KINGSTON SPRINGS, Tenn. -- Some local residents discovered recently that the fire hydrants in their front yards may not work.

Video: Some Cheatham County Hydrants No Good For Fire

In Cheatham County, a fire hydrant with a blue top has plenty of water pressure to fight a fire, but black hydrants are not as effective.

State Rep. Phillip Johnson said he didn't know the black capped hydrant in his front yard is useless in a fire.

"Well, we have great fire departments out here, (and) you want them to have all the resources available, and when you have a fire hydrant in your front yard, you assume it's usable to fight a fire at your house,” he said.

Seventeen hydrants in places like Pegram and Kingston Springs have the black tops.

Black means there's not enough water pressure for a fire hose.

While Kingston Springs' fire trucks carry their own water, it wasn't enough to fight a fire in an area neighborhood.

"We had to call in water tankers from two other neighboring fire departments to have enough water on the scene to fight the fire,” said Capt. Jeremy Vaughan.

The Second South Cheatham Utility District owns and maintains the black hydrants.

"No ma'am. We are not in the fire protection business,” said utility district official Bill Zimmerman.

They were installed in the 1960s and 1970s strictly for drinking water.

While the facility has plenty of water for household use, replacing the hydrants for fire protection isn't in the plans.

"We will assist where we can, but our main priority is serving safe potable water for drinking purposes and for household use,” Zimmerman said.

Johnson said he believes fixing the hydrants should also be a priority.

“You need things like this to be dealt with by your local officials and utility companies (working) together,” Johnson said.

Cheatham County is growing with new people moving in every month.

Residents said the newcomers and people who have lived here all their lives deserve the best fire protection they can get.

The utility district said there were originally 69 hydrants that couldn't be used in a fire.

They were able to adjust the newer hydrants to make them safe for firefighting, but that's not an option with the older hydrants.