The Jamestown Board of Public Utilities Water Division announces dates for fall water main flushing.

Pre-flushing in Falconer will start at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 3, in the areas of Aldren, Mapleshade, Ralph and Valmeere. The entire village of Falconer will be flushed from 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4, overnight into Sunday, Oct. 5, until Falconer flushing is completed.

Water in the village and on the north side of Jamestown can be expected to discolor when Falconer flushing occurs.

Flushing in the rest of the BPU Water system will take place from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, Oct. 6-10; and Monday through Wednesday, Oct. 13-15.

The exception will be on Wednesday, Oct. 8, when flushing will begin at 4:30 a.m. to accommodate downtown Jamestown and Fairmount Avenue businesses and restaurants. Water customers on streets and neighborhoods located off West Third Street, Harding and Fairmount Avenue (Route 394) could experience discolored water on Oct. October 8, even though their own streets are not directly flushed that day.

Flushing of the mains usually discolors water, especially when the process takes place in the customers’ immediate areas, near or on their scheduled flushing days. Customers may see discolored water at any time during flushing, even on days other than their scheduled flushing days.

The BPU’s August customer newsletter contains a two-page color-coded map showing which areas will be flushed on which days. The maps are also posted on www.jamestownbpu.com and will appear in The Post-Journal on Sept. 27.

Flushing location maps are also available in the BPU Customer Service Office, the Jamestown City Clerk’s Office, libraries and at Town and Village Offices in communities affected by flushing.

BPU commercial and industrial customers received automatic calls alerting them to their flushing dates. Residential customers, whose phone numbers are current on their accounts, can expect to receive such calls two-five days in advance of their flushing days.

Customers with questions about flushing and their flushing dates may call the Flushing Hotline at 716-661-1613, the BPU Customer Service Office at 716-661-1660 or Communications at 716-661-1680.

“If you receive voicemail when calling the BPU,” said BPU Communications Coordinator Becky Robbins, “Please leave your address, the names of the streets at the end of your block and your phone number. BPU employees will return calls with flushing location dates and answers to any questions.”

The main precaution customers may take during water main flushing is to check for discolored water before doing laundry and to avoid pulling discolored water into their hot water tanks. The BPU also suggests setting aside water for cooking or drinking a day ahead of their flushing days because the appearance of discolored water may be unpleasant.

If discolored water enters the household, it may be expected to clear in 12 to 24 hours.

Should customers get caught with discolored laundry, the clothes should not be dried. Instead, customers may pick up a red-out laundry product at no cost at BPU Customer Service or at Town and Village offices in BPU water territory. Clothes can be rewashed in the product before being dried.

The BPU flushes water lines twice yearly to remove naturally occurring sediment that may gather in pipes. As flushing occurs, employees also check the condition of the hydrants and fix any problems that they may find. Water main flushing is a normal process used in communities throughout the country.

For questions, refer to the BPU Flushing FAQs at www.jamestownbpu.com or call the Flushing Hotline at 716-661-1613, communications at 716-661-1680 or the Customer Service Office at 716-661-1660.