Preparing for a temporary water outage due to utility construction:

• Fill pots on the stove with water for cooking
• Fill a couple of buckets with water for washing
• Fill potable water containers for drinking (assume about one gallon of drinking water per person per day)
• Fill bathtubs with water and use buckets to flush toilets, a toilet will flush when approximately a gallon of water is dumped into the bowl

During a water outage:

• Try not to operate water faucets, dishwashers, or washing machines. This will prevent air from entering your plumbing.

Once water service is restored:

• Flush your plumbing lines by opening a large tap while all other taps remain closed. The bathtub(s) in a home are ideal for this task. Open the cold-water valve in the bathtub. Listen for hissing and spitting, a sign that air remains in the line. Run the water to flush sediment (minerals) until it is clear, and no additional air bubbles are released.

•  Is the water safe to drink? Slight discoloration may sometimes linger for a few hours, it is not harmful to your health and only temporarily affects the appearance of the water, it does not influence water quality. Water conditions typically improve overnight.