• philpo@feddit.org
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    28
    ·
    11 hours ago

    First of all: Where in your system was the sample taken? At the well? At a tank? At a faucet?

    The answer to this question is important for the next steps.

    Be aware that high lead content can also be an issue for plant watering and even showering.

    If the sample has been taken at a endpoint (faucet) I would try to get another sample at the well directly. If you are “lucky” the acidity of the water is the reason lead is brought into your system from a section of your transport system. In that case replacing the transport layer (basically: Get new pipes) is the best approach - while it’s not cheap it is also not as expensive as filtering (or dealing with the health issues from lead, especially in the US).

    If the well shows the same values you are screwed. There are basically two scenarios then: Your well installation itself is the problem - this is in theory “fixable” but expensive, but you might accidentally even poisoning your neighbours then. (The way to find out if it’s your installation is either with specialised equipment or, for some confirmation, get a sample from a neighbour who ideally life upstream from you)

    If it’s not your well installation then it’s the well itself…and then you really really need a more extensive analysis: Lead in a ground water deposit is somewhat rare and often a indication something else is problematic - both because geologically lead is often next to other nasties, but also because human caused pollution with lead often goes with the real nasty stuff like arsenic,etc. And you really would want to find these. Then shit sadly becomes really expensive.