Can anyone recommend a kit for testing the lead level
in water taken from the public water supply?
Or is there a simple DIY way of measuring this?

There was a scare story about lead where I live
(Dun Laoghaire, south of Dublin) on the news just now.

I see a number of test kits on Amazon,
but am wondering if any experts can recommend a particular kit.


--
Timothy Murphy
gayleard /at/ eircom.net
School of Mathematics, Trinity College, Dublin

"Timothy Murphy" wrote in message
...
Can anyone recommend a kit for testing the lead level
in water taken from the public water supply?
Or is there a simple DIY way of measuring this?

There was a scare story about lead where I live
(Dun Laoghaire, south of Dublin) on the news just now.

I see a number of test kits on Amazon,
but am wondering if any experts can recommend a particular kit.

On a related note, our water supply runs through lead pipes between the stop
tap in the road and the stop tap in the rising main. How much lead is likely
to get into the drinking water? Is there any advantage in letting the water
run for a few minutes after it has been standing in the pipe overnight, as
my wife keeps nagging me to do?

On 12/08/2015 20:59, NY wrote:
"Timothy Murphy" wrote in message
...
Can anyone recommend a kit for testing the lead level
in water taken from the public water supply?
Or is there a simple DIY way of measuring this?

Not really.

The gold standard is ICP which will determine trace amounts of heavy
metals in tapwater pretty easily but a lab will charge for it. Your
water supplier should be able to tell you about local supply. Try

http://dwi.defra.gov.uk/consumers/ad...flets/lead.pdf

There was a scare story about lead where I live
(Dun Laoghaire, south of Dublin) on the news just now.

I see a number of test kits on Amazon,
but am wondering if any experts can recommend a particular kit.

If you are in a soft water area then there might be something to worry
about from lead pipes otherwise the limescale protects you.

None of the testing kits are really sensitive enough to be worthwhile.

On a related note, our water supply runs through lead pipes between the
stop tap in the road and the stop tap in the rising main. How much lead
is likely to get into the drinking water? Is there any advantage in
letting the water run for a few minutes after it has been standing in
the pipe overnight, as my wife keeps nagging me to do?

There might be in a soft water area. Does your kettle fur up.

Might be worth asking this in sci.chem in case someone can think of a
devious way to do a lead test at home on the cheap.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0324/689368-pipes/


I was under the impression that Phosphoric acid dosing was compulsory
[EU regs]

The final pH would not be an issue, even if the addition of phosphoric
acid were to have a significant effect, a dollop of caustic would soon
get one's pearly whites back in order :-)

One is inclined to wonder whether there is a link between meter
installation and lead contamination. Pipes that have been undisturbed
for years are not normally a contamination source.

Sadly mental problems due to water supplies are all too common, most
of the UK are quite happy to throw ridiculous levels of money away to
private speculators for what used to be their own rescource.

Now if you want to see them fighting for their share of the booty
extracted from the people they robbed of their utility.......

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...uneration.html

AB














On Wed, 12 Aug 2015 21:31:37 +0100, Martin Brown
wrote:

On 12/08/2015 20:59, NY wrote:
"Timothy Murphy" wrote in message
...
Can anyone recommend a kit for testing the lead level
in water taken from the public water supply?
Or is there a simple DIY way of measuring this?

Not really.

The gold standard is ICP which will determine trace amounts of heavy
metals in tapwater pretty easily but a lab will charge for it. Your
water supplier should be able to tell you about local supply. Try

http://dwi.defra.gov.uk/consumers/ad...flets/lead.pdf

There was a scare story about lead where I live
(Dun Laoghaire, south of Dublin) on the news just now.

I see a number of test kits on Amazon,
but am wondering if any experts can recommend a particular kit.

If you are in a soft water area then there might be something to worry
about from lead pipes otherwise the limescale protects you.

None of the testing kits are really sensitive enough to be worthwhile.

On a related note, our water supply runs through lead pipes between the
stop tap in the road and the stop tap in the rising main. How much lead
is likely to get into the drinking water? Is there any advantage in
letting the water run for a few minutes after it has been standing in
the pipe overnight, as my wife keeps nagging me to do?

There might be in a soft water area. Does your kettle fur up.

Might be worth asking this in sci.chem in case someone can think of a
devious way to do a lead test at home on the cheap.

On Wednesday, 12 August 2015 20:59:45 UTC+1, NY wrote:
"Timothy Murphy" wrote in message
...
Can anyone recommend a kit for testing the lead level
in water taken from the public water supply?
Or is there a simple DIY way of measuring this?

There was a scare story about lead where I live
(Dun Laoghaire, south of Dublin) on the news just now.

I see a number of test kits on Amazon,
but am wondering if any experts can recommend a particular kit.

On a related note, our water supply runs through lead pipes between the stop
tap in the road and the stop tap in the rising main. How much lead is likely
to get into the drinking water? Is there any advantage in letting the water
run for a few minutes after it has been standing in the pipe overnight, as
my wife keeps nagging me to do?

If you live in a soft water area, your wife is right.
Easiest way is to flush the toilet first thing in a morning.

You can buy water filter kits, they have a cartridge of activated charcoal removes some of the lead.
(Works
better on any pesticides and herbicides residues in the water.)

Downside is,it also removes the chlorine so bacteria can grow (including legeonnairella)