Why do you sometimes open a hydrant and let the water run out? Isn't that a waste of good water?

We "flush" all water mains at least once a year as part of our Comprehensive Flushing Program to maintain water quality in the distribution system and to remove sediment that accumulates in water mains. Flushing also helps to maximize the effects of corrosion control inhibitors that are added to the water, which prevents the corrosion and deterioration of the water mains. And, flushing enables us to maintain flow characteristics within the water system, which helps maximize fire flows throughout the system.

Easton Suburban Water Authority uses Uni-Directional Flushing to isolate sections of the water system by closing valves. That section of the water system is then flushed using fire hydrants and "blow-off" assemblies -- subsurface hydrants installed where fire hydrants are not located, particularly in cul-de-sacs. We also flush sections of the water system occasionally in response to customer complaints or other issues that may arise.

When we perform Comprehensive Flushing of the water system, we notify customers by our reverse telephone system with a general schedule of when that section of the water system will be flushed. We then publish the daily flushing schedule on our telephone system and website each day by 4:00pm so that customers in that section can find out exactly what days we will be flushing their streets. The telephone system message can be reached by calling 610.258.7181, and the website can be accessed by clicking here.