Town of Middletown will be flushing the water system in the Westown area, including South Ridge, Westown Apartments and Spring Arbor, starting tomorrow, Jan. 15, at 8 a.m. This process will continue through the month of January and into February.
If residents experience residue or brown color in their water, they should run a COLD water tap in their home for 10 minutes, or until the water runs clear.
What is water main flushing? Water main flushing moves water systematically through sections of a drinking water distribution system, creating a scouring action to clean the line. The increased flow rate scours the water pipe’s inner walls and helps to remove build-up of naturally occurring debris and sediment. The water is discharged through select fire hydrants onto local roads or other surface areas.
• The process is critical to the overall maintenance of a distribution system and is one of the most important practices carried out by public drinking water systems to maintain high water quality, improve the carrying capacity of pipes, and ensure proper operation of distribution system components, such as hydrants and valves.
• Flushing the water main lines also ensures that fire hydrants are operational and allows the operator to assess the available water pressure and flow rate for firefighting purposes. Flushing at lower velocities can also be used to bring fresh water into a part of the distribution system where the water main ends or dead-ends. Water main flushing is typically carried out through either conventional or unidirectional flushing (UDF). The type of flushing performed is based on the specific goals to be achieved within the distribution system.