How to check for a boil water notice in your area
Last checked November 3, 2026.
A boil water notice comes from whoever runs your water, not from the city at large, so the fastest answer is on their site or alert list. Here is where to look, what the notice means, and what the CDC says to do while it lasts.
The short answer
| Where | What you get |
|---|---|
| Your water utility’s website or social accounts | The notice itself, with the streets or zones it covers and when it ends |
| The utility’s or county’s text and email alerts | The next notice on your phone, if you sign up before it happens |
| Local TV, radio and news sites | Big notices, often with a map, because utilities are allowed to use broadcast media |
| Your water bill | The name of your water system, so you know whose notices to follow |
Find out who runs your water
Your water system may be the city, a county district, a private company or a small system that serves one neighborhood. Its name is on your water bill. If you rent and do not get a bill, ask your landlord, or search your address on the city’s website. Neighbors a few streets away can be on a different system, which is why one side of town can be under a notice while the other is not.
Where the notice has to appear
Under federal drinking water rules, the most urgent kind of notice (Tier 1) covers problems such as E. coli in the water, a waterborne disease outbreak or a serious treatment failure. The water system has to get it out as soon as practical and no later than 24 hours after it learns of the problem, in a way meant to reach everyone it serves. That means at least one of: broadcast media such as radio and TV, posting in public places across the area, hand delivery, or another method the state approves in writing.
- Check the utility’s website and its Facebook or X account first: that is often where the notice and its map go up.
- Look for a door hanger or a notice posted at the entrance of your building or street.
- Search “[your town] boil water notice” and limit the results to the past day.
Boil water, do not drink and do not use
| Notice | What it means |
|---|---|
| Boil water | The water may carry germs. Boil it or use bottled water. |
| Do not drink | The water may hold chemicals or toxins that boiling does not remove. Use bottled water to drink and cook. |
| Do not use | Do not use the tap water for anything. These are rare. |
What to do while it lasts
- Bring water to a full rolling boil for 1 minute, or 3 minutes above 6,500 feet, then let it cool. Or use bottled water.
- Boil tap water even if you filter it.
- Use boiled or bottled water to drink, cook, brush teeth and make ice, and skip the fridge’s water and ice dispenser.
- Use ready-to-use baby formula if you can.
- A dishwasher is generally fine if it has a sanitizing cycle.
- Give pets bottled or cooled boiled water, and take care not to swallow water in the shower.
Your utility or health department has the final word: if its notice says something different, follow the notice.
Hear about the next one first
- Sign up for your water utility’s text or email alerts, if it has them.
- Search “[your county] emergency alerts” for the county’s opt-in alert system, which may send water notices too.
- MailerDot sends one free email a day for your town with its local news, so a notice that makes the local news shows up there the next morning. For a notice in effect right now, the utility’s own alerts are faster.
Questions people ask
How do I know if there is a boil water notice in my area? Check your water utility’s website or social accounts, or local news. The utility has to get a notice out within 24 hours of learning of an urgent problem.
How long should I boil water? One minute at a full rolling boil, or three minutes above 6,500 feet, according to the CDC.
Is a filter enough? No. The CDC says to boil tap water even if you filter it.
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