Lead in well plumbing: 7 dates and limits to check

Key takeaways

• keep each date tied to the source that states it
• read the words could, may and sometimes as limits, not as results
• sort well dates and plumbing dates onto separate lines
• use the reference table to find the source pages for your review

Why dates matter for well lead

A well and its plumbing are made of several parts, and each part can have its own installation history. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency page educates well owners on wells, groundwater, and information on protecting their health. Use that background as a starting point, then sort your records by the part each one describes. Keep the well, the pump, and the home's plumbing on separate lines so each date stays attached to its part.

Well owners also can benefit from the well maintenance and water quality sections of the Wellowner site. Those sections give background before you compare anything with a date. Start with the water quality section if your question is about contaminants, and start with the maintenance section if it is about the well equipment.

A drilling date and a pump installation date answer different questions, so keep them apart in your notes. A drilling date shows when the well was constructed, and an installation date shows when a pump went in. The two dates may differ, so neither one settles the question alone. Record where each date came from, whether that was a county file or a note from a previous owner.

A date is not a water test. It can point to when a part type was in use, but it does not measure what comes out of your tap. Use your records to identify questions about components; use a water test to answer what the water contains. For a separate contaminant question, see how to read a private well nitrate result.

The dates in this article come from Minnesota guidance, and the 1985 solder date is a Minnesota rule. That date should not be applied as law in other states. The federal percentage in a later section is a separate rule with its own scope. Read every date with the name of its rule beside it, so the scope stays clear. Keep public-supply questions separate with the guide to the lead action level for public water.

Lead solder and the 1985 Minnesota ban

Check copper pipe joints

Lead solder was used in the past to join copper pipes, but has been illegal in Minnesota since 1985, according to MN Dept. of Health. Keep that specific use in mind when you read the year. The date names copper pipes and Minnesota, so a reader in another state should not borrow it. It concerns one kind of joint, not the whole system.

Start by looking at the year your house was built, if you know it, and compare that year with 1985. A plumbing date before 1985 falls in the years before the ban, so solder is a possibility to note in your records, not a finding. A later plumbing date describes when work happened; it does not identify the material in the joints today.

Your records might include a permit, a contractor invoice, or a purchase record for pipe and fittings. If two records disagree, note both dates and mark which one came from the person who did the work. Preserve the disagreement rather than choosing a date without evidence.

Write the date next to the word solder in your notes, and mark whether the plumbing was original to the house or added later. That distinction matters because the 1985 date concerns one use, and a later repair could involve different materials. A repair made after 1985 falls in the period after the ban, so mark that repair with its own date.

Ask people who lived in the house for notes about past repairs, and record their answers as memories rather than facts. A memory of a repair is a useful clue, but it does not replace a document. Write the name of each person and the year they remember, so the note can be checked against other records later.

Brass and the 8 percent figure

Separate composition from early use

Although brass usually contains low lead levels of 8 percent or less, it can still dissolve lead into the water, especially during the first few months of use, according to MN Dept. of Health. The composition figure describes the metal; the early-use warning describes what it can release into water. Keep those two parts apart when you write notes about brass fittings.

The source uses the word usually, so read the 8 percent figure as a typical level rather than a guarantee for each part. Label each part by its material in your notes, and mark unknown materials as unknown. The label matters because the figure applies to brass, so a part of unknown metal cannot be read against it.

Your installation dates matter most for brass parts that are new or recently replaced, because the source ties the dissolving to the first few months of use. Record the install date for each brass fitting you know about, and mark which fittings were new when the water was first used.

A fitting installed years ago may have passed that early period long ago, so its install date tells you where it sits in time. Compare each brass install date with the early-use period the source describes.

When you write the brass line in your records, place the composition figure and the early-use note side by side, and add the install year beside them. Flag any brass part whose install year is missing, so the gap stays visible.

The 0.25 percent rule after January 2014

Check the installation date

Under the federal Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act, most pipe, pipe and plumbing fittings, and other covered components installed in potable water-supply systems after January 2014 must contain no more than 0.25 percent lead, according to MN Dept. of Health. Check the installation date first, and keep the qualifier most attached to the rule.

Your first task is to find the installation date of each part. Sort parts into those dated after January 2014 and those dated before it, and keep the two lists separate. A replacement fitting installed after that month belongs on the newer list, even when the well itself was drilled much earlier. Write the month and year beside each part so the sort is easy to repeat later.

The rule is federal, so its scope is the federal Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act as the source describes it. Do not carry the 0.25 percent figure into the Minnesota solder date or the brass figure, because those come from different guidance with different scopes. Naming the rule beside the number keeps the scope visible to the next reader.

A part without a known installation date cannot be placed on either side of January 2014, so mark it as unknown rather than guessing. Bring those entries to the next step of your review, and keep them off the 0.25 percent list until a date is known. An unknown date still points to records that need a closer look.

The 0.25 percent figure is a limit on the lead content of a part, so it does not tell you what the water contains.

Lead packers and pumps: 1980, 1993 and 1995

Lead packers in wells drilled before 1980

Lead "packers" above the well screen were commonly used in wells drilled before 1980, according to MN Dept. of Health. The word commonly describes how often the material was used in that period, not whether any particular well contains it. Read it as a prompt to check your drilling year rather than as a finding.

Your well paperwork is the place to find the drilling year, so write that year beside the word packer in your notes. Ask whoever drilled or serviced the well for past records, and keep any service visit as its own entry. A service date records later work; it does not replace the drilling year.

Packers prohibited in 1993

Lead "packers" were sometimes used in wells drilled until 1993, when they were prohibited, according to MN Dept. of Health. The word sometimes marks use as occasional, so the year sets the close of the period rather than describing every well.

Compare your drilling year with 1993 and record the result beside the packer entry. A drilling year after 1993 falls outside the period the source describes, so mark that entry as outside the period. If the year is unknown, mark the packer question as open, because an unknown year cannot be placed before or after 1993.

Pump parts before 1995

Some submersible pumps manufactured before 1995 may contain leaded-brass components ( MN Dept. of Health). Since January 1995, all submersible pump manufacturers in America have agreed not to use leaded-brass components in submersible pumps ( MN Dept. of Health). Your pump manufacture date is the entry to compare with January 1995, and the pump paperwork is the place to look for it.

How to compare your own well records

Lay out your records in one place, with one line for the well, one for the pump, and one for the plumbing. Put each date from this article beside its line, along with the source name, so the scope stays visible. A single page with every line is easier to check than scattered notes.

Read each date with its own limit beside it. The solder date concerns copper pipe joints in Minnesota, the brass figure concerns typical composition and early use, and the packer and pump dates concern possibilities. Keep each limit in the same words you read in the source, so your notes do not drift.

Mark each entry as a date from a record, a date from a memory, or a date you could not find. Those labels keep your notes honest about how much weight each entry can carry, and they show which entries need a second check. When a record and a memory disagree, keep both and note the disagreement, so the next review starts from the full picture.

If a record leaves a date unclear, bring the question to a local contractor or agency rather than guessing at the answer. Keep the question written in your notes, along with the date you asked it, so you can track what was asked. Ask for the source of the date as well as the date itself.

Finish by writing one sentence that says what the records show and what they do not settle. Keep that sentence at the top of your notes, so the next reader sees the limit before any date. Revisit that sentence whenever you add a record, because a new record can change what the notes show. Date the sentence itself so that its own history stays traceable.

The reference table below lists source pages and their uses in this review.

Illustrative example: separate the pump dates

Suppose your pump paperwork records an installation, but you cannot find its manufacture date. Label the manufacture date unknown and keep the installation entry separate. Ask for a record that identifies when the pump was made. Your next question is about the missing record; the installation date does not answer it.

Next step for your records

Today, find your well drilling year and pump manufacture date in your well paperwork and note them next to the dates in this post.

Common questions

When did lead solder become illegal in Minnesota?

Lead solder used to join copper pipes has been illegal in Minnesota since 1985 ( MN Dept. of Health). Record the answer beside the solder line in your notes.

What lead percentage does the January 2014 federal rule allow?

Most covered parts installed after January 2014 are limited to 0.25 percent lead under the federal Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act ( MN Dept. of Health). Write the figure beside the part it describes.

Were lead packers used in wells drilled before 1980?

Yes, packers above the well screen were commonly used in wells drilled before 1980 ( MN Dept. of Health). Check your drilling year against 1980 and record the result as a possibility.

Do pumps made after 1995 use leaded-brass parts?

American submersible pump manufacturers have agreed not to use leaded-brass components since January 1995 ( MN Dept. of Health). Check the paperwork for the specific pump in your well.

Can brass put lead in water?

Yes, brass can release lead into water, especially during the first few months of use ( MN Dept. of Health). Use the install date of each brass part to see whether it falls in that early period.

Where can a well owner turn for help?

A local contractor or agency can help with a specific well question. Wellowner offers resources and connections rather than specific well or property advice. Take your records and the question you need answered.