Lead Service Lines
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Beginning in 2024, all public water systems in the US must inventory their service lines from the main to the home/business/publicly accessible building. Water systems are responsible for identifying line material for every service line and replacing any "Lead Service Line" owned by the water system. A service line is the pipe that connects the water main to the plumbing in a home or building. When any part of the pipe is made of lead, it is called a lead service line. The lead service line (LSL) inventory must be complete by October 16, 2024. Replacement of lead service lines is required but no deadlines have been established.
Once the inventory is completed it must be maintained and each water system is obligated to provide to inquiring parties information on any lead service line in its system, including address/physical location and lead status. We do not anticipate finding lead service lines in the system.
The diagram below shows a service line with the system-owned portion, a meter pit or curb valve near the property line or edge of right-of way, followed by the customer-owned portion of the service line. The two parts of the line may be made of different materials including galvanized steel, plastic (PVC or polyethylene), copper, or maybe even lead.
Your service line material can be identified where it enters the home in your crawlspace, basement, or a utility room. You must find a point upstream of any and all appliances such as water heaters and water softeners.
Here's some different methods for identifying your service line material:
Polyethylene: PEX pipe or poly pipe is flexible and comes in rolls so it may be bent around obstacles or appear curved. This type of pipe is often black, blue, or translucent white.
PVC: Polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, is straight white pipe that is almost always glued at fittings. If your pipes are painted you can lightly scratch the pipes and the white pipe wall will be visible.
Galvanized steel: Use a magnet to check for galvanized pipe. If the pipe is not magnetic it not galvanized.
Copper: Use a sharp knife or coin to lightly scratch the surface of the pipe. If the exposed scratch looks like a new penny than you have copper pipe.
Lead: Use a sharp knife or coin to lightly scratch the surface of the pipe. If the exposed surface appears silvery and shiny it could be lead. Call a plumber or reach out to water system staff to help make a sure determination.
