Lead pipes and lead service lines: how to check and what replacement involves

Updated · KeystoneProGuide editorial team

Where does lead in tap water come from?

From the plumbing, not the water source. The EPA says lead gets into drinking water when plumbing that contains lead corrodes, and that the most common sources are lead pipes, faucets and fixtures. Where a home has a lead service line, the pipe that connects it to the water main, that line is typically the biggest source. In homes without one, the most common problems are brass or chrome-plated brass faucets and lead solder.

The Philadelphia Water Department says the same about its own system: lead does not come from its sources, treatment or mains, so lead found in water comes from a property's plumbing. It adds that water standing six hours or more in lead or galvanized pipe can pick up dissolved lead, which is invisible.

Why does it matter?

Because the EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agree there is no known safe level of lead in a child's blood. The EPA's health goal for lead in drinking water is zero. It estimates that drinking water can be 20 percent or more of a person's total lead exposure, and 40 to 60 percent for an infant fed mostly on formula mixed with tap water. Bathing and showering, it says, should be safe even where the water is over the action level, because skin does not absorb lead from water.

Which homes are most likely to have lead pipes?

Older ones. The EPA says lead pipes are more likely in older cities and in homes built before 1986. The Census Bureau does not publish a count of homes built before 1986, but it does count the oldest: a quarter of Pennsylvania's homes, 25.0 percent, were first built in 1939 or earlier, and in Philadelphia the share is 39.9 percent. Every one of those houses predates 1986. A newer house is not automatically clear. The EPA says the Safe Drinking Water Act has reduced what counts as lead-free to 0.25 percent lead across the wetted surfaces of pipes and fixtures and 0.2 percent for solder, and the Water Department warns that some fittings once labeled lead-free still contained small amounts.

How do you find out what your service line is made of?

Start with your water utility, which now has to know. Under the EPA's Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection says community water systems must submit a baseline service line inventory by November 1, 2027. A system that has lead, galvanized-requiring-replacement or lead-status-unknown lines must notify everyone served by them, first by November 15, 2024 and then every year. If you have had that letter, call the utility and ask what its record shows.

Philadelphia publishes its records on a service line map. If the utility has nothing, the EPA says a licensed plumber may be able to help, and its online guide, Protect Your Tap, helps you work out whether you have a lead service line using only a penny or key and a magnet. The Water Department adds that hardware-store lead test kits test what a pipe is made of, not the water, and to look for an EPA-recognized kit.

Does a lead service line mean the water has lead in it?

Not necessarily. The Water Department says having a lead service line does not mean your water has high lead levels, and that its corrosion control treatment, zinc orthophosphate, which coats the inside of pipes and has been used for more than 30 years, keeps lead below the EPA's 15 parts per billion standard in 90 percent or more of the city's homes. The EPA's point is the reverse side of the same fact: you cannot see, taste or smell lead, so testing is the only sure way to know about your own tap. It puts the cost of a test at $20 to $100, and Philadelphia's Water Department tests free for customers with concerns.

What can you do while you wait for an answer?

The EPA and the Water Department give overlapping lists.

  • Run the water before drinking if it has been sitting, by running the tap, showering or doing laundry. Ask your utility how long to flush where you live.
  • Use only cold water for drinking, cooking and baby formula. Hot water dissolves more metal, and boiling does not remove lead.
  • Use a filter certified to remove lead, follow its instructions, change the cartridge on time, and do not run hot water through it.
  • Clean faucet aerators regularly, since lead particles collect in them.
  • Watch for nearby construction. The EPA says ground tremors from digging can suddenly release more lead from a lead service line.

How is a lead service line replaced, and who pays?

That depends on who owns the line. In Philadelphia the owner does: the Water Department says residential service lines belong to the property owner, and the city's Department of Revenue says owners are responsible for the pipe even beneath the sidewalk or roadway. The city still offers three routes. When it replaces the water main on a block, it offers to replace a lead line from the main to the meter free and writes to residents months ahead. A pilot program in North and West Philadelphia budgets about 1,000 more replacements. And its Homeowner Emergency Loan Program lends the cost of a lead line replacement at 0 percent over 60 months for homes of up to four units with a current bill and a working meter.

Otherwise, the Water Department says, any licensed and insured plumber can quote the job, and the price depends partly on how far the meter is from the main. In the city, a new or replacement water service to a single building is one of the jobs that can go on an EZ plumbing permit without plans, and connections at the main need a separate Water Department permit.

Outside Philadelphia, ownership and programs vary by utility. The EPA notes that some states and utilities pay for testing or replacement, so ask yours before you hire. The Philadelphia guide covers the city's other pipe programs, the cost guide gives national ranges for main line work, and licensed plumbers are on the plumbers directory page.

Sources

  1. Basic Information about Lead in Drinking Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
  2. Protect Your Tap: A Quick Check for Lead, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
  3. Lead and Copper Rule, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
  4. Lead Plumbing & Water Quality, Philadelphia Water Department
  5. Using a HELP loan to replace your Lead Service Line, Philadelphia Water Department
  6. Get a Plumbing Permit, City of Philadelphia
  7. Follow these tips to get ready for pipe repairs, City of Philadelphia, Department of Revenue
  8. 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Narrative Profile: Pennsylvania, U.S. Census Bureau
  9. 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Narrative Profile: Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, U.S. Census Bureau

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