What a lead service line is, and why it matters
A service line is the pipe connecting the water main in the street to your house. In homes built before about 1930 it is often made of lead. Lead can dissolve into water under the right conditions, which means the pipe itself becomes the source of contamination — no matter how clean the water was when it left the treatment plant.
Where your water is treated depends on the village. The North Shore Water Commission supplies Whitefish Bay, Fox Point and Glendale. Shorewood buys treated water from Milwaukee Water Works and runs its own distribution system. Both add orthophosphate to control corrosion, which helps — but corrosion control does not eliminate the hazard from a private lead line. Replacement is the actual answer; treatment only reduces the risk in the meantime.
Lead exposure impairs neurological development in children and is associated with lower IQ and attention deficits. In pregnancy it raises the risk of miscarriage and developmental delay. There is no level of lead in drinking water that is considered beneficial.
The 2037 deadline
The EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements requires every public water system in the country to identify and replace every lead service line by 1 January 2037, or demonstrate safe corrosion control. That is what has put all three villages on a published schedule.
| Period | What happens |
|---|---|
| 2022–2025 | Inventory verification and orthophosphate optimisation |
| 2025–2030 | Highest-risk public-side lines replaced first — near schools and daycare centres |
| 2028–2034 | Joint excavations coordinating public and private replacement |
| 2035–2037 | Remaining residential lead lines |
If your line is not near a school and not high-risk, you may be waiting into the 2030s. That gap is the reason this page exists.
Step 1 — find out what your line is made of
Check the Village inventory
Each village publishes an online Lead Service Line Inventory. Enter your address and it will show whether the public side and the private side are recorded as lead, copper, or unknown. This takes two minutes and it is the right first step.
Look at the pipe yourself
- Shut off the water inside and open an exterior faucet.
- Find the pipe where it enters — near the meter or through the basement wall.
- Scratch it gently with a coin or key.
Lead is dull grey, soft, and scrapes easily to a shiny silver. Copper is reddish-brown, like a penny. PEX is flexible plastic. A magnet will stick to galvanised steel but not to lead.
Photograph what you find. If it looks like lead, request a Village inspection to confirm it.
If your line is listed as “unknown”
Ask for a professional inspection or a Village excavation to expose the pipe. Until the material is confirmed, treat it as if it were lead. A point-of-use filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 can reduce up to 99% of dissolved lead — NSF 53 is the standard that actually covers lead reduction, and it is worth checking for by name on anything you buy.
Step 2 — test your water properly
Take a first-draw sample: water that has been sitting in the pipes for at least six hours, collected in a lab-approved bottle. This is the worst case, which is what you want to measure. Home test strips are quick but far less reliable than a certified laboratory.
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| Above 10 ppb | The EPA action level. Mitigate now. |
| Above 5 ppb | Prompt mitigation: flushing, filtered water, or expediting replacement. |
| Below 5 ppb | Lower risk — but retest after any plumbing work, which can disturb scale. |
Step 3 — understand who pays for what
| Segment | Owner | Who replaces it |
|---|---|---|
| Main to curb stop | The Village | Municipal crews, at no cost to you |
| Curb stop to your meter | You | You arrange and pay a private contractor |
This split catches people out. The Village replacing “your” lead line usually means the half in the street. The half under your garden is yours.
What replacement costs
| Component | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Excavation and pipe removal | $2,000–$4,000 |
| Copper or PEX installation | $3,000–$5,000 |
| Site restoration and landscaping | $500–$1,000 |
| Total, private side | $6,000–$10,000 |
Licensed crews notify you before excavation. The work usually takes one day: water off, excavate, remove the lead pipe, install copper or PEX, pressure-test, disinfect, restore the site.
Help paying for it
- Wisconsin DNR Safe Drinking Water Loan Program — low-interest financing
- Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grants through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
- Village subsidies for low-income residents
- Home equity lines of credit, or payment plans from licensed plumbers
The IRS has confirmed that government-subsidised private lead service line replacements are not taxable income to the property owner, so a subsidy goes entirely into the work. Grants, loans and the tax exclusion can be combined.
Step 4 — reduce your exposure while you wait
- Flush before you drink. Run the cold tap 30–60 seconds after water has been standing. Longer if it has sat overnight.
- Cold water only for drinking, cooking and making up formula. Hot water dissolves lead faster.
- Clean your aerators. Particles collect in the tap screen.
- Use a filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for lead. Check the certification by name — not every filter that mentions lead is certified for it.
- Retest after any plumbing work — disturbing the pipe can spike readings for weeks.
Staying involved
Each village holds quarterly public works meetings covering replacement schedules, budgets and inventory corrections. You can sign up for email notices on the Village website, attend in person or by webinar, and submit questions through the Village’s online form. Attendance genuinely affects scheduling.
Worth bookmarking:
- Your Village’s Public Works page and Lead Service Line Inventory
- Wisconsin DNR Lead Service Line Replacement Program
- EPA Lead and Copper Rule Improvements guidance
Where we come in — and where we don’t
We sell whole-house filtration. It is not a substitute for replacing a lead service line, and we won’t tell you otherwise. Replacement is the permanent fix.
What filtration does is cover the years in between, and it treats every tap rather than one. If lead is your concern, tell us — it changes which model and which cartridge we’d recommend, and we’ll give you the NSF/ANSI 53 certification for that specific filter in writing. That is the standard that covers lead reduction, and it is the one you should ask any company for.