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More than one-third of Lakeland households received letters last week notifying them that the city does not know whether their water pipes contain lead.
The letters weren’t intended to scare customers. Millions of people across the country received similar notices, required under an initiative of the Environmental Protection Agency to identify and eliminate lead pipes nationwide within 10 years.
But it was disconcerting for some homeowners, who expressed anxiety on social media.
Why it matters: The EPA estimates that as many as 9 million homes in the U.S. are served through legacy lead pipes, many of them in lower-income communities. Lead is a potent neurotoxin that can harm mental and physical development.
Who received the letters: The city sent letters to every residence built before 1977, when Lakeland banned lead as a construction material. That includes 23,963 of the 63,623 homes in the water utility’s service area.
What the letters said: The letters said the service lines delivering water to the home are made of an “unknown material,” which could be lead or galvanized iron that has been exposed to lead.
The new requirement: Water systems had to create an initial inventory of service lines by Oct. 16 and report that information to their state. Then they had 30 days to notify customers whose lines contain lead or whose line materials are unknown.
City Water Compliance Manager Tania McMillan said Lakeland hasn’t found any lead service lines. But it will have to send each customer a letter annually until their household’s lines have been checked — which might take up to four years.
“The letter is strictly precautionary, based on us not having that record of the pipe material connecting to the property,” McMillan said. “It’s certainly not a result of us detecting lead in the water.”
Some caveats: The EPA initiative is focused exclusively on service lines, but there are other potential sources of lead:
Pipe connectors, sometimes called goosenecks. Lead was a popular material for these until 1986 because it was durable but could be easily bent. The connectors are typically about 2 feet long, with each leading to one or two homes. McMillan said the city replaces these whenever it finds them.
Leaded solder, which was not banned until 1986. It was often used to connect copper pipes and fittings.
Brass faucets, fittings and valves, which could be up to 8% lead until 2014. After that, the limit was reduced to .25%.
Mapping the city’s water lines
The city began its inventory of service lines in May. The following map shows the records for each address. McMillan said it will be updated quarterly.
Pipe identification
Lakeland is using a two-pronged approach to identify pipe materials:
Two city staff members are dedicated to the project, visiting homes daily to record line materials on both the city’s and customer’s sides of the meter.
The city launched a $4 million project in May to replace all of its customers’ mechanical water meters with smart meters. McMillan said the contractors installing the new meters are checking pipe materials at the same time.
The city owns the portion of the line between the water main and the meter. The customer owns the portion from the meter to the house. |City of Lakeland
The city is required to notify residents only if lead is found, but McMillan said her department plans to send courtesy letters each week to residents whose lines have been checked to put their minds at ease.
“We will notify customers of the results of the pipe inspection, regardless of what the results are,” she said.
DIY test: With so many addresses to check, it could take several years to cover the whole city. Residents who don’t want to wait can do a simple test themselves with a magnet and screwdriver or coin.
Start by locating where the service line enters the house, usually in the back. There is often a hose spigot. Then scratch the pipe, tap it and see if a magnet sticks to it.
Customers can test their own water pipes with a magnet and screwdriver or coin. | City of Lakeland
Contact the city
To share your results or ask questions:
Call Lakeland Water Utilities at (863) 834-9535 between 7:30 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Many owners of older homes will find they have galvanized water service lines. These are iron pipes dipped in a protective zinc coating to prevent corrosion and rust. They were used for many decades as an alternative to lead pipes.
McMillan said under current regulations, galvanized pipes need to be replaced only if they are downstream of confirmed lead service lines — and the city has not identified any of those. However, the coating could still capture trace amounts of lead from other sources.
For anyone who is concerned, the next step would be to test the water inside their home.
Magnetic darts stick to galvanized pipes outside a Lakeland home built in 1931. | Cindy Glover, LkldNow
Water testing
Lakeland’s tap water comes from 19 wells drilled into the Floridan aquifer. The water goes through many treatment processes and tests. But even if it is lead-free when it leaves the city’s treatment plant and arrives at a customer’s property, it could pick up contaminants as it moves through the home’s pipes.
Legal and safe are not necessarily the same: The federal Safe Drinking Water Act sets minimum standards for drinking water. Currently, the regulatory “action level” for lead is 15 parts per billion (0.015 milligrams per liter). However, the EPA has set a contaminant level goal of zero, acknowledging that there is no safe level of exposure and lead can accumulate in the body over time.
Two ways to test water: There are two main ways people can test their own water.
Instant-result kits generally involve dipping test strips into a water sample. They are available online or in hardware stores and cost about $15 to $30. They are not very precise, but can provide peace of mind.
Lab test kits include vials that customers fill and send to a laboratory. Results are typically delivered online. These are more precise, but also more costly. Prices range from about $80 ($15 for the kit and $65 for the lab fee) to several hundred dollars.
McMillan encouraged people to check for EPA certification before sending any water samples to a laboratory. Companies selling expensive filtration systems sometimes offer free tests as a marketing ploy, and those might not provide accurate results.
Instant-result water tests often require users to gauge the darkness of a line or compare the color of a test strip to a chart. | Cindy Glover, LkldNow
Water filters
Lead levels in water can fluctuate based on factors like the temperature of the water and whether water has been running or has stagnated in pipes for a while.
Filtering is one of the most effective ways to remove lead from water used for drinking, cooking or brushing teeth. Exposure from showering is generally not a concern because lead is not easily absorbed by human skin, according to the EPA.
There are several types of filters:
Water pitchers are the least expensive. They are available at grocery stores, pharmacies and most big box retailers.
Refrigerators with built-in water dispensers usually have filters. Most manufacturers recommend replacing them every six months.
Under-sink water filters start at around $55 and can be installed without special skills or tools.
Whole-home water filtration systems are the most expensive. They are usually professionally installed.
McMillan said Lakeland’s water meets very high standards and is safe to drink, but the city will provide water pitchers and six months’ worth of filter cartridge replacements to any household with lead service lines or galvanized pipes that are downstream of lead service lines.
Lakeland has purchased water filtering pitchers to give to any household that has lead service lines or a water test that shows lead in its drinking water. | Nick Vonderheide, City of Lakeland
Pipe replacement
For homeowners with lead in their water, even at very low levels, the best long-term solution might be pipe replacement.
The EPA announced $2.6 billion last month to be funneled through states’ drinking water revolving funds to local governments for lead pipe replacement and inventory projects.
McMillan said Lakeland got a loan from Florida’s revolving fund for the inventory project that is “potentially forgivable,” but it is unclear if it will get help for line replacement.
“I’m hopeful that there will be some grant funding available, to not just help the utilities but to help the homeowners,” she said. “If (customers) are going to find themselves in a situation where they need to have their service line replaced, we want to be able to assist them or provide them information on where to go.”
For now, though, she said the city is waiting for guidance — along with hundreds of other municipalities in Florida.
Insight Polk examines community conditions and solutions in six target areas from UCIndicators.org: economic & employment opportunity, education, housing, food security, transportation & infrastructure, and quality of life.
LkldNow’s Insight Polk independent reporting is made possible by the United Community Indicators Project with funding by GiveWell Community Foundation & United Way of Central Florida. All editorial decisions are made by LkldNow.
Cindy's reporting for LkldNow focuses on Lakeland city government. Previously, she was a crime reporter, City Hall reporter and chief political writer for newspapers including the Albuquerque Journal and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. She spent a year as a community engagement coordinator for the City of Lakeland before joining LkldNow in 2023. Reach her at cindy@lkldnow.com or 561-212-3429.
