Tauranga City Council is assuring residents their discoloured drinking water is safe to drink, but some homeowners have resorted to buying bottled water because they dislike the way it tastes.
The council received about 20 complaints about discoloured water yesterday, with one resident saying the water had tasted of chemicals for a number of days and another that the water appeared "yuck and brown".
However, the council's communications officer Marcel Currin assured residents the water was safe to drink.
Council water service team leader Peter Bahrs said the discoloured water supply in Greerton and parts of the Avenues was caused when unauthorised contractors flushed at least four hydrants in Tauriko at once without informing the council.
That led to natural minerals that build up over time in the water supply pipes being flushed into the system feeding Greerton and the Avenues by sudden bursts of pressure, he said.