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What is lead and where does it come from?
Lead is commonly found in many places in our environment. Although it's rarely in our source water, it can sometimes be present in homes. Lead can get into drinking water when household plumbing materials that contain lead wear down. These materials include lead-based solder used to connect copper pipes, especially in homes built or plumbed between 1962 and 1986, as well as brass parts and faucets. Some homes built before 1970 may have galvanized iron service lines, which connect the house to the water meter and may contain lead components.
What are some other sources of lead?
The most common sources of lead exposure are lead-based paint, household dust, soil, and plumbing materials. Lead can also be found in some imported consumer products such as toys, cosmetics, spices and pottery.
How does lead enter drinking water?
Lead rarely occurs naturally in water, but can enter drinking water from lead-containing materials in plumbing (lead-based solder, brass faucets, and sometimes lead pipes). Raleigh Water does not have known lead service lines but some older service lines may have lead components. In 1986, Congress banned lead in solder and limited lead in faucets and pipes.
Water sitting in lead pipes for several hours can have higher lead levels. While not usually the main source of lead poisoning, contaminated water can increase overall lead exposure, especially in infants who consume formula or juices mixed with such water.
How is Raleigh Water Reducing the Risks of Lead in Water?
Raleigh Water works actively to reduce lead exposure in drinking water. We carefully monitor and adjust water pH to prevent corrosion and add a corrosion inhibitor during treatment to protect pipes and reduce metal release.
Compliance with the US EPA Lead and Copper Rule is based on the 90th percentile of samples from homes built between 1982 and 1985 or those with lead service lines. Raleigh Water has consistently stayed below the action level for lead and the maximum contaminant level for copper, maintaining compliance with the rule.
Since we’ve consistently met EPA standards, Raleigh Water is on reduced monitoring, testing for lead and copper every three years. Our crews must check at least 50 homes, but we currently monitor 110 homes as part of our compliance plan.
Raleigh Water has developed and implemented an Asset Management Program that replaces aging underground infrastructure within the service area, including replacing galvanized iron service lines. Raleigh Water uses industry best practices to treat its water at the plants to reduce the release of metals, such as lead, from household plumbing.
What are the Health Effects of Lead?
Lead is found throughout the environment in lead-based paint, air, soil, household dust, food, certain types of pottery, porcelain and pewter, and water. Lead can pose a significant risk to your health if too much of it enters your body. Lead builds up in the body over many years and can cause damage to the brain, red blood cells and kidneys. The greatest risk is to young children and pregnant people. Amounts of lead that won’t hurt adults can slow down normal mental and physical development of growing bodies. In addition, a child at play often comes into contact with sources of lead contamination—like dirt and dust—that rarely affects adults. It is important to wash children’s hands and toys often, and to try to make sure they only put food in their mouths.
Helpful Tips on Reducing Your Potential Exposure to Lead in Your Drinking Water
Run Your Tap
Let the water run from the tap before using it for drinking or cooking if it has been unused for more than six hours. The longer water resides in plumbing that contain lead solder or lead components, the more likely it is to contain lead. Flushing the tap means running the cold water faucet for about 30 seconds. Although toilet flushing or showering flushes water through a portion of the plumbing system, you still need to flush the water in each faucet before using it for drinking or cooking. Flushing tap water is a simple and inexpensive measure you can take to protect your health.
Use Cold Tap Water for Drinking, Cooking and Making Baby Formula
Avoid using hot tap water for drinking, cooking or making baby formula and baby cereal. Lead can dissolve more easily in hot tap water.
Clean Your Faucet Screens
Sometimes lead and sediment can build up on the individual screens at your faucets. To clean them, periodically take off the faucet strainers from all taps and run the water for 3 to 5 minutes.
As part of Raleigh's Water Efficiency Program, utility customers can request one kitchen aerator and two bathroom aerators per household—free of charge. To request yours, email Edward.Buchan@raleighnc.gov
Making Plumbing Repairs or Additions?
Always insist that “lead free” solder be used. Inspection of the plumbing system in your home should be performed by a licensed plumber. They can reveal whether your system presents a lead contamination potential due to lead pipe plumbing or illegal lead solder.
Have an Electrician Check Wiring
If grounding wires are attached to pipes, it can cause corrosion within the pipe.