HSE question re hot water

[wotsupnow]

In the kitchen at the company I work for there is a small electric boiler ( geyser ? ) over the sink , a mains cold water tap and an electric kettle.

I noticed today someone filled the kettle from the boiler, is this a bad idea? the boiler has been there for yrs and the water here is quite hard. There's also the question of how long the water has been in there before being used. the boiler fills and heats automatically so I guess the water is always around boiling point.


Pete

 

[EliteHeat]

You must have a lot of time on your hands.

Mind you it's quite true that the water has been around for a while before being put into the kettle and this is a worry. I understand that water from the mains in guaranteed to be no more than 37 minutes old.

 

[namsag]

In this case it should be perfectly ok as the water will not be sitting about to long,and it is filled straight from mains, But in a normal system with tanks in loft etc you should not fill kettle or drink from hot taps as you can get dead birds/rodents etc in tank.
Reminds me of when my uncle had in his shop a water boiler that was on a high shelf and they filled it with a bucket and used it to make the tea, when they cleaned it out there was a couple of rat skeletons in it

 

[chrishutt]

..when they cleaned it out there was a couple of rat skeletons in it

I bet that put hairs on their chests.

 

[susisweetpea]

I am new here and have recently aquired a dead bird in the water tank which I am told is where my drinking water comes from.

I am a little more than freaked out by this and was informed to scoop it out. Upon doing so the dead bird became a sludgy sort of soup. I am a tenant recently moved and I have no idea as to what to do next apart from finding a seive!

I dont want to use this water for drinking at all. And although everything is still to be fixed (i.e. frozen pipes killing the water supply hence the newly discovered soupy sludge in the attic) I really am hoping my landlord will put in a new tank for us or at least tell us how to make it clean again.

I know very little about DIY so if someone would kindly help me I would be grateful indeed.

When my eldest child was a baby she got very very sick with Champylobacta poisoning from a water supply where we lived. There was a dead bird in the tank then. I cant recall what that landlord did exactly as we were busy caring for our sick baby in the hospital. She is 12 now. My youngest child is 16months old and I am scared that history might repeat itself.
Need some practical advice and reassurance please. Thanks kindly : )

 

[tamz]

Your drinking water "should" come directly from the mains and not through a tank. Storage water is NOT suitable for drinking, even without the bird!
The tank can be drained and chlorinated which will kill all bugs. Insist on this being done, it is a simple job of adding a chlorine tablet to the tank then flushing it through the pipes and cheaper than replacing tanks.

 

[fatplumber]

Susi, this is a serious issue for which your landlord is responsible. Get in touch with him or his agent without delay. They have a duty to deal with this. You should not use stored water for drinking. We are obliged to bring mains fed water into the kitchen for drinking and food prep. Water regulations carry the force of law now.

 

[susisweetpea]

I am confused.

I am not sure if that tank is just for the hot water/radiator or if it is our drinking water. OR both!

So far the plumbers came, removed the sludge as best they could (though I sent hubby up there with a rock pool net!) They have the frozen ball cock thawed and water is running into the tank now. Until this cold snap has gone we dont want to stop the water running in order for us to scrub the tank clean.
Our landlord has given us industrial cleanser to flush through the system every night for three nights. And steps are being made to put a lid on the water. The tank is beng filled by the mains supply and it goes through a filter beforehand. Thats as much as I know.

Does mains supply also mean a spring. I was told our water was spring water.

In the meantime I am using bottled water and washing at a nieghbours house. Is there anything more I should know or do? Thanks for your help so far. I really appreciate it!

 

[susisweetpea]

UPDATE

My husband tells me this tank is for hot water and drinking water.

So, is it unlawful to expect us to use the water tank for drinking?

 

[D_Hailsham]

I understand that water from the mains is guaranteed to be no more than 37 minutes old.

That sounds like folk-lore

How long do you think the water can lie in the reservoir before it is used?

And, if you don't run your cold tap for more than 37 minutes, the water in the cold main between your tap and meter, or water company valve, will become older than that.

 

[D_Hailsham]

My husband tells me this tank is for hot water and drinking water.

So, is it unlawful to expect us to use the water tank for drinking?

I'm sorry to say so, but your husband is incorrect. The cold water in the large tank in the loft is for three purposes only:

Feeding toilets
Cold supply to wash basins, baths and showers
Topping up the hot water cylinder when you turn on a hot tap.

Drinking water should only been taken from the cold tap over the sink in the kitchen, which my law has to be fed direct from the mains.

 

[tamz]

industrial cleanser

is definately not suitable for cleaning a tank It needs drained cleaned refilled and chlorinated. A simple job that will take 3-4 hours. Insist on this being carried out. You will know if chlorine is being used as you will smell it like you can at the swimming baths.

The tank should not be supplying your drinking water. If there are 2 pipes coming from the bottom of the tank 1 will feed the hot water tank and the other should feed the cold to the bathroom.
Is there a tee on the mains pipe after the filter?
There should be valves on the pipes from the bottom of the tank. If you turn them off the cold at the kitchen should still be on and the bathroom will be off.

If because of the setup from the spring the kitchen sink is fed from the tank this should be changed. Spring water is fine for drinking. It might contain some mineral impurities. That is why the filter is there.

In the meantime I am using bottled water and washing at a nieghbours house.

Good idea.

 

[gigz]

Quick way to find out - turn the stoptap off and turn on the cold water taps the kitchen tap should stop neigh on straight away (or till the leg empties) the tank fed ones will take considerably longer.

 

[susisweetpea]

I shall endeavour to get some more clarity on this over the weekend.

I now know the industrial cleaner is chlorine after all. So thats ok.

what a pavlova this has been! Thank you all for taking time to help me.

I do hope hubby is wrong in his reckoning regarding the drinking water.

It is a very old house n the kitchen has been added on at some point. So maybe your right re drinking water being mains. I say mains but its a private supply. I dont think there the same are they?

will update soon!