Can I use the water to wash myself?

You should use boiled or bottled water for brushing your teeth. Healthy individuals can use the water for personal hygiene (washing, showering, bathing). Wounds should be covered with a waterproof dressing before coming into contact with water. People with specific risk factors should use only sterile filtered water or freshly boiled and cooled water for personal hygiene.

Can I boil water the day before and use it the next day?

Yes, the water should be allowed to cool slowly, then stored in a clean, food-safe, sealed container.

Can I use water for household cleaning?

Generally, yes. However, for work surfaces used in food preparation, you should use boiled or bottled water for cleaning. You should cover any wounds with a waterproof bandage to prevent contact with water.

What should I keep in mind when preparing food?

When preparing food and ingredients that are eaten raw, you should use boiled or bottled water. This includes, for example, washing and eating fruits and vegetables.

Can I use this water in washing machines and dishwashers?

You can use the water for doing laundry. The wash temperature should be at least 40 degrees. In addition, you can regularly run the washing machine at the highest possible temperature without a load—using additional sanitizing detergents if necessary—and use the machine’s cleaning programs, if available.

Dishes from the dishwasher are safe to use, provided the appliance washes and dries at temperatures above 60 degrees Celsius.

Can I use my coffee maker?

You can use machines that heat the water to at least 60 degrees Celsius. If this temperature is not reached or is unknown, you should...

What should I keep in mind when using water filter jugs?

Water filter pitchers do not reduce the number of bacteria in the water. Even when using water filter pitchers, the water must be boiled and cooled beforehand. Replacing the filters is recommended.

Can pets drink the water?

Yes, since animals generally have robust immune systems. They can usually drink tap water. Water found in nature is not sterile either. If in doubt, please consult your veterinarian. Since a toxic effect on creatures kept in aquariums cannot be ruled out, aquarium owners should seek information from a specialty retailer. The same principle generally applies to pets as to humans: Healthy animals are usually unaffected, but sick or weakened animals may well suffer as a result.

What kind of bacteria is this?

The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been detected in drinking water. It is a bacterium widely distributed in the environment that occurs naturally in water, soil, and moist environments. When it rains, it can also be found bound to even the tiniest water droplets in the outdoor air near the ground. This environmental bacterium is resistant to almost all antibiotics.

It is important to understand that drinking water is generally not sterile. Even if limit values are slightly exceeded, there is usually no immediate health risk. The protective measures mentioned are therefore intended as an additional safeguard and precaution—not as a means of averting danger. Additional recommendations apply to groups of people with specific risk factors.

How is the pathogen transmitted to humans?

Transmission occurs:

• through contact of contaminated water with wounds, damaged skin, or insertion sites of catheters or other artificial skin openings
• via inhalation devices contaminated with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, from which medications or fluids are inhaled
• through cleaning contact lenses with contaminated water (formation of a biofilm on the contact lenses)
• when contaminated water remains in the external auditory canal after showering or bathing
• Drinking or swallowing contaminated water in specific situations (high-risk patients, infants)

Depending on the site of colonization, infections may develop that can range in severity and often become chronic. These include respiratory tract infections such as bronchitis or pneumonia, skin, urinary tract, and soft tissue infections, chronic outer ear infections, or eye infections.

Which groups of people should take special precautions?

Since Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonizes diseased or compromised skin or mucous membranes, injuries or diseases of the skin and mucous membranes are among the most significant risk factors. These include:

• Severe respiratory diseases such as cystic fibrosis or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), particularly those involving bronchiectasis or under corticosteroid therapy
• Open wounds, chronic ulcers, or chronic skin inflammations such as atopic dermatitis or psoriasis
• People with urinary catheters, feeding tubes, or other medical tubes
• People with a colostomy or other stomas, such as those involving the kidneys Use of inhalation devices if they are operated with and/or cleaned using drinking water
• Wearing contact lenses if they are cleaned with drinking water

There is also an increased risk for people with severely weakened immune systems, for example, due to taking immunosuppressants, following an organ transplant, or having certain types of cancer. In these cases, you should consult your primary care physician or the specialist treating you.

What protective measures should people with specific risk factors take?

Installing so-called point-of-use filters on faucets or showers ensures bacteria-free water that can be used safely for all purposes. You can purchase point-of-use filters at medical supply stores and, if necessary, at pharmacies. More detailed information on this topic can be found in the free publication “twin No. 12—Temporary Use of Point-of-Use Filters in Microbiologically Contaminated Drinking Water Systems” at www.dvgw.de. Boiling water (bringing it to a rolling boil and then letting it cool) is another effective way to produce bacteria-free water.

You should use sterilized filtered water or freshly boiled and cooled water for the following activities:

• Cleaning open wounds, ulcers, or other skin lesions, as well as catheter insertion sites
• Operating and cleaning inhalation devices
• Cleaning contact lenses
• Storing and cleaning dentures and braces in containers
• Preparing food

Ears—and especially the external auditory canal—should always be dried thoroughly after washing, showering, or bathing, using cotton swabs if necessary.

Are there any special precautions for pregnant women?

No, pregnant women can drink and use boiled water without concern. There are no special recommendations unless they belong to a group with specific risk factors.

Are there special precautions for children and infants?

No, unless they belong to a group with specific risk factors. All other children can safely drink and use boiled water. Infant formula should be prepared with bottled water or water that has been boiled beforehand.

Can water be used to clean beverage dispensing systems?

No.

Can water be used to clean cutlery, dishes, and glasses in a commercial setting?

For this purpose, water may only be used if it has been boiled or if commercial dishwashers that comply with DIN 10512 and are maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions are used. DIN 15012 requires a temperature of 80 to 85 degrees for the rinse cycle.

Can a coffee maker be used?

Machines that heat the water to at least 60 degrees may be used. If this temperature is not reached or is unknown, the coffee maker should only be used with boiled or bottled water.

What should be kept in mind when making ice cubes?

Ice cubes should only be made with boiled or bottled water. Crushed ice and ice cube machines should not be used while the boil-water advisory is in effect.

What precautions must be taken in dental offices?

• Dental units that are directly connected to the drinking water supply may no longer be operated.
• Dental units that have a water supply independent of the drinking water system may continue to be operated.

If switching from a system connected to the municipal water supply to one that is independent of it, the water from the municipal supply in the dental units must be completely drained, and the cleaning program specified by the manufacturer must be carried out. Only then may patients be treated again. In this case, the public health department strongly recommends adding a suitable and approved disinfectant to the water from the off-mains supply.

What precautions must be taken in medical practices?

Tap water must not be used for medical purposes or for the manual reprocessing of medical devices. For these purposes, either boiled tap water or bottled water must be used.

If medical devices are operated using a non-mains water supply—that is, with water from another source—they may continue to be used.

If a switch is made from a mains-connected to an off-mains system, the water from the mains in the treatment units must be completely replaced, and the cleaning program specified by the manufacturer must be carried out. Only then may patients be treated again. In this case, the public health department strongly recommends adding a suitable and approved disinfectant to the water from the off-grid supply.

Medical devices that are directly connected to the drinking water supply and in which the water is heated to at least 60 degrees may continue to be used.

What were the guidelines for vendors at the city festival?

The city festival, the fall market, and the harvest festival were able to take place. The water there was usable thanks to the use of special filters.