If your home was built before the mid-1950’s, you may have lead water pipes. How do you know if your service pipes are made of lead?
Lead water pipes are usually a dull gray colour. You can confirm it’s a lead pipe by gently scratching the surface with a coin. If it’s lead, scratching the pipe will leave a shiny silver metal mark.
Copper water pipes are usually a bronze, bright or dark orange colour and are made of a very hard material. Scratching a copper pipe with a coin will leave a faint bronze coloured mark.
If you can't tell what kind of water pipes you have in your home, contact the City of Winnipeg Service at 311 as they may have a record of the type of water pipe used for your water service.
Other hidden sources of contamination
Your home may have lead solder connecting water pipes if it was built prior to 1990. Since 1990, the Canadian National Plumbing Code has restricted the use of lead solder in new plumbing and in repairs to plumbing for drinking water supplies. Your home may also have brass water taps, valves and fitting that contain lead if it was built before 2014. Prior to January 2014, these brass components could contain up to eight percent lead. As of January 4, 2014, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) requires brass fixtures used in plumbing for drinking water to contain no more than 0.25 percent lead.
Overall, it’s is difficult to identify whether there is lead in the solder used to connect your water pipes, or the brass water taps valves or fittings in your home, so it’s important to reduce lead exposure by flushing your plumbing system.
Flushing your Pipes
In 2019, the Government of Canada reduced the allowable levels of lead in drinking water. This prompted the City of Winnipeg to run a testing program based on volunteers in each neighbourhood. In our home neighbourhood of Fort Rouge, the City found that 24% of tests taken at random times throughout the day were above the maximum levels prescribed by the Government of Canada. However, that number was reduced to on 4% of samples after a 2 minute flush, and a reduction to 0% of samples after a 5 minute flush.
The City offers the following advice for flushing your system:
Flush your plumbing system before consuming any water that has been standing in your pipes for more than six hours, as standing water can absorb metals from the pipes.
You can flush your system by running your tap for up to 10 minutes, flushing the toilet, taking a shower or starting a load of laundry
After flushing, fill containers with water and keep them in the fridge for drinking.
Use cold water for cooking and drinking, as hot tap water can absorb trace metals from water pipes.
Clean faucet aerators to remove any particles and sediment that may have collected in the aerator screen.
Consider using home water treatment devices that have the proper certification to reduce or remove lead, including:
Water filters with the Health Canada recommended certification label ANSI/NSF Standard No. 53 for reduction of lead (look for the blue NSF logo)
Distillation units
Reverse osmosis units
Of course, the best way to reduce your lead exposure is to have any lead lines replaced. The City of Winnipeg recommends you consider replacing the pipe (if it is lead) that runs from your home up to the shut-off valve (usually at your property line). You are responsible for this part of the water pipe. Legacy Mechanical services is a licensed water contractor and is able to help get a water connection services permit and do the work. Give us a call today if this is something you’re considering doing! We’d love to help.