Category Archives: Contaminants

3 Reasons to Have Clean Water Throughout Your Whole Home

We all know the importance of drinking clean water – it protects us from harmful contaminants and keeps us hydrated – but it’s also crucial that we filter the rest of the water in our homes.

Contaminants in our water can harm us in many more ways than just through drinking. Think of all the ways you come in contact with water throughout an average day.

Below are 3 reasons to filter every drop of water in your home. Enjoy!

1. Your skin absorbs contaminants freely

Your skin doesn’t only depend on the water you drink, it also reacts to the water in which you bathe. For the same reasons that water from the tap can be dangerous to drink, it can be even more harmful to shower in.

You see, our local governments add chlorine and other chemicals to the water supply to disinfect it, but this process creates byproducts that can wreak havoc on your skin and your overall health. When you shower, your pores open up and absorb these toxins, leaving you vulnerable.

2. You can inhale contaminants in hot shower water vapor

If you take hot showers (of course you do), you know that they create steam. If you breathe during your hot showers (of course you do), you’re inhaling compounds such as fluoride directly into your lungs.

Fluoride is added to the water supply by most major municipalities because it’s beneficial when used topically on our teeth. Recent studies suggest, though, that it has detrimental effects when ingested.

What is especially scary about this is the fact that vapors that you inhale hit your bloodstream significantly faster, meaning you could be more vulnerable to fluoride and other contaminants in your shower water than in your drinking water.

3. Whole home systems are affordable

It’s a no brainer that some type of whole home water filter system is necessary in any home. The problem is the confusing marketplace. Many companies will try to sell whole home systems for several thousand dollars.

The Evolution Healthworks Whole-Home Water System effectively removes chemical byproducts and other nasty substances from entering your home.

5 Reasons Reverse Osmosis is Bad For Your Health

If you’ve researched water filter systems for your home, then you are probably familiar with reverse osmosis.

For those of you who are not familiar, reverse osmosis is commonly described as the most complete way to filter your water. In some ways, this statement is valid. Reverse osmosis uses a membrane to very finely remove almost all dissolved solids from tap water.

This sounds like a great system, right? After all, the point of water filtration is to take out all of the bad substances and leave us with safe water.

It’s not that simple, though.

To get truly safe and healthy water, it’s very important to consider the adverse effects of drinking water that has no beneficial constituents.

The World Health Organization released a report summarizing some eye-opening findings about reverse osmosis and the “demineralized” water it creates. Below are 5 reasons from the report that reveal why reverse osmosis is bad for your health.

1. It leads to mineral deficiencies

Water is the universal solvent. When it is demineralized – or run through a reverse osmosis system – it aggressively seeks new metals and minerals to leach and absorb.

This becomes a problem when you RO water – it leaches beneficial minerals such as calcium and magnesium from your body.

Studies from around the world over a fifty-year period agree that water low in calcium and magnesium leads to a higher rate of bone fractures, cardiovascular disease, pregnancy disorders and some cancers.

2. It makes you urinate more

This might sound obvious – of course drinking water results in more trips to the restroom – but it’s more complicated than that.

Reverse osmosis water throws off water homeostasis in the body, causing a 20% increase in diuresis (aka need to urinate).

3. It negates the nutrients you get from food

Most reverse osmosis companies will advise you to use your demineralized water for cooking. While cooking with the right water can make a significant difference, this is NOT the case for reverse osmosis.

The study explains that cooking with demineralized water actually removes about 60% of the beneficial minerals from your food. Since the majority of our nutrients come from what we eat, cooking with demineralized water can be very detrimental to your dietary health.

4. It leads to more toxic chemicals in your water

Just as reverse osmosis water is likely to absorb minerals in your body, it is also highly aggressive to materials with which it comes into contact before entering your body.

It readily dissolves metals and organic substances from your sink’s pipes, coatings, storage tanks, hose lines and fittings before entering your glass.

Low-mineral water intensifies the leaching process, raising your chances of getting lead poisoning from your kitchen’s plumbing.

5. It’s less thirst-quenching

The report explains that since demineralized water throws off homeostasis in the body, it leads to more thirst.

What’s wrong with a little additional thirst? It means more of all the problems listed above. Welcome to the vicious cycle of reverse osmosis.

What’s an acceptable alternative?

It’s important to look for a Drinking Water System that reintroduces healthy trace minerals to your water, in addition to removing harmful contaminants.

The Aura H2O Water Filter not only removes 99.9% of contaminants, but also adds minerals such as calcium and magnesium back to your water. Also, the Evolution Healthworks system wastes no water, compared to the average reverse osmosis system that wastes about 5 gallons for every 1 it filters.

More info: The World Health Organization on Water, Sanitation and Health
Protection and the Human Environment

What doesn’t kill you makes you sicker

Following last month’s drinking water crisis in Ohio, city officials around Lake Erie started adding more chlorine to the area’s water supply to combat the effects of microorganisms originating from an algae bloom. This is another reminder of the widespread practice of adding disinfectants to city water supplies in order to combat contaminants.

Disinfectants such as chlorine are effective in killing dangerous microorganisms, but they can also wreak havoc on our bodies. Studies have shown that repeated exposure to chlorinated water can cause bladder cancer. form harmful byproducts called tri-halomethanes (THM) that can wreak havoc on our bodies.

One well-known THM is chloroform, which is classified by the EPA as a carcinogen. Other effects of chloroform ingestion, absorption or inhalation include kidney and liver damage, immune system dysfunction and birth defects.

Why worry, though? Even if we drink a little chloroform, why would we absorb or inhale it? This is where it gets scary, folks.

Did you know that we can absorb and inhale more chloroform in a 10-minute shower than we would drinking eight glasses of water in a day? This is because warm showers open up our pores, allowing contaminants to be easily absorbed. Showers also create steam, which we inhale, introducing chloroform to our respiratory system.

Cities have been chlorinating water supplies for over a century. Despite the setbacks, disinfection is necessary to combat microorganisms that would make us very sick, very quickly. Since the practice is not going to end any time soon, it’s our responsibility to manage the water coming into our homes.

The only way to ensure that every drop of water in your home is free from dangerous THMs and byproducts is to install a Whole Home Water System. Be careful in your search, though. Many companies charge thousands of dollars for these systems, using their size as justification for a hefty price.

The Evolution Healthworks Whole Home Water System is extremely effective and is priced affordably. It is also smaller than other similar products on the market, leaving you more room in the garage to store your gear.

7 reasons to claim water for life, not for coal

Safe, affordable and accessible water is one of our planet’s scarcest natural resources. Many people don’t have access to fresh water for sanitation, agriculture, or even to drink.

Yet, global water consumption by the power sector is growing; it’s expected to more than double by 2035, with coal projects accounting for 50% of increased water use. Vast quantities of water are used in coal mining, coal washing and for cooling coal-fired power plants.

We cannot allow coal interests to grab already scarce water resources and at the same time dramatically increase their carbon pollution. That will only accelerate climate change and make water shortages even more acute.

GreenPeace outlined 7 reasons why we should claim water for the life, not for coal:

1. 2 billion people, or almost one-third of the world’s population, live in countries with absolute water scarcity.

2. Coal is one of the most water-intensive methods of generating electricity. Every 3.5 minutes a typical coal-fired power plant withdraws enough water to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Electricity is generated by burning coal to convert water into high-pressure steam to drive turbines; water is then used to cool the steam so it can go back to the boiler again. Water is also needed to wash and process coal before it is burned, to wash coal ash out, to reduce dust from the coal stockpile and to put out fires.

3. There are plans to construct at least 1200 new coal-fired power plants and mega coal mines around the world. Much of the proposed expansion is in water-stressed regions, which already suffer from limited supplies of fresh water for sanitation, health and livelihoods.

4. South Africa’s energy utility Eskom uses 10,000 litres of water per second, yet local residents are forced to buy bottled water, because no clean drinking water is available to them.

5. 16 mega coal power bases proposed in China will consume 10 billion cubic metres of water every year, equal to one-sixth of the annual flow of the iconic Yellow River.

6. In the six worst-hit districts of India’s Vidarbha region there were over 6,000 documented cases of farmers committing suicide between 2001 and 2010 as their livelihoods failed due to lack of water for irrigation. And a total of 40,000 suicides in the whole of Maharashtra. Yet there are now plans to build a further cluster of 71 coal plants in Vidarbha.

7. Wind-generated electricity uses no water. Go renewables!

Via: Greenpeace

Big Fracking Problem: How oil drilling wreaks havoc on your water

The highly controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing – better known as fracking – is back in the news again after a recent report revealed that regulations protecting municipal drinking water sources are not adequate.

This comes on the heels of California’s announcement last months that it would be shutting down 11 fracking wastewater disposal sites for leaks that contaminated drinking water aquifers.

Many expected the Government Accountability Office report to finally raise concerns about fracking’s effects on personal and environmental health, but a study by Media Matters found that the media is dropping the ball on covering the report’s findings.

Fracking has mustered a great deal of support because of its proposed benefits, including increased energy independence and beefy economic stimulus (to the tune of $24-28 billion annually in large fracking states such as California). The practice’s drawbacks, though, negate its benefits.

How does it work?

Oil companies love fracking because it is an an effective method for extracting more oil than regular vertical drilling. The hydraulic fracturing process drills down into the earth and then pumps a mixture of fluid chemicals and sand at a very high pressure to create horizontal fractures, releasing oil from rock formations. The oil – and the chemicals – then bubble to the surface.

The chemicals used for fracking include “ethylene glycol, which can damage kidneys; formaldehyde, a known cancer risk; and naphthalene, considered a possible carcinogen.”

Once separated from the oil, the chemicals are disposed of in “wastewater injection wells.”

The problem

The safety of these wastewater injection wells is basically a crapshoot. The regulations for constructing one vary by location. For example, Ohio’s Department of Natural Resources issues permits to construct wells, but companies in Pennsylvania must go to the EPA for permits. The result? 200 wastewater injection wells in Ohio and only 10 in Pennsylvania.

The GAO’s report suggests that these hastily granted permits (Ohio DNR typically processes applications in 6 weeks versus the EPA’s 6 months) result in poorly regulated wells that are responsible for poisoning water supplies.

Despite being built of mostly steel and concrete, the wastewater injection well casings are highly susceptible to seismic activity, which wouldn’t be as much of an issue if fracking wasn’t also scientifically proven to cause earthquakes.

Frequent earthquakes, caused by the process of injecting water into faults in the earth, damage these deep injection wells and allow dangerous chemicals to leak into the earth, and eventually into your tap water.

Why isn’t this a bigger story?

The fact that constant reports of fracking’s negative effects on municipal drinking water haven’t been covered in the news is highly alarming. The Media Matter study found that in four of the states doing the most fracking (Texas, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Colorado), only one major newspaper reported on the GAO’s findings.

Several of these papers have published editorials in support of fracking, likely revealing the reasoning behind their failure to cover the GAO report.

What can you do?

As fracking continues to boom, the number of dangerous wastewater injection wells will also increase.

Check out this map to see if fracking occurs where you live.

As always, you can write a letter to your local Congressman, but unless you’re ready to include a fat check rivaling those oil and gas industry lobbyists are writing, your letter is likely to go unnoticed.

If fracking is happening in your area, your water could be at risk today. Take matters into your hands and find out how a Whole Home Water System can protect you from the carcinogens fracking is releasing into your water.

Update: More info on this topic from a member of the National Resources Defense Council

The little creatures living in your water

Microbes are single-celled organisms so tiny that a million could fit onto the tip of a needle. Not all microbes are bad, but some of them can really cause havoc in your body and health when they get into the drinking water. Here are several of the most prominent:

Fecal Coliform and E. coli

Bacteria whose presence indicate that the water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Microbes in these wastes can cause short-term effects, such as diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms.

Cryptosporidium

Parasite that enters lakes and rivers through sewage and animal waste. This microbe has an outer shell that allows it to survive outside the body for long periods of time which makes it tolerant to many chlorine disinfectants. It causes cryptosporidiosis, a mild gastrointestinal disease. However, the disease can be severe or fatal for people with severely weakened immune systems. EPA and CDC have prepared advice for those with severely compromised immune systems who are concerned about Cryptosporidium.

Giardia lamblia

Parasite that enters lakes and rivers through sewage and animal waste. It causes gastrointestinal illness (e.g. diarrhea, vomiting, cramps). Giardia, like cryptosporidium, can survive long periods of time outside the body and is also difficult to treat with just basic chlorine disinfectants.

Coliform

Bacteria are common in the environment and are generally not harmful. However, the presence of these bacteria in drinking water is usually a result of a problem with the treatment system or the pipes which distribute water. This indicates that the water may be contaminated with germs that can cause disease.

Turbidity

Has no health effects. However, turbidity can interfere with disinfection because the particles can act as shields for viruses and bacteria and provide a medium for microbial growth. Turbidity may indicate the presence of disease causing organisms. These organisms include bacteria, viruses, and parasites that can cause symptoms such as nausea, cramps, diarrhea, and associated headaches.

Our Aura Alkaline Water Filter can successfully remove these dangerous little creatures from your water and provide you with the healthiest water possible, allowing you to live your life to the fullest.

Toledo’s water crisis: Why we haven’t seen the end of it

Toledo, Ohio’s weekend-long drinking water scare came to an end this morning, but this Midwestern city’s water woes are far from over.

The buzz word in Toledo over the weekend was microcystin, referring to a deadly toxin found in blue-green algae blooms. Dangerous levels of the substance in Toledo’s drinking water led to a advisory against drinking, brushing teeth or bathing in city water.

While death is rare in connection with the toxin, it did cause 75 deaths in Brazil in 1995. Microcystin can also cause liver malfunction, diarrhea and vomiting.

This weekend’s scare was a result of widespread algal blooms in the Maumee Bay area of Lake Erie, Toledo’s main water source. The blooms are not, however, the result of a natural disaster; Toledo’s water crisis is the first of what will likely be many man-made water crises related to unnatural growth in Lake Erie.

The culprit

Algal blooms occur as a result of an inordinate amount of fertilizer flowing into Lake Erie from farms on the watershed.

86% of the fertilizer used on farms in Ohio, Indiana and Michigan is in the form of phosphorus-packed pellets.

The use of fertilizer isn’t necessarily dangerous on its own, but a popular agricultural practice in the Lake Erie region called no-till farming can have some stark unintended consequences.

In order to prevent erosion, farmers avoid plowing their fields, leaving fertilizer pellets on the surface, ready to be washed away. This is where nature comes in. Heavy rains easily wash away about 1 pound per acre of fertilizer into the Maumee River, which feeds into Maumee Bay.

Just as phosphorus is intended to fuel crop growth, it feeds algae in Lake Erie, leading to toxic algal blooms.

A recurring problem

Algal blooms are nothing new in Lake Erie. In the 1960s, rampant agricultural and industrial pollution – to the tune of 64 million pounds of phosphorus per year – fed algal blooms.

In addition to contaminating Toledo’s water supply, the growth led to seriously damaged marine life, a pressure point thanks to the multi-billion dollar Lake Erie tourism industry. U.S. and Canada officials teamed up and spent $8 billion on sewage plant upgrades and cut the amount of phosphates allowed in household products.

It seems obvious that this sixth straight year of increasingly widespread algal blooms necessitates some governmental intervention similar to that seen in the 70s and 80s.

Today, a financial commitment of this stature (which, we might add, would be significantly higher considering inflation) would require much more than Toledo opening her pocket book. Farmers in Ohio as well as Indiana and Michigan (who share the same watershed), would have to commit to cutting fertilizer use or finding an alternative to no-till farming that would also not contribute to erosion. This is a highly unlikely outcome unless officials agree to compensate the farmers who will have to make significant changes to their practices.

In fewer words, don’t expect a solution any time soon.

This is not the end

Lake Erie’s science-fiction-style neon green takeover this past weekend is unfortunately going to be a familiar scene in lakes across the globe. A 2012 report suggested that algal blooms will be “one of the most serious health risks of the 21st century,” appearing in China, Japan, Brazil and Australia. In the US alone, more than 40,000 large lakes may contain microcystin.

With the rising importance of providing food for a booming population and an extreme water shortage hitting America’s largest agriculture-producing state, we can only expect use of phosphorus-laden fertilizers to continue.

Rising temperatures have lead to more frequent and volatile storms, carrying an increasing amount of phosphorus into water sources. Toxic algae blooms thrive in higher temperatures.

The problem is complicated further by foreign species such as Lake Erie’s zebra mussels, which eat non-toxic competitors to blue-green algae and excrete more phosphorus for the toxic algae to feast on.

Lesson learned

The recurring theme every time a water crisis arises as a result of preventable human actions is that it is the citizen’s responsibility to care for his or her own water.

While a municipality’s first interest should always be its own people, we see time and again that political complications often take the front seat. This current crisis will likely be relegated to the back burner until elections have passed.

In the mean time, we recommend writing your local representative and ask about what your municipality is doing to avoid the oncoming dangers of algal blooms. Also, consider a drinking water system to protect yourself and your family from future water crises.

Live near a farm? You might want to read this

Do you live close to a farm? If so, you will want to see the results of a recent University of Minnesota study that found the rate of groundwater contamination rising at an alarming rate.

Researchers indicated that nitrate levels in drinking water are skyrocketing. Nitrates are very dangerous and can cause severe illness and death when consumed above contaminant levels.

The University of Minnesota study explained that not only are nitrate levels already high, but they will increase 45% in the coming years. This is because farm subsidies from the government are allowing farmers to finance the expensive process of wetland conversion.

In simpler terms, the government is using our tax dollars to pay for farmers to begin spreading nitrate-packed fertilizer over groundwater sources. Not only is this costing you money, but it will also begin to cost you your health if you don’t take measures to protect yourself and your family from the coming onslaught of nitrates.

Congress has the ability to pass an appropriations bill that would protect over 1 million acres of land from further nitrate-pollution. Since they’ve proved themselves less than trustworthy, your best option is taking matters into your hands.

Even if you don’t live directly next to a farm, your water could come from an area with significant agriculture pollution. Research your local water utility and see where your tap water comes from. This is especially important in major farming states such as California, where farmers have free reign to fertilize as they wish due to high demand for their crops during this historic drought.

Since it’s highly unlikely that the government will cut back on farm subsidies or move forward with conservation measures, it’s imperative that you take matters into your own hands and personally filter your tap water. Evolution Healthworks offers a comprehensive line of filtration systems that will remove nitrates and 99.9% of other toxic pollutants from your water.

More on this topic from the Environmental Working Group (EWG)

What Are The Effects of Low and High pH On Your Water?

Although things like bacteria and arsenic having a negative effect on your drinking water are known, the pH level of your water also affecting you is less understood.

What Are pH levels in Water?

Potential of Hydrogen or, pH, levels in your homes water refer to the amount of dissolved hydrogen ions the water contains.

The pH of water is measured in a range of 0-14. A pH level of 7 means it is completely neutral, and anything from 7-14 means it is basic , and from 0-7 meaning it acidic. Lemon juice, a common acidic liquid has a pH of 3, while chlorine bleach, a highly basic liquid sits from 11-13.

The EPA does not regulate pH levels in water, but it does recommend that pH levels remain somewhere between 6.5 and 8.5. Even so, the water in many homes (especially homes with well water) have pH levels that fall outside of that range.

What Problems Do Low or High pH levels pose on your drinking water?

According to the World Health Organization, exposure to pH levels above 11 results in irritation of the eyes, skin and mucous membranes, as well as worsening symptoms of skin disorders.

Exposure to low pH levels can result in some even bigger problems. That’s because acidic water allows the metals in your pipes to leach into your water supply. When these metals get into your water, they can wreak havoc on your plumbing system and lead to potential health problems.

When it comes to your plumbing system, acidic water can prematurely corrode your pipes and stain your sinks and drains. It can also stain your clothes and result in water that smells bad and tastes metallic.

When you consume these metals, neurological and reproductive issues can occur, along with the fact that many of these metals are carcinogenic.

We at evolution offer several solutions to these problems. Our Aura H2O can rid your water of the contaminants which affect the pH. Also, our Aura Alkaline Water Filter can regulate your water’s pH to your choice while providing alkalized water.

Clean Water Act’s Restrictions Put Your Health In Danger

Companies that have spilled oil, carcinogens and dangerous bacteria into lakes, rivers and other waters are not being prosecuted, according to Environmental Protection Agency regulators working on those cases, who estimate that more than 1,500 major pollution investigations have been discontinued or shelved in the last four years.

The Clean Water Act was intended to end dangerous water pollution by regulating every major polluter. But today, regulators may be unable to prosecute as many as half of the nation’s largest known polluters because officials lack jurisdiction or because proving jurisdiction would be overwhelmingly difficult or time consuming, according to midlevel officials

About 117 million Americans get their drinking water from sources fed by waters that are vulnerable to exclusion from the Clean Water Act, according to E.P.A. reports but midlevel E.P.A. officials said that internal studies indicated that as many as 45 percent of major polluters might be either outside regulatory reach or in areas where proving jurisdiction is overwhelmingly difficult

Cannon Air Force Base near Clovis, N.M., for instance, recently informed E.P.A. officials that it no longer considered itself subject to the act. It dumps wastewater — containing bacteria and human sewage — into a lake on the base.

More than 200 oil spill cases were delayed as of 2008, according to a memorandum written by an E.P.A. official and collected by Congressional investigators. And even as the number of facilities violating the Clean Water Act has steadily increased each year, E.P.A. judicial actions against major polluters have fallen by almost half since the Supreme Court rulings, according to an analysis of E.P.A. data by The New York Times.

The Clean Water Act does not directly deal with drinking water. Rather, it was meant to regulate the polluters that contaminated the waterways that supplied many towns and cities with tap water.

The two Supreme Court decisions at issue — Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County v. United States Army Corps of Engineers in 2001 and Rapanos v. United States in 2006 — focused on the federal government’s jurisdiction over various wetlands. In both cases, dissenting justices warned that limiting the power of the federal government would weaken its ability to combat water pollution.

In 2007, for instance, after a pipe manufacturer in Alabama, a division of McWane Inc., was convicted and fined millions of dollars for dumping oil, lead, zinc and other chemicals into a large creek, an appellate court overturned that conviction and fine, ruling that the Supreme Court precedent exempted the waterway from the Clean Water Act. The company eventually settled by agreeing to pay a smaller amount and submit to probation.

Via: New York Times

Check out our PRODUCTS on how to combat these issues.

Chemicals in Bottled Water: Where Do They Come From And What Are The Effects?

The more we learn about bottled water, the more it has become clear that is is not a safe alternative to tap water, as many of the companies lead us to believe. One of the biggest issues with bottled water is the amount of chemicals it contains.

How do chemicals get into bottled water?

Chemicals get into bottled water in two different ways. First, certain chemicals (like chlorine and chloramine) are present in the water that gets bottled in the first place. Many bottled waters are simply bottled tap water, so many of the common chemicals that you see in tap water are also present in bottled water.

The second way that chemicals get into bottled water is from the plastic that the bottles are made of. Plastic contains many different types of chemicals – such as BPA – that can leach off of the bottles and get into the water they contain.

How many chemicals are there in bottled water?

According to a recent study, a single bottle of water contains nearly 25,000 different chemicals. Many of these chemicals mimic the effects of pharmaceuticals in our bodies, and they can interfere with our hormone receptors.

For children, women of child-bearing age and pregnant women, the chemicals in bottled water have been shown to increase the risk of:

Stunted growth
Early puberty
Premature birth
Infertility
Early menopause

For the rest of people, the chemicals in bottled water have been linked to an increase risk of:

Diabetes
Heart disease

Why is a Evolution Healthworks home filtration system a better alternative to bottled water?

Our Water Filtration System provides you with the certified healthiest water, far superior to bottled water, and you dont have to worry about any of the other possible ways bottled water can contaminate you.

We offer Water Filters that can provide you with the purest and healthiest drinking water.

4 Factors Affecting The Taste Of Your Tap Water

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Most people think of water as being a pretty tasteless liquid, however, your tap water can vary greatly state by state, and even in some cases, city by city. Many home owners have chosen to install WATER FILTRATION SYSTEMS to improve both the taste of their water and remove the contaminants.

4 common factors that affect tap water taste

Disinfectant chemicals. One of the most common complaints homeowners have about their tap water is that it tastes like chemicals. The reason for this taste, is that water treatment facilities use chlorine or chloramine (a mixture of chlorine and ammonia) among other chemicals, to disinfect water before it’s sent to our homes and flows through our pipes.
Mineral leaching from pipes. Another common complaint about tap water is that it tastes metallic. This is often due to minerals like iron and copper that leach into our water as it travels through public pipes and/or the pipes in our homes. The severity and type of metallic taste in your water will depend on the age and condition of the pipes it travels through as well as the material that those pipes are made of. The infrastructure of the water piping is in serious needs of updates around the country, and in some cases water is flowing through pipes that pre date World War II.
Algae blooms. Algae blooms in source water like lakes and rivers are typically seasonal. When they occur, homeowners are often taken off-guard by the sudden change in tap water taste. The taste imparted in tap water by algae blooms is often described as earthy or musty. This was seen in May of 2014, as the water in North San Diego county was affected by the algal blooms in Poway.
Source of water. The taste of your tap water can change depending on where the water originally comes from. This taste difference is most recognizable between well water and city water, because well water often contains many more minerals that can affect its taste.