Santa Maria residents may notice a change in water due to routine maintenance

Posted: Nov 2, 2012 4:30 AM by Katie Ferber, KSBY News
Updated: Nov 2, 2012 5:57 PM

People in Santa Maria may notice a change in water

For the next two weeks, people in Santa Maria may notice a difference in their tap water.

City of Santa Maria water users will be provided with drinking water from City wells instead of the State Water Project.

The city says you may notice a slight difference in the water due to the increased hardness and mineral content. They say the well water does meet all State and Federal standards.

The State of California Department of Water Resources is doing annual maintenance.

The City usually takes advantage of these shutdowns to flush portions of the water distribution system to remove particles. The annual flushing program occurs on a four-year cycle, cleaning 25% of the system each year.

The following is a schedule of flushing:

November 5th: Area south of Stowell, west of Miller, north of Battles and east of Depot.
November 6th: Area south of Cook, west of Miller, north of Stowell and east of Thornburg.
November 7th: Area south of Main, west of Lincoln, north of Boone and east of Blosser.
November 8th: Area south of Boone, west of Thornburg, north of Stowell and east of Blosser.
November 12th: Area south of Alvin, west of Miller, north of Main and east of Railroad.
November 13th: Area south of Donovan, west of Miller, north of Alvin and east of Railroad.
November 14th: Area south of Donovan, west of Railroad, north of Alvin and east of Blosser.
November 15th: Area south of Alvin, west of Railroad, north of Main and east of Blosser.Residents in these areas may notice a drop in pressure or a slight discoloration in the water during this time.

The city says if this happens in your home, run an outside faucet to flush the water through pipes until it appears clear.

They say this is temporary and cannot be avoided, and the discolored water is not harmful to public health. They also suggest to delay laundering clothes until the water has cleared.