City Conducts Annual Hydrant Flushing

Hydrant flushing starts each weekday at 7:30 a.m. and goes until 3:30 p.m. The program starts in the Orchard Mesa area and will end at 29 Road and Orchard Avenue. Testing will take approximately two weeks to complete.

During the testing program, homeowners may notice discolored or aerated water coming from taps. This is a normal part of the process. Water customers are encouraged to run water in a bathtub for 5 - 10 minutes to flush any discolored water from service lines.

This is part of a program that began in 1992 to assure the highest quality drinking water for City of Grand Junction water customers. The city has approximately 995 fire hydrants and 150 miles of pipe in its service area. Each year this program tests 50 percent of the total number of fire hydrants. The total volume of water used during the entire program is approximately 2,000,000 gallons. Between 1,000 and 6,000 gallons of water is flushed from each hydrant.

Besides maintaining water quality, other reasons for testing the water system include:

• Increased chlorine residuals extended throughout the water system
• Elimination of taste and odors
• Removal of discolored water
• Maintaining the life of water mains and hydrants
• Checking fire flow rates and exercising hydrants