What is this funny smell and taste and how to remove it?

Does your heater give the water boiled in it an unpleasant smell and taste? We can explain why, and help you solve the problem.

This smelly heating problem is often caused by a combination of chemicals in your tap water and heating system, say scientists from major water companies.

In this article, we’re going to talk about it:

• The causes of water’s weird tastes and smell;

• How to remedy the bad taste of heating water;

• The risk to your health from strange tastes and smells;

• What to do if you fell ill after drinking funny hot water.

As always you can watch this video instead of reading this article:

Causes of strange tastes in water

Here we will share with you the major cause of the funny taste of your water.

1. Salt intrusion

Salty taste: There are several reasons for the strange taste of your heater. One of these reasons is the intrusion of salt into your water source, which gives the hot water a salty taste. There is little you can do about this except call your water supplier to check what is happening.

2. Iron and Manganese Contamination

Metallic taste and smell: Metallic taste and smell is another problem, and it occurs when you have corrosive water due to iron and manganese contamination or high mineral content. Corrosive water affects the metallic part of the water heater, causing corrosion and leakage, and then total damage to your water heater. High mineral content usually occurs in private wells, and the best suggestion is to call your local health agency and water utility.

3. Industrial Actions

If you find that your hot water has a chemical taste, you must immediately contact the local authorities because there is contamination due to industrial actions or the discharge of waste (septic tanks) into the municipal water system.

4. Calcium and magnesium salts

Warm water can also have a strange texture. Fine sand, gravel, or hard water containing high levels of calcium and magnesium salts can change the texture of the water to abrasive, granular water with scum and white deposits. Most of the time, you should contact the water utility, whereas, in the case of hard water, you can try with the water softener, but be careful as this may affect the longevity of the anode rod of your heater.

5. Chlorine in the tap

According to Luke Montgomery of Yorkshire Water and Dr. Robin Price of Anglian Water, chlorine in tap water reacts with phenol-based compounds sometimes found in plastic and rubber parts of the water heater. There is no health risk, but it does cause a TCP smell and taste.

The cause of the smelly water from the heating system

Fuel or oil leaks, sewage or bacterial contamination, excess chlorine and more…

Usually, the strange taste is accompanied by a specific odour, which can be an oil or gas smell due to leaking petrol or oil; rotten eggs due to sewage or bacterial contamination; chlorine due to excess chlorine, musty odour due to contaminants in organic matter (algae, vegetation), detergent, perfume or fish smell due to industrial waste and chemical pollution. In all these cases, call the public authorities for help.

It is recommended to compare the water from your heating system with the water boiled in a pan to see if it is the heating system that is causing the problem. If it is, you can get rid of the chlorine by keeping the tap water in a covered jug in the refrigerator for a few hours.

How to remedy the bad taste of heating water

Scientists recommend comparing water boiled in a pot with water boiled in a heater to see if the heater is causing the problem.

If it is heating, you will have to store tap water in a clean, covered pitcher in the refrigerator for a few hours in the future. This will allow you to get rid of the chlorine. However, you should not leave it any longer, because it is the chlorine that keeps the water clean and safe to drink.

It is also essential not to reboil the water that has been left in the water heater, as this will add more phenolic compounds to the water.

Avoid buying a dubious heater

Not everyone will experience this problem because chlorine levels in water vary, and people have different sensitivities to taste and smell. It is recommended to buy a high-quality heater to avoid this funny taste. Make sure you read the review.

Additional methods for removing bad-tasting water

1. Try boiling the water in a pan to see what it tastes like. If you can determine that the taste comes from the heater – and it is a heater – then boil it four or five times to see if the particular feeling disappears.

There may be some manufacturing chemicals present. If not, pour in half a can of baking soda and let it sit for an hour. Then add water, boil it and pour. Boil it again using only water, then throw it away. If the taste persists, it is time to give it back to your heater supplier. You must change it and get a better one!

2. If the pan AND the heater taste bad, buy bottled water and try it. If the taste comes from the tap water system, contact your water company, and they will investigate the problem. Ask neighbours if they have noticed a change as well.

3. If you have been using a heater for a long time and the water tastes good when boiled in a pan, it may be time to clean and descale it with citric acid or white vinegar.

Are the taste and smell dangerous?

As you have seen, your heater may have unpleasant odours such as plastic, chlorine, TCP, burnt metal, or only an unpleasant smell. Most of these strange odours and tastes are not harmful, except for one. This is the smell of plastic.

The plastic smell in the water is due to BPA, which can cause many health problems. These health problems include cancer, infertility, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, and deformities in unborn children. So be careful not to drink water that smells and tastes like plastic.

Even if the other smells are not dangerous, we think it is better not to drink this water either.

What should you do? If you feel hill after drinking water that tastes funny

We are not doctors, so if you feel ill after drinking the smelly water from your heater, we advise you to consult your doctor as soon as possible. You never know what’s going on in your body, so it’s best to have an examination.

Conclusion

We hope that this post has helped discover the sources of the bad smell and bad taste of your heater, and how to use your heater properly while getting rid of its bad taste and bad odour.

Most of the time, the problem comes from the water piping system.

Water suppliers can also be the source of these bad taste and odour problems.

Before making an amusing conclusion, it is recommended to compare the water from the heater with the water boiled in a pan to see if it is the heater that is causing the problem. Remember if you want you can easily test your water with one of our kits. Please send us an email if you have any question, conveniently you can fill out form here on our company’s website.