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uk Home & property emergencies

What to do if…
your tap water suddenly turns brown, smells unusual, or looks unsafe to drink

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: Last reviewed: Editorial policy UK guide

Short answer

Pause using the tap water for drinking, cooking, baby formula, brushing teeth, or rinsing food, and contact your water company or public water provider for advice. If you are on a private water supply, contact your local council or local authority environmental health/private water supplies team.

Do not do these things

  • Don’t assume it is safe to drink just because it came from the tap.
  • Don’t boil it unless official advice tells you to; boiling may not help and can be wrong for chemical contamination.
  • Don’t use hot tap water for drinking, cooking, baby formula, or food preparation.
  • Don’t use the water for baby formula, brushing teeth, rinsing dentures, or making ice until you have checked what is safe.
  • Don’t run the dishwasher or washing machine just to “test” the water.
  • Don’t ignore a strong fuel, solvent, chemical, sewage, or rotten smell; treat it as a stop-and-check situation.

What to do now

  1. Use a safe alternative for anything that goes in or near your mouth. Use bottled water, or stored water from before the change if you are confident it was clean and safely stored, for drinking, cooking, baby formula, brushing teeth, rinsing food, and making ice. Prioritise babies, older adults, and anyone with a weakened immune system.
  2. Check which taps are affected. Look at the cold tap you normally drink from, then check whether the same colour, taste, or smell is present at other cold taps. Do not use hot water for drinking or food.
  3. Check whether neighbours are affected. Ask someone in the same building, street, or nearby homes whether their water is also discoloured or smells unusual. This helps show whether the issue may be inside your home or in the local supply.
  4. Contact your water company or public water provider. Use the emergency or water-quality contact route on your bill or the provider’s website. Tell them:
    • your address or postcode
    • when the change started
    • whether the water is brown, orange, black, cloudy, has particles, or has a strong smell or taste
    • whether it affects cold taps, hot taps, or both
    • whether neighbours are affected
    • whether anyone has used the water and now feels unwell
  5. Ask for clear immediate instructions. Ask whether there is a known incident, whether any warning notice is in place, whether you should run a cold tap, whether they want a sample, and what uses are safe while you wait.
  6. If there is a strong fuel, solvent, chemical, sewage, or rotten smell, say this clearly. Keep water use to the minimum needed until you have spoken to the supplier, provider, or local authority. If you suspect a fuel or chemical spill near pipes, mention that immediately.
  7. If you have a private water supply, contact the local council or local authority. Say there has been a sudden change in colour, taste, or smell and you are not sure it is safe. Ask what to do now and whether sampling or testing is needed.
  8. Keep a simple record. Take a photo or short video of the water in a clear glass, note the time it started, and keep a small sample in a clean glass bottle or jar if the supplier or authority asks for one and you can do this safely.

What can wait

  • You do not need to decide today whether the cause is your pipes, your building, or the wider water network.
  • You do not need to buy filters or home testing kits in a panic.
  • You do not need to drain a boiler, hot-water cylinder, or tank unless a qualified professional or official water provider tells you to.
  • You do not need to start a complaint process before you have reported the water-quality concern and received immediate safety advice.

Important reassurance

Sudden brown, orange, black, cloudy, smelly, or odd-tasting water can happen after mains work, burst pipes, changes in flow, or plumbing problems. You do not have to work out the cause yourself: pausing drinking and food use, checking who else is affected, and contacting the right water organisation are enough for the first safe step.

Scope note

These are first steps only, to reduce risk and get the right organisation involved. Later decisions, such as plumbing checks, landlord contact, formal complaints, private testing, or compensation questions, may need specialist help.

Important note

This is general information, not legal, medical, environmental health, plumbing, or emergency services advice. If you feel unwell after using the water, contact NHS 111 for medical advice; call 999 if symptoms are severe or there is immediate danger. Follow any instructions from your water company, public water provider, local authority, or emergency services.

Additional Resources

Closely connected guides that may be useful during the same situation or its immediate aftermath.

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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