposit around the packing glands. My friend then asked me why his water was Blue, and on filling the bath showed me the water had a Bluey colur to it. This problem has since dyed hs wifes hair green!!
The only thing I can think of is that the house is supplied by spring water which seems to be corroding all the copper in the house.
Am I right?
Expensive cure...? Change all pipework to plastic and change huge cylinder to steel.
Cheep cure...?.. Wondered if there was any way of cleaning Pipework and Filtering/Neutralizing incoming spring water?

 

[stevetheplumber]

My friend has just bought a big old farm house and has a major problem.
I went initially to fix most of the taps in the house as they were leaking and leaving a blue/green deposit around the packing glands. My friend then asked me why his water was Blue, and on filling the bath showed me the water had a Bluey colur to it. This problem has since dyed hs wifes hair green!!
The only thing I can think of is that the house is supplied by spring water which seems to be corroding all the copper in the house.
Am I right?
Expensive cure...? Change all pipework to plastic and change huge cylinder to steel.
Cheep cure...?.. Wondered if there was any way of cleaning Pipework and Filtering/Neutralizing incoming spring water?

before assuming the blue to be from the copper pipes id check the source it may be that the water is blue from natural minerals

 

[EganPlumbing]

Hi Steve,
Thanks for the reply, just been over to check the acidity of the water and it turned out to be PH 5.5-PH6 (quite high acidity) Have you ever dealt with this problem?

 

[Plouasne]

I did a job in Cornwall, in the Dryanes (sp) Valley, on the edge of Bodmin Moor, where the water supply was a tapped spring, on sampling the water the Ph value, was in the region of 3.8 Ph value, more like neat battery acid if you ask me, an aluminium kettle would only last 6 months if that before it was eaten out by the acid water

The way the client got over the problem for his new house was to build a holding reservoir, about 10 foot cube, and sling in a couple of sacks of lime every month or so, to raise the Ph value to nearer neutral

Crude but effective, and being a farmer he did not miss a few bags of lime being diverted from the fields, and it was a lot cheaper than going on mains water

 

[migoplumber]

i descaled a 5 litre t boiler once, used fernox descaler, followed instructions, 2 hours after leaving site, got a call claiming they had blue water coming out of the tap.
i went back knowing i was being wound up or the woman was mad. got there
blue water coming out of the tap! spoke to fernox, and found that the acid had had a reaction with copper making copper sulphate which is blue. was advised to flush the system with bicarb of soda. did so. water back to normal.

might help

shaun

 

[Bernie2]

Hmm!

Sounds like "Blue water" If the water has high levels of copper in it you get them blue green stains, low PH and high alkalinity are part of the problem.

I remember working in a factory once that had long copper draw off points.
It was over a weekend when it was empty. I took a drink from the cold tap and thought I had poisoned myself.

I don't know about your individual situation, it could be one of many things they don't really know the cause, but a lot of research is going on about it, especially in Australia.

It not all that common but common enough to be of concern.

It causes pinhole corrosion in the pipes and it can happen quite quickly.

The thing is it doesn't seem to make much sense, because it can happen in one house but not next door or in one pipe and not in another.

The favored idea at the moment is that its some kind of bacteria that lives on the copper pipes internal layers. Its been seen in all water types, but it seems more prevalent in water below 7 pH and high alkalinity.

You can check if its "blue water" by cleaning out a white carton and filling it with water to see if it goes blue or cloudy blueish green.

One recommendation is to run the tap for at least 30 seconds full belt before drinking. You can call in the utility company and ask them about your water quality after all the water has got to be drinkable.

Its one of those areas though that nobody knows the answer too.

 

[justlead1]

Hi Get water samples tested ASAP ( the water authority) Health problem can be an issue and the pitting and leaking of pipes is just a matter of time.

 

[EganPlumbing]

Thanks to everyone for all your helpful posts.
Just applied for a water report, it'll probably just tell me what I already know from my own testing. But I need the report before I can get a filter aparently.

 

[stevetheplumber]

point i was trying to make was it may nnot be damaging the pipework if the blue is copper found naturaly in the ground

 

[bobpape]

I have always put the green staining and pinholes in copper pipe down to electrolysis,

I know it does not make sense but if you look at the pitting under a magnifying glass
and compare it to the pitting that occurs on steel plate in known cases of electrolytical
action, you would see the similarities,
the problem is the pitting seems to start on the outside of the pipe and work its way in until it causes a leak,

And as you say one house will suffer it and a similar house next door escapes it,

 

[migoplumber]

the green and blue staining of water, are from different sources totally bob. i'm not a chemist but blue comes from an acid reacting with copper something (big chemist word) and the green is from what you say.