Brown Hot Water

So, hot water's brown here, it seems. This is not a matter of running the water after the plumbing's been out of use a while. The pipes are PVC anyway, so no corrosion there. Nor is it the hot water heater, as I originally thought. How many hot baths would I have to run before the hot water ran clear! I wondered.

Then I noticed something, cooking. Or thought I did. So ran this especial experiment, just to make sure I wasn't going crazy.

I ran two glasses of cold water. Both were clear.

Then one glass, I boiled in a clean pot on our hot plate and then returned to its glass. First glass cold water, unboiled, still clear. Second glass cold water, boiled to hot, now dimly brown. A tub full of hot water looks much more opaque brown.

I have yet to consult my little-seen neighbors about this. But from what I read online, our brown hot water could be the result of higher iron content. Which is harmless, apparently. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself so far. Hey, they're always saying women need more iron, right??

That said, the white bathroom porcelain doesn't care for the high iron brown. And I suspect our clothes won't either, after our laundry is installed. Apparently it can be "ironed out" (hee) with a water softener.