The water we deliver to customers has no detectable lead. For decades we’ve protected our customers from the effects of customer-owned lead-containing household plumbing in a variety of ways, including adjusting the pH of the water we deliver to customers.

The pH level of drinking water reflects how acidic or basic it is. pH is measured on a scale of 0 to 14, with 7 considered neutral, meaning there’s a balance between the water’s acidity and basicity. LWP maintains a slightly basic pH in our water to prevent lead from being released from customer's pipes into the drinking water.

We maintain an inventory of all customer-owned lead service lines in our service area. The service line is the pipe that brings water into the home from the main in the street.

LWP Service Line Inventory

Service lines are often copper, lead, plastic, or galvanized iron or steel. They may be all one type of material or a mix of materials if repairs or updates have been made.

Knowing your service line material is very important for your health and safety.  When homes and buildings have lead service lines, water can absorb lead as it travels through the pipes and it becomes important to take steps to reduce lead exposure risk. This is why Loveland Water and Power (LWP) needs to determine the material service lines are made of.

In Colorado, most service lines do not contain lead. Lead is more likely found in older homes (build pre-1960's), but could have been used until the 1988 state ban on lead pipe. Homes built after 1988 are not expected to have lead service lines or lead plumbing. Search the county assessor's office records or realty websites such as Zillow to check your home’s build date.

LWP is responsible for identifying utility-owned portions of service lines and is proactively working toward city-wide identification. If the customer-owned portion is unknown, confirming the material is important and easy for customers to do. LWP has partnered with 120Water to conduct a mailed survey to assist customers in identifying their service line material, as well as included directions below. 

Use the information below to check your water service line material: 

Do a scratch test: Find the section of plumbing that enters your home near the foundation, usually near a valve. Gently scrape the pipe using a coin or the flat edge of a screwdriver to reveal the metal. Do not use a knife or sharp object. If the pipe is painted, gently sand or scrape the paint away first to expose the metal.

• Lead pipes are usually dull gray and easy to scratch. If the scratched area appears shiny silver and flakes off, the pipe could be lead.
• Galvanized steel is gray to silver in color and harder to scratch. If the scraped area is dull and gray, the pipe is likely galvanized steel.
• Copper pipes are copper to bronze in color. If the scraped area is copper in color, similar to a penny, the pipe is copper.
• Plastic pipes are usually white, glossy black, or colored. Plastic pipes are rigid and non-metallic. A scratch test is not needed to identify plastic pipes.

Use a magnet, such as a refrigerator magnet, to see if it sticks to the pipe.

• A magnet will not stick to lead or copper pipe, but will stick to galvanized steel.

Scratch and magnet test for service line material:

The primary source of lead in drinking water is from internal plumbing and customer-owned lead service lines – meaning the pipe that brings water from the water main in the street to the plumbing in the home. In order to identify all lead service lines that exist in our service area we began inspecting lines years ago.

The City-owned portion of the service line carries water from the water main to the meter. The homeowner’s portion is from the meter to the home.

Potholing may be required to inspect the water line and is done by digging up a portion of the line on the homeowner’s property. If this becomes necessary, the homeowner will be notified in advance by mail, phone and email, and disturbed landscaping will be returned to its original condition.

Customers that are concerned they may have lead plumbing in other locations within the home, beyond the service line connecting their home with our water lines, should consult with a licensed plumber.