Water to be turned off in Dublin from tonight

Has DCC Chief Engineer been more forthcoming about the nature of the "production problems" over the last few days?

They showed the facility on the news last night, the person interviewed said that the filter material used in the first stage generally remains at the bottom of the tank, water feeds up through that an on to the next stage. For some reason, that material was now floating and making its way to the second stage of filtration. They had no idea why!!
 
Have a look at the bottom of the reservoir where you drinking water comes from

That goes through many stages of filtration before it ever gets to your tap, and having kayaked on some of the reservoirs, the water in them is generally quite clean.
 
.. stages of filtration before ...
and disinfection with chlorine. A residual amount of chlorine remains until it reaches you tap.

Is it fair to say that DCC not yet identified the problem with the production process and that when they determine the problem they will progress to the solution and that in the meantime they dont know how long the problem solving process will last?

Thanks Mark for the quote:
.... recent heavy rain has made the reservoir water more difficult to treat at the plant. .. its constituent characteristics have changed. .... "The characteristics of water change from season to season, they normally operate within a certain band. We haven't experienced this <before>.
 
Is it fair to say that DCC not yet identified the problem with the production process and that when they determine the problem they will progress to the solution and that in the meantime they dont know how long the problem solving process will last?

That's my understanding, all they'll say is that the restrictions will be reviewed on a daily basis, but will continue until Monday at least.

As an aside, I'd be interested in seeing what effect the restrictions have on demand. The media are full of stories of businesses filling containers for user the following day. How many of these are re-filled with fresh water on a daily basis?
 
Looking at it from a national point of view the solution must be to fast track the [broken link removed] which would take excess water from the Shannon basin.
 
Listening to Phil Hogan on the 1 o'clock news. Isn't it amazing how contrite this individual can be when the shoe is on the other foot.
 
Couple of water saving tips from the council website. Some are fairly obvious, but might help anyway.

'Small adjustments to some of our daily activities can help to significantly reduce the volume of water we use without impacting on our lifestyle.
Some easy water saving tips include:
Keeping a jug of water in the fridge instead of running the tap - running a tap for one minute*to produce one cold glass of water*wastes 6 litres of water;**
Not delaying in the shower - 10 minutes in a power-shower uses 250 litres of water – two-and-a-half times more than a bath does (100 litres);
Turning the tap off for two minutes while brushing your teeth will save 12 litres of water;
Turn the dishwasher and washing machine on only when they have a full load;
Minimising use of the flush on toilets and if using a dual flush system, use buttons 1 (small flush) and 2 (large flush) correctly.
For more useful tips on how to save water please visit*www.taptips.ie '
 
10 minutes in a power-shower uses 250 litres of water

:eek: This one completely shocked me - is it really that much water for a 10 minute power-shower? That is one of those 5 litre drums of water every 12 seconds pouring over your head - that's quite shocking! What are the figures for showers that are not power-showers?
 
When water metering was introduced for farmers and businesses a few years ago there was a dramatic drop in consumption. I predict a significant drop in consumption when the domestic water meters kick in over the next few months.
 
You don't need to do this: just use the cold tap as normal. This **should** be fed from a tank, unlike a kitchen tap (which is fed directly from mains).

Like others, I would not drink or even rinse with water from the hot tap.


In a typical system with cold water storage tank in attic and hot water cylinder in hot press, the water in the hot and cold taps in the bathroom comes from the same source, intitially, eg the cold water tank in the attic.

Are you saying because the hot tap, water is heated it is more dangerous than non heated stored water. Good question actually.

I use the hot tap water to clean my teeth as I like to take the chill out of the water in the winter.

I would never drink any water hot or cold from a storage tank.
 
In a typical system, the water in the hot and cold taps in the bathroom comes from the same source, intitially, eg the cold water tank in the attic.

Are you saying because the hot tap, water is heated it is more dangerous than non heated stored water. Good question actually.

I use the hot tap water to clean my teeth as I like to take the chill out of the water in the winter.

I would never drink any water hot or cold from a storage tank.

When I was seriously ill, my consultant said not to drink mains water at all, strictly sparkling bottled only for a year or so.

I changed to brushing my teeth under the hot tap after that as my teeth became too sensitive to the cold water.

Hot and cold water from a storage tank shouldn't be drank as its not fresh but in an apocalyspe type scenario it would have to do!

Brushing teeth with hot water/cold water originating from the storage tank is fine. Swallowing the toothpaste is potentially more dangerous due to the fluoride, but then there's the flouride in the water.........
 
I know of a person in West Cork, who has just got ecoli from their drinking water from a well, and the damage was so severe they had to have their bowel removed.
So do not take for granted that the supply is OK to drink, if in doubt boil it.
 
"The Irish Fire and Emergency Services Association state that the restrictions could not have come at a worse time."

I watched RTE News and Dublin Fire Brigade seemed to have no problem with Dublin City Council turning off the water - bit strange I thought.

The guy on from the Restaurant Association was excellent the other day.
 
DFB is part of DCC, it would be odd for them to chastise them publicly too much.
 
In a typical system with cold water storage tank in attic and hot water cylinder in hot press, the water in the hot and cold taps in the bathroom comes from the same source, intitially, eg the cold water tank in the attic.

Are you saying because the hot tap, water is heated it is more dangerous than non heated stored water. Good question actually.

In answer to the question: "yes", though I'm not aware of any actual hard evidence to say it's more dangerous.

I wouldn't drink from either tap in the bathroom, and would only ever use the cold for washing teeth.
 
First time poster, so be gentle!

It seems that the restrictions as currently structured are affecting the same people day after day. Would it be possible or practical to have shorter, rolling stoppages during the day instead of always at night? I would have thought that more water could be saved during heavy use periods during the day.

Brian
 
Are you saying because the hot tap, water is heated it is more dangerous than non heated stored water. Good question actually.

Absolutely yes. Bacteria struggle in cold water, but thrive and can multiple rapidly to dangerous levels in warmer water. Legionnaires' disease would be a particular concern.
 
I have worked on pharmaceutical water treatment plants which have relative short runs, no screw fitting or dead ends are allowed because bugs can breed in them, and this is cold water. On domestic systems, I assume that is reason for chlorine through the whole system to the taps, so this should also kill bugs in the hot water, I stand to be corrected by any experts in this area.
 
'Small adjustments to some of our daily activities can help to significantly reduce the volume of water we use without impacting on our lifestyle.

Has anyone ever subscribed to this

http://www.urbandictionary.com/defi...,+let+it+mellow.+If+it's+brown,+flush+it+down

I remember my father would never flush the toilet. I thought that it was the most disgusting of habits. That was back in the 1950's when he had to pay various rates including water rates.
I have the luxury of my own bathroom and my wife has hers. Is there any point in flushing after every no.1. Certainly those of us of a certain age who pee regularly during the night can save gallons of water and cost by not flushing every time?
 
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