Lead in Drinking Water

Lead is a highly toxic metal that can cause serious and permanent health problems. Children and pregnant people are at special risk. Too much lead in the body, or lead poisoning, can damage the brain, kidneys and nervous system.

Young children’s bodies are developing, which makes them more sensitive to lead. Children also absorb lead more easily than adults. Lead in a child’s body can slow down growth and development, make it hard to learn, damage hearing and speech, and cause behavior problems. A baby can be harmed by lead before and during pregnancy. In adults, lead can cause high blood pressure and result in decreased fertility in men.

Lead can get into drinking water when it passes through pipes, fittings, or fixtures made of lead, galvanized iron, brass or chrome. Lead is more common in plumbing with copper pipes with solder joints.

You are more likely to have lead in your water if you have:

• Signs of corrosion, such as a metallic taste to water or blue-green staining
• A shallow private water system (for example, a spring or a dug or bored well)
• Low pH (acidic) and low alkalinity levels in your water
• Older plumbing or water fixtures
• Drawn water from somewhere other than a kitchen or drinking faucet

Outdoor spigots, decorative faucets (common in bathrooms), or faucets not meant for kitchen use are more likely to have parts that contain lead. Don’t use these taps for drinking water. Even if you have plastic water lines, lead from brass fixtures can seep into your water.

Do you know if you have lead pipes in your home? Check out NPR's online tool to help you find out. 

Do you get your water from a city, town or community source? Learn more about public drinking water.

You cannot see, smell or taste lead. Testing is the only way to know if lead is in your drinking water. When you test for lead, you need to collect two water samples: a first draw and a flush. A first draw sample will tell you if there is lead in your plumbing inside your home. A flush sample will help you find out if the lead is coming from the pipes outside your home.

If you are on a private well or spring, the Health Department recommends testing your water with the Homeowner Testing Package every five years. Both the first draw and flush test kits are included. If you just want to test for lead, order two lead test kits so you can take a first draw and flush sample. 

If you are on public water (town or city water), the Health Department recommends testing for lead. It is especially important to test your water if young children or babies drink the water. Order two lead test kits so you can take a first draw and flush sample.

Find out how to order a test kit

How to Test Your Water for Lead

Be sure to follow the instructions that come with your test kit. Take the first draw and flush samples from the tap you most often drink and cook from, usually the kitchen sink. 

First Draw

The first draw sample collects the first water that comes out of the tap and tends to have a higher level of lead than water that has been running. Collect the water sample first thing in the morning after the water has been sitting in your pipes for at least 8 hours and before you use any water that day.

Flush

Let the water run for three to five minutes or until the water is as cold as it can get before you collect the sample.

There is no safe level of lead in drinking water. Vermont has set a health advisory level for lead to the lowest level that can be detected, which is 0.001 mg/L (milligrams per liter). If you have lead in your water at or above 0.001 mg/L, the Health Department recommends taking action to lower lead levels. You can:

• Install a treatment system
• Replace pipes or plumbing fixtures and fittings
• Drink and prepare food with bottled water
• Get water from a known safe source

Your first draw results are more likely to be higher than your flush results. This is because the longer water sits in plumbing that has lead, the higher the lead levels in water will be. Also, water sitting in the pipes inside the house becomes warmer. Over time, warmer water will take in more lead if there is lead in the plumbing.

Need help understanding your drinking water test results? Find out how to read your results.

You can lower lead levels in your drinking water by treating it. There are a few options. Please note that boiling water and using sediment filters will not remove lead.

You will usually get your first draw results before your flush results. If your first draw results show lead in your water, you can temporarily flush your water until you get your flush results. To flush your water, run it for three to five minutes or until it’s as cold as it can get before using it for drinking or cooking. This will lower the levels of lead in your water. We do not recommend flushing as a permanent solution since you cannot be certain you are lowering lead levels enough every time you flush. This is because the amount of time the water has been sitting in your pipes and the amount of time you flush for can vary.

These point-of-use (POU) treatment systems will help remove lead from your water:

• Distillation: These units boil water and then recondense the steam. The lead is left behind during this process, along with hardness and other minerals. These units can produce several gallons of lead-free water per day. Install a system with an NSF/ANSI Standard 62 Certification. 
• Reverse osmosis (RO): This system uses a synthetic membrane that allows water to go through but leaves lead behind. The membrane is continually rinsed. This system is typically installed under the kitchen sink when treating for lead. Install a system with an NSF/ANSI Standard 58 Certification.
• Carbon filtration: This system uses a filter with carbon in it. As the water moves through the filter, lead is trapped by the carbon until the filter is saturated. Since the carbon filter can remove other minerals found in your water, it is difficult to know how long it will last. Some large carbon filters have been known to last for years, while some small filters may last for only weeks. Install a carbon filtration system with an NSF/ANSI Standard 53 Certification.

You can also remove lead from your water by replacing any lead parts in your water system (for example, pipes, plumbing fixtures and fittings) with parts that are NSF/ANSI standard 61 certified.

Copper in your plumbing can increase the amount of lead in your water. If copper is also detected, or if your water has a blue tinge or tastes metallic, you will want to treat your water. Treating for copper will also improve the lifetime of the pipes. 

Neutralization, sometimes referred to as pH adjustment or corrosion control, is the best treatment for copper. Be sure to test the pH and alkalinity of the water to make sure it will be an effective treatment. Corrosion control does not keep lead from leaching into the water from pipes before the treatment system. Neutralization is not recommended if lead is found in the flush sample. Learn more about copper in drinking water.

Re-test your drinking water for lead after any treatment system is installed to make sure levels are below the health advisory level.

Vermont Wastewater and Potable Water Revolving Loan Fund

This program, also known as the On-Site Loan Program, is available to certain Vermont residents for the repair or replacement of failed water supply and on-site wastewater systems. The On-Site Loan Program is funded and administered by the Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation with loan underwriting and servicing provided by the Opportunities Credit Union in Winooski. Your drinking water supply has to be a failed system and you must be living in the residence on a year-round basis to be eligible. The family income cannot exceed 200% of the state median household income. For more information about eligibility and how to apply, call the On-Site Loan Program.

The NeighborWorks Alliance of Vermont

The NeighborWorks Alliance is made up of five local organizations offering full affordable housing services for income-eligible individuals. You may qualify for help from this program if you need money to install a water treatment system, drill a well, or repair or replace your septic system. For more information on eligibility, contact the local NeighborWorks Group in your region.

Single Family Housing Repair Loans and Grants

This program offers loans and grants to existing homeowners for well construction, repair and sealing. It's administered by the Rural Development office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The program is for low-income families who live in a rural area or a community with a population of 25,000 or less. The family income cannot exceed 50% of the median county income. Individuals who are 62 years of age or older may qualify for a grant or a combination of a loan and grant. Younger applicants are eligible only for loans.

Burlington, South Burlington, Essex Junction, Winooski and parts of Colchester are ineligible for the program. Even if your property is in an eligible area, your eligibility is still subject to income limits. For more information or to find out if your property is in an eligible area, call the USDA Rural Development Office at 802-828-6022.

Low-interest Loans for Individual Household Wells and Septic Systems

The Southeast Rural Community Assistance Project (SECAP) has partnered with RCAP Solutions (North Eastern Rural Community Assistance Partnership) to provide low-interest loans to construct, refurbish or replace individual water well systems and septic systems for eligible homeowners. Here are the requirements:

• Your residence must be in an eligible rural area, town, or community (defined as geographic area with 50,000 residents or less) in the RCAP Solutions service area of: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

• You must own (or provide recorded Lifetime Rights) and occupy the home being improved. 

• Your household limit is under the state median income limit.

• New home construction and community water systems are not eligible. 

Learn more about the loan program and fill out the form.

Please contact SERCAP staff for further information by phone at 540-345-1184 ext. 159 or email loanfund@sercap.org