Current Water System Status - Water Supply Warning
Now that we have replaced our failed storage tank with a shiny new one and it has been approved for use, we now have a tank with almost a week's water at your normal usage. We normally receive water from San Jose Water company 3-4 times a day but now we can go for several days without water in a power outage or if they are doing repairs or maintenance. We still have just one source of water until we can get the water treatment plant programming connected with the new tank's controls. After that we can start processing water from the creek and have two sources again. Until that happens, we will remain at Water Supply Warning as described below.
Refer to the Tank Replacement and Treatment Upgrade Project for more information on the tank replacement project.
There are two factors we use to determine the system's status: water supply and water quality.
Water Supply:
Normal - Normal conditions with normal water supply and normal water quality.
- We are producing drinking water from Laurel Creek and have supplemental water from San Jose Water Company.
Water Supply Warning - An elevated risk of a water shortage due to a lack of water in our Laurel Creek supply.
- We request that all homeowners reduce their non-critical water consumption.
- Please eliminate or reduce outdoor landscape and lawn water usage.
Water Supply Emergency – Water is not available from Laurel Creek and the San Jose Water company connection is not able to supply our user's demand.
- We will notify all of the affected users by a hand delivered notice on your front door, a phone call, or an e-mail. In order to be notified in a timely matter you must give us your contact information. The best methods are email and text messaging.
- You will be required to stop all outside watering including lawns, gardens, landscape, pools and ponds served by our water system.
- We will ask you to reduce indoor water usage by limiting shower times, reduce laundry cycles, and yes, only essential flushing.
- If the outage is expected to last more than a couple of days, the board may decide to have water delivered by truck to the main tank in an effort to avoid a boil water condition. Water consumption rates will be increased during this period.
Water Quality:
Precautionary Boil Water Notice - A pipeline break or power failure has caused low water pressure in all or a portion of our distribution system.
A Precautionary Boil Water Notice will be sent out in cases where the water system has experienced a failure that may allow contaminants to be drawn into the water distribution system. So, as a precaution, it is important to disinfect tap water to kill any bacteria or viruses that may have entered the water, or use an alternative source of water (bottled water).
Under a Precautionary Boil Water Notice, water used for consumption should be disinfected by any one of the following methods:
- Bringing the water to a rolling boil and holding it there for 1 minute;
- Using a disinfectant chemical. If you cannot boil water, you should put eight drops of common (unscented) household bleach (which is about 1/8 of a Tablespoon) into one gallon of water, shake it, and allow it to stand for 30 minutes before consuming it. If the water is cloudy use 16 drops (about ¼ of a teaspoon) of bleach. Be sure to use food-grade containers; or
- Using water purification tablets or iodine that many sports and camping supply stores sell, and follow their directions.
Consumption includes brushing teeth, washing fruits & vegetables, and homemade ice. Tap water may be used for showering, baths, shaving, & washing, so long as care it take not to swallow or allow water in the eyes, nose, or mouth. Though the risk of illness is minimal, individuals who have recent surgical wounds, are immunosuppressed, or have a chronic illness may want to consider using bottled water or boiled water (that has cooled) for cleansing until the notice is lifted.
After the water system is repaired and the pressure is restored in the pipes to your home, the precautionary boil water notice will remain in effect for several days while bacteria tests are conducted to assure the safety of the water. The notice will be lifted only after tests prove the water is safe to drink. It may be lifted in sections as those area’s pipes are cleared and the water deemed safe to drink. Flush your taps and discard any ice made during the notice.
Mandatory Boil Water Order- A tested water sample from our distribution system has failed to meet the States minimum water safety guidelines.
A Mandatory Boil Water Order will be sent out in cases where the water system has had a failure and contaminants have been found to be in the water distribution system. During this period, it is vitally important to disinfect tap water to kill any bacteria or viruses that have entered the water, or use an alternative source of water (bottled water).
Under a Mandatory Boil Water Order, water used for consumption can be disinfected by any one of the following methods:
- Bringing the water to a rolling boil and holding it there for 1 minute;
- Using a disinfectant chemical. If you cannot boil water, you should put eight drops of common (unscented) household bleach (which is about 1/8 of a Tablespoon) into one gallon of water, shake it, and allow it to stand for 30 minutes before consuming it. If the water is cloudy use 16 drops (about ¼ of a teaspoon) of bleach. Be sure to use food-grade containers; or
- Using water purification tablets or iodine that many sports and camping supply stores sell, and follow their directions.
Consumption includes brushing teeth, washing fruits & vegetables, and homemade ice. Tap water may be used for showering, baths, shaving, & washing, so long as care it take not to swallow or allow water in the eyes, nose, or mouth. Though the risk of illness is minimal, individuals who have recent surgical wounds, are immunosuppressed, or have a chronic illness may want to consider using bottled water or boiled water (that has cooled) for cleansing until the order is lifted.
After the water system is repaired and the pressure is restored in the pipes to your home, the mandatory boil water order will remain in effect for several days while bacteria tests are conducted to assure the safety of the water. The notice will be lifted only after tests prove the water is safe to drink. It may be lifted in sections as those area’s pipes are cleared and the water deemed safe to drink. Flush your taps and discard any ice made during the order.
