GREENSBORO, N.C. — The City of Greensboro is sending out letters to homes to find out what kind of pipes carry water into your home. The letters are in response to a report the city must send to the state that gives an inventory of what pipes are in public and private buildings.
When folks got these letters and saw so many descriptions about lead issues, water lines, and testing, they got concerned that there was something wrong with the city's water supply. That's not the case. These letters are a fact-finding mission. The city has been sending out these letters for over a year.
"We have been doing investigations for more than a year, field investigations. We have not found any lead service pipes," said Mario Edouard, City of Greensboro Water Resources Project Manager.
What you need to do is find the water service pipe at your home. To do that, you'll start with the water meter. The pipe from the meter to your house is what the city wants to know about. You can look at the pipe at the meter, or you may get a better look at the pipe where the valve shut-off is. This can be in a crawl space, basement, or closet. Do not look under the sink, that's not the service water line.
Next, you're looking for the color of the pipe. Gray is NOT the color you want. Usually, a lead pipe or a galvanized steel pipe is gray. A copper pipe is a reddish-brown color. You may have to use a penny to scrape some of the sediment off to find the real color. Another way to know if you have a galvanized pipe is to bring a fridge magnet with you. If the magnet sticks to the pipe, it's galvanized.
No matter what kind of pipe you have, you need to respond to the city. If you find you have a lead or a galvanized pipe, the city will come to verify it. The good news, the city has funds to pay for the replacement of the pipe. Also, the city has FREE water testing for lead. You can contact them at 336-373-7527 or watersupplylab@greensboro-nc.gov.
"Some people will get letters because the building they are in was built before 1986. After 1986 lead was banned, but before 1986 having lead was a compliant pipe," said Edouard.