As a general rule, nothing you see at a showing settles whether a house has lead pipes or what’s dissolved in the water. EPA says testing is the only sure way to tell whether harmful quantities of lead are in drinking water. What the pipe into the house is made of is a different question, and EPA says to ask your water utility; EPA also publishes an online guide for checking the pipe. Both checks are things to set up while your inspection window is open.
That matters because none of it is instant. Utility records, a check of the pipe and a laboratory result can each take time to arrange. Ask late, and the question can still be open at closing, when it becomes yours. EPA says lead is harmful to health, especially for children. So it’s worth deciding early how you’ll find out, rather than hoping the house’s age answers it.
Which Houses Are More Likely to Have Lead Pipes?
Older ones. According to EPA’s overview of lead in drinking water, lead pipes are more likely to be found in older cities and homes built before 1986. That’s a statement about odds across a housing stock. It isn’t an answer about the single house you’re weighing, and a build year on a listing can’t give you one.
EPA’s overview also says the Safe Drinking Water Act has reduced the maximum lead content that counts as lead free. Keep one thing in mind about build years. Plumbing can be replaced in stages, so the year a house was built may not match the age of the pipe in it. A kitchen can be redone while the line to the street stays untouched. A later date can lower the odds without settling the question. So treat the build year as a reason to ask, not as an answer.
If the age of the house has you asking about the pipes in general, our post on galvanized pipes in older homes covers a different supply-pipe question.
How to Check the Service Line
The service line is the pipe that connects the home to the water main. That’s EPA’s term for it. EPA says to find out whether it’s made from lead by asking your water utility, and that if the utility doesn’t have the information, a licensed plumber may be able to assist.
EPA also publishes a self-check. EPA’s step-by-step Protect Your Tap guide uses pictures and step-by-step directions to determine whether a lead service line brings water into a home, and EPA says all you need is a penny (or key) and a magnet. Read it before anyone starts, so you know what the check involves and who should be doing it.
A house you don’t own yet changes the order. Ask the seller, through your agent, before anyone goes near a pipe, and do the same for a plumber’s access. Permission can be easier to settle at the start of the window than at the end of it.
If the house runs on a private supply instead, EPA’s pointer is different. EPA says that if your water comes from a household well or other private supply, check with your health department, or with nearby water utilities that use ground water, for information on contaminants of concern in your area.
How Do You Test the Water for Lead?
By sending samples to a laboratory. EPA says you can’t see, taste or smell lead dissolved in water, so testing is the only sure way of telling whether there are harmful quantities in your drinking water. EPA recommends a certified laboratory, and says your state or local drinking water authority can supply a list.
EPA’s guide adds instructions about the sample itself. Follow the directions of the certified laboratory for collecting it, and collect it from the faucets where you drink.
EPA also says that even when you know a service line isn’t lead, lead can be found in other plumbing materials and faucets. That’s why the two checks answer different questions. A pipe check tells you what the pipe is made of. A test tells you what was in the water that was sampled.
Ask the laboratory how the sample has to be collected and how long results take. Then weigh those answers against your window. Your agent can line up the seller’s access for sampling while there’s still time to use the result. If the result would change what you do, it has to arrive before you decide.
What a Home Inspection Can and Can’t Tell You
A home inspection and a laboratory water test aren’t the same check. During a regular home inspection, our inspector performs a visual examination of the structure and major systems, and the plumbing is among the systems the inspector evaluates. The result is a detailed report that grades every system and flags items needing immediate attention or future monitoring. That report documents every finding with photographs and is delivered within 24 hours, so you can see the evidence for each finding rather than a summary.
A visual examination can document the plumbing that’s visible. As a general rule it can’t show what’s dissolved in the water, and much of a service line can be out of sight, behind a wall or underground. EPA’s point that testing is the only way to confirm lead in water is the reason the two checks stay separate.
What a report will say about pipe material is a fair question to put to any inspection company before you book. Ask it early, and ask for the answer in writing:
- Will the report name the material of the exposed water supply pipe where it enters the house?
- Will it say what couldn’t be seen, such as pipe behind walls or underground?
- Will it include photos of the visible plumbing?
- Should I raise the lead question when I book? Yes: mention it, along with the age of the plumbing.
- Can the scope be put in writing before I book?
No company should have to guess at what you want documented. Ask before you book, not after the report lands. When the scope is in writing, you both know what the report will cover.
What to Do With the Result
If a record or a test points to lead, EPA recommends that you contact your local water system and health department.
EPA also lists steps a person can take. Using a filter can reduce lead in drinking water, and EPA says to make sure the filter is certified to remove lead. EPA says to use only cold water for drinking, cooking and making baby formula. EPA says boiling water does not remove lead from water.
If the result raises a question about your agreement of sale, your agent or a real estate attorney is the right person to ask.
Water isn’t the only route into a house. EPA’s guide notes that lead in homes can also come from paint, dust, soil, air and food, so the lead paint question is its own check on an older property.
Frequently Asked Questions About Lead Pipes
Can a House Built After 1986 Still Have Lead in Its Plumbing?
EPA says lead pipes are more likely to be found in homes built before 1986, and that the Safe Drinking Water Act has reduced the maximum lead content that counts as lead free. EPA’s guide also says lead can be found in other plumbing materials and faucets even when a service line isn’t lead. So a later build date can lower the odds, and EPA says testing your drinking water is the only way to confirm if lead is present.
Is the Service Line the Only Source of Lead in Tap Water?
No. EPA says the most common sources of lead in drinking water are lead pipes, faucets and fixtures. Where the pipe connecting the home to the water main is lead, EPA says it’s typically the most significant source of lead in the water. Among homes without lead service lines, EPA says the most common problem is brass or chrome-plated brass faucets and plumbing with lead solder.
Does Boiling Water Remove Lead?
EPA says no. Boiling water does not remove lead from water. EPA’s advice is to use only cold water for drinking, cooking and making baby formula. EPA also says using a filter can reduce lead in drinking water, and that a filter needs to be certified to remove lead if you use one.
What if the House Is on a Private Well?
EPA says that if your water comes from a household well or other private supply, check with your health department, or with nearby water utilities that use ground water, for information on contaminants of concern in your area. When you call a laboratory, ask whether its panel includes lead. That’s worth asking before the sample is collected, not after the report comes back.
Will a Home Inspection Tell Me if the House Has Lead Pipes?
During a regular home inspection, our inspector visually examines the structure and major systems, plumbing included. The visual examination can document plumbing that’s visible, though much of a service line can sit out of sight. EPA says testing your drinking water is the only way to confirm if lead is present. Ask any inspection company whether the report names the material of the exposed water supply pipe.
Settle the Lead Question Before You Book
If you’re weighing an older house in Bucks County, Montgomery County, Philadelphia or Delaware County, you can contact Inspection Professionals to talk through what a full home inspection of that house includes before you book. Mention the age of the plumbing and the lead question when you reach out, along with anything a listing or a seller statement has already told you about the pipes. Then put your utility call and your laboratory call on the calendar beside the inspection, so the answers arrive while the window is open and you can still act on them.