Question from Krissy

Debra,

We have well water with a reverse osmosis unit under our kitchen sink. I recently met a man who was working with the laws for testing lead in Nebraska. He said that currently there are problems with many of the spigots leaching large amounts of lead into the RO water. He is trying to change the testing procedures to just test the first small amount of water that is drawn from the spigot first thing in the morning rather than the normal testing of one literof water. He is worried that the one liter testing is diluting the lead levels. He said that the original spigots that come with the RO unit are not as bad; however, the replacement spigots that are often used to match other colors of kitchen faucets are sometimes showing up to ten times the allowable limit of lead. He is looking at real life use, as if you get a tiny amount of water for your child and the implications this can have on children. We do have a replacement spigot so I am really worried. I have contacted a state authorized lab for lead testing (in water). We will be testing our RO water (both a small and one liter sample size for testing), I’m just wondering if others have heard anyting about this? Does anyone know of a source for spigots that are lead free and safe from other contaminates, preferably manufactured in the USA?

Thanks!

Debra’s Answer

I wrote a post a couple of years ago about Lead-Free Water Faucets. I don’t know what the regulations are for replacement spigots, but the lead issues may be similar.

I suggest that you test the water coming out of your R/O unit for lead to be sure.