Hi..I work in an office building in brooklyn (11211) and the water in the bathroom sink smells really bad. If you wash your hands…which we all do…your hands smell too. I have talked to the landlord many times about this and they have not done anything My staff has complained about the same thing. The land next door used to be a chemical plant and nothing was allowed to be built for years..Could something be seeping in the water somehow. I would like to have the water tested. I am not sure what to test for exactly so hoping you can advise. How much $ will I have to spend to get the water tested and if it is found to be contaminated somehow…then what do I do?

A couple of questions came to mind right away while reading Rachel’s question about water quality in her office:

1) What type of smell or odor do you detect emanating from the water? Does the unpleasant odor resemble the stench of rotten eggs (i.e. does it smell like sulfur)?

2) Does the odor come from both hot and cold water or just from one or the other?

We ask those questions because problems with hot water heaters often serve as the source of odor(s) in many homes and offices.

Water containing dissolved hydrogen sulfide gas produces an offensive (and VERY unpleasant) “rotten egg” or “sulfur” odor and will also have a similar taste. In a lot of cases the odor seems a lot stronger when one first turns on the water or runs hot water from the faucet. ( source )

If the smell you get from the water does not meet the profile above, and actually even it does meet the above profile, we highly suggest getting the water tested by a certified water testing laboratory like National Testing Laboratories or a local laboratory recommended by your local health department.

Given the history of the property (next door) we suggest going w/ the most comprehensive test you can afford. Why? Quite simply because many of the ‘more interesting’ contaminants resulting from industrial activities may not get detected by commonly offered water testing packages.

History… Not just for students anymore!

See what you can learn about what REALLY went on next door before the company closed up shop. What sorts of chemicals did they produce? Why did they shut down? Why did the city (or other agency) put a ban on building there after the company shut down?

While we believe it unlikely that the ‘issues’ left behind by that company have much to do with your current water woes since your water comes from the city, we would not rule it out entirely.

Do your homework, find a certified lab that can test for the sorts of nasty things that company may have left behind, make sure the results of their findings can get admitted as evidence in a legal proceedings, have the results examined by a qualified water specialist, and then determine what needs to happen next — be it legal action on the part of your landlord against the company or the city or the landlord simply installing the correct filter to remove the contaminants that make the water smell so awful.

Stainless Steel Counter Top
Water Filter

If you find your self reading this, then you may just have some smelly water showing up at your house, too… and no one likes smelly water! Yuck!

For the folks in Evansville, IN, above average temperatures and low river levels have resulted in an abnormally high amount of algae — ten times the normal amount — appearing in the area’s drinking water source.

Officials say that w/o a good amount of rain (to dilute) and lower temperatures (to help kill off) the algae residents will just have to deal with the bad smell and unpleasant taste.

Yep. Sounds like some folks in Indiana will most likely start searching for water filters and water purification devices REAL soon.

EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) – Recent testing of the water in Evansville revealed startling numbers to the Ohio River Sanitation Commission.

The tests showed the amount of algae in the water is ten times higher than normal.

The excess algae is due to the extreme heat and low river levels. Officials say the smell and the bad taste might be around for awhile.

“It’s going to take a significant amount of rainfall somewhere upstream within in the Ohio River basin, to get the river levels up and to get it flowing faster to help eliminate this problem,” said Roger Johnson, water superintendent for the city.

The water department says regardless of the taste and odor, the water is safe to drink. ( source )

Not to sound like the Twilight Zone again, but imagine, if you will, that you wake up one morning and the water coming out of all your faucets tastes and smells… bad. You quickly call your water company to complain and they say, “Sorry, but you will just have to deal with it for a while.”

Wow. Not a good scenario at all! Most people would scream, curse and pitch a fit at the person on the other end of the phone and then dash out to the store to get a few cases or a truckload of bottled water. Granted that may solve some of the problems — temporarily — but it will not solve them all.

Installing point-of-use water filters (i.e. undersink, counter top and shower) or a whole house water filter system, on the other hand, will solve both short term and long term water problems.