What is in my water that turns the toilet bowl black not caused by mold

[aaoc]

I am moving into an older home (George Washington may have actually slept there :-)). The water supply is from a well and has an existing water condition. There is a blackish residue inside the toilet bowl especially in the water lines where the bowl refills after flushing. I do not believe it is caused by mold. What might that be and what is the best water test kit available? The area close to the house is being farmed and I assume it is not organic farming. Thanks for your thoughts and comments.

[Gary Slusser]

It might be mold and until you have a test, assumptions should not be made. Or an airborne bacteria. Or IRB. What does the inside of the toilet tank look like, any clear to black snotty, slippery, slimy stuff at and/or below the water line. use a finger tip at the water line and then flush and wipe a palm of your hand from the water line down. If there is, you have IRB (iron reducing bacteria). Is there any odor to the water when you spray it into a sink or in the shower? If so, in the hot, the cold or both? Of what?

[aaoc]

I am moving into an older home (George Washington may have actually slept there :-)). The water supply is from a well and has an existing water condition. There is a blackish residue inside the toilet bowl especially in the water lines where the bowl refills after flushing. I do not believe it is caused by mold. What might that be and what is the best water test kit available? The area close to the house is being farmed and I assume it is not organic farming. Thanks for your thoughts and comments.

Thanks Gary for your reply. As you said no assumptions should be made without a test. Are you speaking of a mold test for the water? I am new at this so please bear with me. If the bacteria is airborne what is the best way of dealing with that issue. There were mold spots on the ceiling in the bathroom. I will check the toilet tank next time I am in the house for IRB. If I find that IRB is present what should I do? There was no odor from the cold water and I will check the hot water for odor as soon as possible. If there is an odor, what should I do?
Hope you are having fun in your RV :-)

[Gary Slusser]

If you have or had mold on the ceiling, it can get into the toilet bowl very easily. You need to kill all of it everywhere so it can't spread..

Once you post the answers we can go over what to do.

We enjoy living in the motor home, no more lawn care, snow, freezing rain, just sunshine Tee shirts and warm temps. And since we are "off grid" we can stop practically anywhere and don't have the expense of campgrounds. We've been in a campground site only 7 nights since we put the solar panels etc. on last June 30th. Five months on BLM land (Bureau of Land Management) cost us $2.78 a day and they had water and a dump station. We dump and get water about every 14-16 days. Currently at 75f looking at the sun drenched snow capped Rockie Mts. But it might SNOW! tomorrow night. We got here a bit early.

[aaoc]

Have not been back to the house yet but I will let you know asap.

I really wanted to reply to your lifestyle and location. It sounds beautiful and awesome. You sure can't beat the price.
By the way, did it snow?

[Gary Slusser]

No snow here but 60 miles north there was a bit but, it has rained every day for like a week. And it just showered again after not raining since yesterday evening. This is more rain than we've had total over the last year. But the Jeep and motor home got a good rinsing.

[lilypotter2009]

It's caused from calcium, lime, or excessive iron deposits. Well, here is the easiest way to remove that black ring stain. You'll need to use a little bit of elbow grease, meaning you apply a bit of pressure, but the results are amazing. Natural and easy to do!

1) Buy a large pumice stone. Swimming pool stores sell very large pumice stones for cleaning waterline tiles, hardware stores sell large pumice stones, grocery stores sell pumice stones in the mops and cleaning supplies aisle, or you can buy one that is used for the feet at your local drugstore.

2) Put on your rubber gloves.

3) Wet your pumice stone, and remember to keep it wet the entire time you are rubbing the stain out of your toilet bowl.

4) Flush your toilet and as soon as all the water is drained take your pumice stone and start rubbing around the edge where you see the ugly black stain.

5) You may need to flush a few more times, while you complete the job. The pumice stone acts like an eraser and removes all the mineral deposits.

6) Because I use baby wipes to dust the house, I just experimented with baby wipes (any brand will do). I flushed the toilet and when the water level was low, I swiped a few baby wipes over the black stain and like magic - the stain was gone. I was amazed! If you try this, do NOT flush the baby wipes down the toilet.

[johndago]

The response about the Pumice stone got me thinking,I didn't have any but I had some 400 wet or dry sandpaper that you use for auto body work. It took it right off effortlessly!! Just dip it in the water and wipe the stains off. I had tried everything from glass and surface cleaner to Brakeclean (not a good idea in the house) with no results. The sand paper took it right off and the fine (400) grit didn't seem to hurt the porcelain at all.

[Gary Slusser]

Any abrasive will microscopically damage the surface which makes the stuff cling to the surface much easier.

[dougmitchell]

This may be a little late for the original asker, but it may help someone else. The black is probably coming from a deteriorating washer in the tank. To test this, turn off the water and flush the tank. It doesn't have to be completely dry. At the bottom of the tank are two large screws with a metal washer and a black fabric washer. Run your finger across the black washer. If it stains your finger, and/or the black color spreads to the water remaining in the tank, that's your problem. You've probably used one of these bleach tablets or other products in the tank, and they've rotted the washer. To fix, drain the tank completely and unscrew one screw at a time. The screws are attached on the bottom outside of the tank with a plastic washer and a nut. Take the black washer to the local hardware store and get replacements. Wash the tank completely and insert the large screw with the metal and black washer into the opening at the same time placing the plastic washer and the nut on the other side. Tighten the screw and nut making sure not to shake the tank too much. It must be square. Once you're confident the screw is tightly in place, repeat the process with the other screw. Make sure the washers go back exactly as you removed them, and NEVER PUT A BLEACH PRODUCT IN YOUR TANK AGAIN.