Chennai, as we all know, is a coastal metropolitan city with vibrant culture, technology, and economic growth, which often faces serious water challenges that completely affect life every day for its residents. No matter whether you live in an apartment or a home in North Chennai, access to safe, clean, and sufficient water is nowadays increasingly uncertain. In this blog, we will understand the top 5 water problems faced by Chennai homes, how they impact everyday life, and how advanced water purification is important.
Chennai Water Quality: What Residents Need to Know
Chennai’s water quality widely depends on the sources, like the Metro Water, borewell, or tanker supply. Additionally, in many areas, groundwater comprises high TDS, excess amount of salts, and hardness, while on the other hand, piped water can sometimes be affected by old pipelines, contamination, or inconsistent treatment. Besides, with seasonal changes, flooding, and even over-extraction of groundwater can further impact the quality of water, hence making tap water unsafe for consumption directly in many households. So, that’s a reason why reliable water purification is important for Chennai homes to make sure that you get safe and healthy drinking water every day.
Top 5 Water Problems in Chennai
1. Inconsistent Water Supply and Shortages
One of the most common issues and complaints from Chennai residents is the irregular water supply. Despite several improvements by Chennai Metrowater, which has drastically increased the total daily supply significantly, many areas still face intermittent distribution, especially in suburbs and new residential areas. Additionally, in places like Tambaram and other parts of ORM, water arrives only a few days a week, forcing many residents to store water in tanks or completely rely on costly private tankers. The negative impact the residents of Chennai face is that it can effectively impact the household chores like laundry, dishwashing, and bathing, which become delayed due to the water supply timings. Moreover, waiting for such tanker deliveries or managing water storage tanks is a constant stress and loss of time.
2. Groundwater Contamination and Poor Quality
Even when water is available, the quality of water in Chennai becomes a big concern. Additionally, studies and public surveys have found that a large number of taps in Chennai supply contaminated water with bacteria like E.Coli, coliforms, and disease-causing germs, making the water unhealthy to drink directly. Moreover, leaks and old distribution pipes bring sewage and runoff into the water lines, which creates a serious health risk when people drink, consume, or even use tap water for cooking. Contaminated water leads to diseases like typhoid, diarrhea, and even gastroenteritis problems as well.
3. Dependence on Private Water Tankers
When the municipal supply fails to meet the demand, either due to shortages or any timing issues, many households turn to a private water tanker, and this happens especially in areas that don’t have reliable piped connections. However, tanker supply is not only expensive but also unregulated, with no guaranteed on-water quality. And in some neighbourhoods, restrictions on heavy vehicle movements have even reduced tanker availability, hence making it much worse. Private tankers, on the other hand, add several costs to basic municipal water charges.
4. High Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and Hard Water Issues
Chennai’s groundwater commonly has a high TDS level, which means that it has larger amounts of dissolved minerals. While hard water doesn’t always make you sick, it affects daily usage as well, from laundry and bathing to drinking and cooking. High mineral content can effectively lead to dry skin and hair problems, scale build-up in appliances, and poor soap lathering, and the fabric can feel dry when you are washing your clothes. Many residents use water softeners or any other filtration system to reduce the TDS level, but remember that not all solutions are effective or affordable.
5. Lack of Safe Drinking Water at Home
The most critical issue is safe drinking water availability presently. Tap water, even when it is available, is not safe to consume without any proper or advanced purification system due to the potential microbial contamination and chemical pollutants. Many families switch to bottled water or any other traditional water purifiers, but they come with several limitations, like costs, maintenance, and inconvenience.
How DrinkPrime Helps Chennai Households
Drinkprime offers an IoT-enabled water purifier service that operates on a subscription model, meaning you don’t have to buy a traditional water purifier. Such water purifiers are designed to deliver high-quality purified water, making use of an advanced multi-stage filtration system. Additionally, with no high upfront costs like with traditional RO systems, you only have to pay for what you consume, and with the help of IoT tech, you can track water quality and filter health, making sure that you always drink safe water.
