Quick Drips

Milky tap water is almost always dissolved air coming out of solution at the tap, and it clears on its own. Here is the two minute glass test, why it is a cold weather problem, and what changes after a water main break.

Every autumn, reservoirs mix from top to bottom, lifting manganese and earthy taste compounds toward the intake. Here is why the water tints, why your pitcher filter slows down, and what is worth doing about it.

A central Iowa city told residents in September not to give the tap water to infants and not to boil it. Nitrate and nitrite are the two contaminants where boiling makes things worse and a carbon pitcher is not the answer.

Two Midwest utilities sent notices days apart this month: a 24 hour boil water advisory in Kalamazoo and a 30 day PFAS notice in Pewaukee. The tier on a drinking water notice tells you how fast to act, and where a filter fits.

That sulfur smell is hydrogen sulfide, and your nose finds it at trace levels. A sink-by-sink diagnosis to locate the source, plus the fixes that actually work.

A June 2026 medical review concluded alkaline water has limited clinical utility, with modest effects driven more by minerals than pH. What the number on the label does and does not tell you, and the checks that matter more.

August is National Water Quality Month. A calm guide to testing your tap water: the free reports you already have, why we steer people away from strip kits, and when a certified lab is worth it.

Boil water advisories are showing up more often as water mains age. Here is what an advisory actually means, exactly what to do while it is in effect, and why a carbon filter is not the fix.

A 30-inch main break in Cary, North Carolina put 50,000 customers under a boil water advisory on September 14, and the all-clear came about 24 hours later. Here is what to actually do once a notice lifts, why utility guidance on flushing and filters genuinely differs, and what a drinking-water filter can and cannot do.