I'm not sure what you mean by - "water is tied to the county." Do you get your water from a county treatment plant instead of a well? If so, you can get water reports from the county (they have to do them quarterly) and find out what is in your water. Some are not thorough enough for your purposes, but start there.

It is possible that the orange stains are iron, but they could also be any one of a number of bacteria or molds, or some other particulate matter in your water. The fact that it removes easily with scrubbing tends to point toward bacteria, but that's just a guess. Knowing what is in your water is the first step.

You want to know: pH, TDS, ferric iron, ferrous iron, sulates, nitrates, chlorine (or chloramine) if you have treated water, hardness, bacteria, particulate.

The following information will also be helpful as we attempt to narrow down the problem and solution:

2. Is the water source surface or well?

3. If you spray a mild bleach solution on the orange deposits, do they lighten or remain the same color?

4. Do the deposits feel rough or slippery/slimy?

If you want to do some preliminary research, take a look at the following. They are in no particular order since cost for any of them will vary based on your actual water conditions.

• Chlorination followed by filtration

• Aeration followed by filtration

• Greensand

• Birm

• Pyrolox (there are several brands that are essentially the same. This will get you started)

I'd suspect that it's residue from body wash and hair care products. I never had this problem, nor clogged bathroom lavatory drains, until I got married. I also get reddish spots on the bathroom walls where shower steam leaves deposits.

This post was edited by randy427 on Mon, Nov 11, 13 at 10:49

aliceinwonderland_id (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 14:24
I'm not sure what you mean by - "water is tied to the county." Do you get your water from a county treatment plant instead of a well?

Yes county water.

aliceinwonderland_id (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 14:24
If so, you can get water reports from the county (they have to do them quarterly) and find out what is in your water. Some are not thorough enough for your purposes, but start there.
It is possible that the orange stains are iron, but they could also be any one of a number of bacteria or molds, or some other particulate matter in your water. The fact that it removes easily with scrubbing tends to point toward bacteria, but that's just a guess. Knowing what is in your water is the first step.

We also have a couple of secondary toilet bowls that don't get frequent regular use & the water that stands there has left an orange ring - what could this inidcate?

aliceinwonderland_id (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 14:24
You want to know: pH, TDS, ferric iron, ferrous iron, sulates, nitrates, chlorine (or chloramine) if you have treated water, hardness, bacteria, particulate.

Please see below link - water report is released each June but more like Oct so - this is 2012's.

aliceinwonderland_id (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 14:24
The following information will also be helpful as we attempt to narrow down the problem and solution:

Is the water source surface or well?
If you spray a mild bleach solution on the orange deposits, do they lighten or remain the same color?
Do the deposits feel rough or slippery/slimy?

Have not done investigation yet but I did noticed last night that we sprayed some Lysol bathroom cleaner (kills 99.9% bacteria) onto the orange stained grout & left it there for a minute or two & came back & the stain came out quite easily with a tooth brush - could it be bacteria since the Lysol touts that.

aliceinwonderland_id (My Page) on Sun, Nov 10, 13 at 14:24
If you want to do some preliminary research, take a look at the following. They are in no particular order since cost for any of them will vary based on your actual water conditions.

Chlorination followed by filtration
Aeration followed by filtration
Greensand
Birm
Pyrolox (there are several brands that are essentially the same. This will get you started)

After reading reports & toilet reference above - do you have any direction I should be following?

Here is a link that might be useful: Water Quality Report - Chesterfield County, Virginia

Posted by randy427 z7 MD (My Page) on Mon, Nov 11, 13 at 10:46
I'd suspect that it's residue from body wash and hair care products. I never had this problem, nor clogged bathroom lavatory drains, until I got married. I also get reddish spots on the bathroom walls where shower steam leaves deposits.

We also have a couple of secondary toilet bowls that don't get frequent regular use & the water that stands there has left an orange ring.

Also have a claw foot tub that we spray with water occasionally to clear off the dust from infrequent usage but after a week, orange or even black spots appear - what could this indicate?