- April 18, 2024
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It's that time of the year again when the Port Orange Public Utilities Department schedules for the water disinfectants to be changed. The annual flushing and maintenance on the water distribution system will take place between Thursday, Aug. 10 and is expected to be completed no later than Thursday, Sept. 21.
The roughly six-week process involves changing the disinfectant from the chloramines that are currently used, to free chlorine disinfection. This is followed by an "aggressive flushing" before the disinfectant is converted back to chloramines, according to Public Utilities Director Lynn Stevens.
"This a routine operation for a water distribution system that uses chloramines," Stevens said. "Basically what we're doing is we're just insuring the quality of water in the distribution system."
Stevens said the surrounding cities use the same system and that, while Port Orange goes through this process once a year, some municipalities may do this more than one time.
"Oftentimes the pipelines are designed for large volumes of water for the fire flow," Stevens said. "So when it's just residential use, and not a lot of water use, then we have to periodically flush the water lines."
The water quality remains the same and is still safe to drink during this time. However, some residents may notice a slightly different taste in the water, according to the city. Stevens said the water may also smell differently but that this will dissipate within a few days.
Areas affected by this process includes the greater Port Orange water distribution system, Harbor Oaks, Allendale, Ponce Inlet and Daytona Beach Shores down to Thames Avenue.
"It's also imprint to note that we don't increase the amount of disinfectants,"Stevens said. "It's just as the change is moving through the system you notice the smell of chlorine is more prominent when the system is switching over from chloramines."
Residents can contact water treatment plant personnel at 3860-506-5770 for any questions about the flushing and maintenance. There is also a FAQ regarding this procedure on the public utilities section of the city’s website at port-orange.org.
