My iron (Rowenta) spits out rust colored water. Why would it do this? Is this why some people use distilled water, or is this because I keep water in the iron at all times?

I had two rowentas and hated them both. I now have a cheap iron ($20) from Walmart that works fine. Steams well and no spitting of water.

Some Rowentas require distilled, some require tap. If you still have the booklet you may want to check or possibly you can check online. Mine never spits rust colored water and I leave tap water in it all the time. Worst I get is white flakes when it needs a good cleaning.

sounds to me like your in a hard water area or you have lots of iron or sediment in your water. Run some vinegar water through your iron to clean it and then use distilled after that till it runs clear. This can happen with any iron or coffee maker. Don't leave the unused water sitting now that you know! It's happened to me also. Bummer isn't it!

I buy cheap irons and I rarely put water in them anymore. I'd rather spray water onto the fabric and then iron it (just like my Grandma did, she taught me how to iron). But if I do put water in, I use distilled and then dump it out when I'm done.

i have several irons, my favorite is a travel iron. I use it dry with a spray bottle of water. Works great!

Yes, I have always used distilled water in my Rowenta & it still works fine after 13 yrs.

I happened across something on TV once and the guy speaking was the guru of some iron company. Anyway, he said if you want any iron to work well for many years, then always use distilled water-period. We have extremely hard water here, and despite having a water softener, I always use distilled. It will eliminate sediment and rust both.

Thank you for your responses! I appreciate it!

Had 2 rowentas, they weren't worth the powder to blow them up. Now I buy my irons at garage sales. The older heavier, hotter ones that don't shut themselves off after 3 minutes...grrrr. Our Moms and Grandma's really knew something about ironing stuff the right way.