How can you reduce the risk of drinking water contamination at home?  

• Flush the water pipes if you have been away from home for a week or longer. To prevent waste, use the flushed water for your plants or to wash your car. Don't forget to also flush the hot water pipes;
• Make sure that all taps, showers, toilets, and any sprinkler systems are regularly used;
• Clean hot tub, jacuzzi, or humidifiers well according to the instructions;
• Set water heaters properly at a minimum of 60°C;
• Decalcify showers regularly;
• Let garden hoses drain well after use;
• Prevent dead pipe ​end sections as much as possible.

How to flush?

• Flush all taps that have not been used longer than 1 week;
• First flush the toilet(s) 3 times;
• Flush the faucets after the toilet(s);
• When flushing the shower heads, open the warm water first and then the cold water.

Legionella

Common bacteria in drinking water are Legionella. They appear naturally wherever it is moist, in soil and in water. Legionella bacteria are as inevitable as all other types of bacteria. The numbers of Legionella in drinking water are so small that the bacteria pose no threat. In stagnant water, however, legionella bacteria grow and reproduce very rapidly in drinking water!  

As legionella can cause Legionnaires’ disease, it is important that you, as a homeowner, take necessary measures to limit legionella in your home’s water pipes. 

Legionnaires’ disease

Legionnaires’ disease is a pneumonia caused by legionella bacteria. There is no vaccine, but the disease can be treated with specific antibiotics if applied as soon as possible. There is also a milder form, legionella flu or Pontiac fever, which develops like a ‘normal’ flu.

How do people get infected?

People risk getting infected by inhaling very small droplets (as mist or aerosol) of water containing high counts of Legionella bacteria. These droplets appear mostly in showers, hot tubs, steam baths, fountains, and cooling towers. Most people do not get sick from drinking water with Legionella, and it is not transferable from person to person. Some people, however, are more at risk of getting sick, like the elderly, people with low resistance due to illness, people who use anti-immune drugs and smokers.

How do we at WEB Aruba prevent Legionella?  

Besides the periodic sampling program WEB Aruba has a yearly sampling program to detect legionella in its water supply and distribution network. If high counts of legionella are detected, we act immediately. We also have a structural maintenance program for flushing and disinfection of water pipes. Part of the maintenance is a monthly fixed program to take samples of the entire production and distribution network, including the reservoirs. The water samples are subjected to bacteriological and chemical analyses. If WEB Aruba detects any sample exceeding the guidelines, the system or pipes will be flushed and, if necessary, disinfected.