Occurrence of legionellae in hot water distribution systems of Finnish apartment buildings

Abstract

The occurrence of legionellae in the hot water distribution systems of 67 buildings located in different parts of Finland was studied. Most of the buildings were apartment buildings. They had different hot water temperatures, and some received their cold potable water from surface water plants and some from ground water plants. Hot water samples were taken from taps, showers, and water mains just before and after the heat exchanger. Legionella pneumophila was isolated from 30% of the distribution systems. In the legionella-positive samples the legionella concentration varied from < 50 to 3.2 × 105 colony-forming units (cfu)/L (mean 2.7 × 103 cfu/L). The highest concentration of legionellae was found in the shower water. Legionellae appeared more often and with higher concentrations in hot water systems using cold water processed in surface water plants than in hot water systems associated with ground water plants. A high organic matter content in surface waters might favor the occurrence of legionellae and also the growth of other heterotrophic microbes. Mean water temperature just after heating was slightly higher in the legionella-negative systems than in the legionella-positive systems (53.5 vs. 51.5 °C).Key words: Legionella, organic carbon, hot water distribution system, water temperature.