What causes hot water to be rusty and brown?

There are a few answers to this common question. First, chemicals can cause rust in the water lines and a change in the water pressure will cause the rust to loosen up and come through the water lines and into the shower, bathtub, or other appliances.

Another cause could be a break in the pipe. What you may be seeing is dirt. What happens is when water is flowing and on, and then you suddenly turn it off, it creates a slight low pressure in the line which pulls in dirt around the pipe. When you turn on the flow, that dirt is pushed along until it comes out of the tap or showerhead. After several cycles, you can have a bunch of dirt in the lines, which dissolves and makes the water look brown or rusty.

Two other possibilitiescould be that the glass lining in the water heater may be compromised, allowing the metal jacket to rust. If this is the case, you don't have long until it starts to leak and will need to be replaced. Secondly, if you are on a well, iron bacteria may be growing, and may not be showing up in the cold water because it remains invisible in solution until it is heated, or has more time to react with oxygen in the water heater. In this case, shock chlorination of the well may be in order. A simple test by a water treatment company will tell this, and in many areas, it is free.

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