Service Line Inspections

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently mandated public water systems to identify water service line materials as part of the EPA's Lead and Copper Rule. By October 2024, public water systems are required to develop an inventory of water service line material types for properties within their service territory.

Like many communities, the City of Troy utilized lead for water service lines for public and private sides in the early 20th century. In 1944, the City enacted rules that banned the use of lead. To date, Troy has evaluated the public side of the water services (the side the City maintains) and replaced all known lead and galvanized water lines.

Based on the new EPA mandates, the City of Troy estimates 2,000 private side water service lines in Troy that must be identified. Only homes in Troy built before 1944 have the possibility of having lead water service lines.

Residences built before February 1, 1944, will need to be inspected for lead. If your residence was built before 1944, you will receive a letter from the City yearly until the service is replaced or material verified otherwise.

If your home was built before 1944, you will need to do one of the following:

  1. You can schedule an appointment for a City of Troy utility technician to inspect your service line. This inspection should take approximately 15 minutes. City staff will need to access the location where the water service enters your home (typically in the basement area, crawlspace, or utility closet). Technicians are available Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Call 937-335-4151 to schedule.

  2. You may self-report online through this form. You will receive instructions in the letter you receive. 

    For this effort, we are only interested in the service line material up to the shutoff valve, not beyond, and do not need to know the material of the plumbing in your home or business. This service line pipe will be located in the lowest part of your house, entering from the floor or  outside wall. Note that your water service line is not the pipe located under your kitchen sink.

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Water service line

If it is determined your water service line material is lead, additional information will be provided to you. For any questions regarding lead service lines, please contact the Billing & Collection Department at 937-335-4151 or email leadservices@troyohio.gov.

Service line structure

 

FAQs:

If you are wondering if you have a lead service line, you can view the 2025 Service Line Inventory Material (SLIM) sheet. This sheet shows the service line material if known, of homes built before February 1, 1944.
Lead testing kits are available at most hardware stores. If you would like to perform a test on the service line as it enters your home you can do so by following the instructions here.
If you have a lead service pipe, you are at risk of lead exposure. Lead can be released when water comes in contact with pipes that contain lead. If present, elevated lead levels can cause serious health problems, especially for pregnant women and young children. Lead service pipes are replaced with copper pipes.

Lead is not present in our source water. Lead contamination in drinking water results from lead plumbing materials exposed to corrosive water. To prevent this, the Water Plant staff continuously monitors the treatment process to control alkalinity and pH, ensuring our product is in a non-corrosive and absolutely safe state.

For decades we have tightly controlled the chemistry of our water, utilizing common but very effective treatment techniques to achieve a precise Ohio EPA- mandated calcium carbonate stability index. This precise chemistry allows us to deposit a very thin protective layer of calcium carbonate coating within our system's piping and fixtures, to add an extra layer of protection from lead plumbing components that may exist in older sections of our system.

By Ohio and US EPA mandate, we conduct both lead and copper testing at 30 locations every three years. Samples are taken by citizens in Troy residences and submitted to an EPA-approved independent laboratory for analysis.
Historically, Troy has shown very few detections for lead since testing began in 1993. The EPA Action Level of concern is set at 15 parts per billion. Public Water Systems exceeding this 15 ppb standard in more than 10% of their samples are required to take special measures to control water quality. Troy's sampling results have always been well below the level of concern.
Lead sources and lead levels in water vary between buildings, so it is important to identify and remove all lead sources for each property. Some service pipes that connect the lead-free water main in the street to household plumbing contain lead. In addition, some plumbing fixtures and joint solder inside homes can contain lead.
The best step to take is to have all lead service lines removed as soon as possible. In the interim, there are steps you can take to reduce exposure to lead in your drinking water. The Ohio EPA provides more information here.