Lead in Drinking Water: No Safe Level, Practical Fixes

The EPA's health goal for lead in drinking water is zero - its own wording is that there is no safe level of exposure, with infants and children most vulnerable. Lead rarely comes from the source water; it leaches from service lines, solder and fixtures inside the system and the home.

The rules

Today's federal action level is 15 parts per billion (if more than 10% of sampled taps exceed it, the utility must act). The EPA's 2024 Lead and Copper Rule Improvements tighten the action level to 10 ppb with a compliance date of November 1, 2027, and require replacement of lead service lines within ten years. 'Within ten years' is why a filter at your tap remains a sensible bridge even in well-run cities.

What to do at home

• Check your service line material - many utilities publish lookup maps; a scratch-and-magnet test identifies lead pipe at the entry point.
• Flush before drinking after water sits overnight, until it runs cold - a free, partial measure.
• Filter with the right paperwork: lead is an NSF/ANSI 53 claim (or 58 for RO). Look for the model, certified, for lead specifically - like the Aquasana Claryum or AquaTru on our top picks.
• Use cold water for drinking and formula; hot water leaches more lead.

One naming trap to avoid: 'NSF 372' on a box certifies the filter's own materials are low-lead. It is a fine thing - it is not a lead-removal claim. Our certification decoder shows how to tell them apart.