Brown well water after earthquake

Having been through two >7 earthquakes, this was a fairly common issue amongst the people in this area. We had brown water in the Hector Mine earthquake but didn't notice any change immediately after the Landers quake (turns out a mile long fissure tore our water line in 2). Our problems turned out to be harmless sediment, but everyone was initially advised to not use the water until the problem was identified. And, as a sidenote, we're way out in the middle of nowhere but CA and AZ National Guard helicopters had delivered ice and canned water to us within 12 hours thanks to a county with a great disaster plan. The local breweries switched from canning beer to canning water minutes after the quakes.

It means you've had intrusion into your supply by something, but until you've checked it out, better safe than sorry. The most common safety issue will be bacterial, usually from sources contaminated by agricultural use (manure spreading on fields, for example). It's impossible to tell visually or by odor/taste if the water is safe or not. I would want to boil and/or use bottled until it's been tested. Testing isn't very expensive and should be fairly quick. Even if the water is safe, sediment in the water is very hard on RO systems. They clog really easily and the repair cost (membrane replacement) can be costly. You will want to turn off the system for now and change your prefilter before you start it again.

Update: I called the company who did our well and septic inspection and explained the situation. I was told that someone would get back to me.

Dumb question -- you say that the well water is brown, but it sounds like the only place you're noticing it is in the toilets. Are you certain that it's the well, and not something in the septic system that got stirred up?

@EmpressCallipygos -- I doubt it's the septic, because the water in the toilet TANK is brown too (as well as in the bowl).

Yeah, I think you and gjc nailed it. Also, you should probably unplug the line to your ice maker for the time being, so that it doesn't automatically draw water through your RO filter.

In order to shut water to the ice maker, I need to shut off the kitchen tap as well, they are (stupidly, in my opinion) on the same valve in the basement. It's not a big deal to do that, just annoying.

Update: Today the water is still brown, but a much lighter brown (I can see to the bottom of the toilet). My well and septic inspector referred me to a water testing company. I called the water testing company and was told that this was happening a lot with wells in the area after the quake. They said I should hook a hose to the pressure tank, run the well out "for a few hours," let the well refill, and check if the water has cleared up by filling the bathtub. If the water has not cleared up I should call back for a test. Is there a home testing kit I can pick up at a Home Depot or Lowe's (or local hardware store)? I get the feeling I'm going to have a tough time getting someone out to the house to test the water.

There's really no (good) home test kits for what you want. Does your township or local government offer testing? The ones in Ontario will. If not, you might try your yelow pages under water quality testing. A decent lab should be able to provide you with a jar or two to bring in to them. If all else fails use a new, clean jam jar and cover with a piece of aluminum foil (then seal as normal). They generally need about 1L/qt of water.