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Your water could be affected by bacteria if you've been away from home or haven't used taps
You may already know that there's a chance the safety and quality of your water could have been affected by the growth of bacteria (such as Legionella) if you’ve been away from home for a bit - for example, if you've been on holiday, or in hospital.
This could also be the case if you have showers or taps in your home that aren't used regularly.
Inhaling small water droplets containing Legionella bacteria can lead to a lung infection called Legionnaires' disease - but there are a number of straightforward steps you can take to keep your water system clean and reduce the chances of Legionella being present in your water:
- use all your taps regularly,
- regularly clean your showerheads – ideally every three months,
- contact us using 01204 328000 your hot water is not heating properly,
- if you’ve just moved in, or have been away from your home for two weeks or more, run your kitchen, bath, hand basin taps, and shower for five minutes before using the water - doing this will flush through any bacteria that’s accumulated,
- ensure that you’ve set the hot water temperature on your boiler to maximum. Temperatures above 60°C will kill Legionella bacteria – but beware of burns and scalding, and take extra care if you have children,
- and avoid reducing the temperature setting on your boiler. If you think it needs adjusting, please call us on 01204 328000.
If you'd like to know more about water safety, you can watch our short video below, or visit www.boltonathome.org.uk/building-safety for details on:
- our (Bolton at Home's) water safety responsibilities,
- what to do if you think you're showing symptoms of Legionnaires' disease,
- and a range of other home safety topics.