anne-lise breuning
  • Home
  • Hello Healthy Homes
  • Upcycling
  • About
  • Blog

Our water tested again for lead... the results are in..

7/11/2016

1 Comment

 
Amanda Smith from the SF Department of Health came to our house and took 5 dust samples. The floor at the front door, the kitchen floor, the floor off the back porch, downstairs hallway and the windowsill in the kids play area.  All samples came back non detectable except the windowsill at a level of 80 µg/ft² (micograms per square foot). The legal limit for interior window sills is 250 µg/ft².  That old window is painted shut with very old paint (like most of the windows in my house). Amanda thinks that dust is probably seeping in through the cracks. 
It was a very dusty windowsill so I plan to clean those with a wet rage more often.

The lead test for our water also came back with low levels. Sue Soteriou from the SFPUC returned my call and suggested that I do a second test this time after flushing out the pipes. The water from the street level is usually colder than the water sitting in your pipes overnight, so simply feeling the water for about a minute until the temperature drops will let you know your pipes are flushed out. She also mentioned that if you want to test the fixture, then only fill the liter bottle half way.  Our pipes are copper and she reminded me that lead contamination can come from the solder used on copper pipes. 

The SFPUC offers low-cost water tests for lead ($25 per tap). To request a test, call 877-737-8297.
Picture
Here are the results from the water lead test we did in 2008 after my son's exposure. I was told that the levels where fine because they are lower than the EPA's action level of 15PPB. Knowing what I know now, I do not think these numbers are acceptable and I wished I had applied myself to making changes.

Picture
Picture
1 Comment

    Categories

    All
    Drought
    Dumpster Diving
    Energy Efficiency
    Gray Water
    Lead
    Native Plants
    Upcycle
    Water
    Zero Waste

    Anne-Lise Breuning

    Raised a feral hippy child in New Mexico, this dumpster diving compost lover wants to help green your home.

    Picture

    Archives

    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    January 2013
    January 2010
    December 2009
    May 2009
    April 2009
    January 2009

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • Hello Healthy Homes
  • Upcycling
  • About
  • Blog