A boil water advisory is a precaution issued for a set area of St. Louis when the water supply may need extra treatment before people use it for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth and making ice. When the notice is lifted, the main water lines are back to normal, but some water in your home may still be left over from the advisory period. The parts that hold or filter water are the first place to look.
Before you start, confirm the advisory has been formally lifted for your address. Your water provider usually posts the notice, and many St. Louis neighborhoods also receive a message through local news or the provider's alert system. If you are unsure whether your street is included, wait and check before you start the steps below.
Start With the Taps
Open each cold tap in the house and let it run until the water runs steadily clear and the chlorine smell is gone. Do the same for the hot taps. Work from the lowest level of the house upward, and include outdoor hose bibs, utility sinks and any tap you rarely use. Taps that sit unused can hold older water, so they need more time.
Next, clean the aerators, which are the small screens at the tip of each faucet. Unscrew them by hand or with a cloth-wrapped pair of pliers, remove any grit, and rinse them under running water. Put them back in the same order you removed them. Some aerators trap sediment that stirred up when the water changed, so a quick rinse is worth doing even if the water looks clear.
Ice Makers and Fridge Dispensers
Ice made during the advisory should be thrown out, even if it looks normal. Empty the bin, then discard any ice in the tray. Wipe the bin with a clean cloth and fresh water. Let the ice maker run through at least one full cycle before you use the ice again, and discard that first batch as well.
Run the water dispenser on the refrigerator for a few minutes, since the line between the fridge and the main supply can hold stored water. Dispense into a sink, not a glass, until the water runs clear and tastes normal. If the fridge has a water filter, replace it or flush it according to the manufacturer's directions for the advisory period. Do not reuse an old cartridge just because it was installed before the advisory.
Filters, Pitchers and Other Point-of-Use Units
Any filter that sits between your tap and your glass should be checked. This includes faucet-mounted filters, countertop units and pitcher filters. If you used a pitcher filter during the advisory, rinse the reservoir thoroughly and replace the cartridge if the instructions say to do so after a period of heavy use. Keep a note of the date you changed it so you know when to replace it next.
Whole-house filters and softeners are also worth a look. If your home has one, check the owner's manual for guidance on flushing after a boil advisory. Some systems need a longer run of water through the bypass before they return to normal service. If you are unsure, ask the company that set up the system, or your water provider, what they recommend for your address.
Appliances That Use Water
Run the dishwasher on an empty cycle, and run the washing machine through a rinse cycle with no clothing. Refill any humidifiers, pet bowls and coffee makers with fresh water only after the taps have run clear. Water heaters hold a tank of water that was heated during the advisory, so run the hot tap in each bathroom until it runs normally, then let the tank refill. A water heater that sits without use for a long period may need more flushing, so check your manual.
When to Call Your Provider
If the water still smells, tastes or looks unusual after you have run each tap, contact your water provider and describe what you see. Note the address, the time you noticed the problem and which fixtures were affected. If the notice did not clearly say the advisory was lifted for your area, do not assume it was. Ask before you resume normal use of the water.
Keep the advisory notice and any follow-up messages in one place. If you ever need to explain what happened to a neighbor, a landlord or a service technician, a written record makes the conversation much easier. Cleaning these parts once after the notice ends is a simple habit that keeps the next water issue in St. Louis easier to sort out.