Today I turned on my shower and the hot water ran out gray and cloudy. I tried the hot water in the bathroom sink and it was also gray and cloudy. Then I checked the hot water in the kitchen sink. It was a little cloudy but after I set a glass of it on the counter, in a few seconds it was no longer cloudy. The bathroom is upstairs and the house is extremely old, maybe 200 or 300 years old although the plumbing probably isn't that old :).
I rent and my landlord makes me pay a $150.00 deductible. Is this a serious health risk? I don't know how many more cold showers I can stand.

Tell me about your water heater. Gas or electric? Is it a old heater? Is it maintained an flushed on a regular schedule? Who is responsible for your units maintenance? Let me know. Tom

I rent but in my lease I have a $150.00 deductible for each event. The Water Heater is maybe 2 years old. It's electric and I have a whole house filter installed before the heater. I've never flushed it so no, it's not flushed regularly, I suppose I'm responsible for the maintenance, but being a single, middle-age woman, I'm not that handy. The thing I find strangew is it's only in the upstairs bathroom, not the kitchen.

The thing I find strangew is it's only in the upstairs bathroom, not the kitchen. Do you have gray water in both the lavatory and the tub/shower valves? Once we resolve the gray water I'll show you how to flush your heater. It's easy! Cheers, Tom

The gray water is in both the lavatory sink and tub/shower hot water valves. Not in the cold water or the toilet. By the way can I indicate you are being very helpful and patient even though my initial question remains unanswered?

Thanks Agnes,
You have a unusual problem. Let's see if we can localize it. Remove the aerator from the lavatory faucet. Is there anything there that doesn't belong? Does the hot water have a odor? If everything checks out do you think you could shut the water off at the water heater, open up the tub valve, have someone turn the hot water for a few moments to flush the line and then draw a glass of hot water out of the open tub valve? Is the water still gray? Let me know, Tom