Lead Service Lines and Rancho Santa Margarita Homes: How to Check Your Water Line and What the Inventory Means
Water systems across the country now have to inventory service line materials. What a lead service line is, how likely one is in a 1980s or 1990s Rancho Santa…
News about lead pipes has many homeowners asking whether their own water line is safe. Federal rules now require water systems to build an inventory of service line materials and share it with customers, so it is easier than ever to find out what serves your Rancho Santa Margarita home.
What a service line is
The service line is the pipe that carries water from the main in the street to your house. Part of it, usually up to the meter, belongs to the water district. The rest, from the meter to the house, belongs to the homeowner. A lead service line is one made of lead pipe, which was used in some older cities before lead was banned in new plumbing.
How likely is lead here?
Rancho Santa Margarita is a young city. Most homes in the village neighborhoods around the lake, Rancho Cielo and the tracts along Antonio Parkway and Santa Margarita Parkway were built from the mid-1980s through the 2000s, well after lead pipe stopped being used for service lines. That makes lead service lines unlikely. Santa Margarita Water District publishes its service line information for customers, and checking it is the easiest way to confirm.
How to check your own line
Find where the water line enters the house, usually near the main shutoff, and look at the pipe just before the valve.
- Copper looks like a penny, or dull brown and green with age. A magnet will not stick.
- Galvanized steel is gray and threaded at joints. A magnet will stick.
- Plastic lines may be blue, black, white or gray.
- Lead is dull gray, soft enough that a coin scratch shows shiny silver, and a magnet will not stick.
If you are unsure, take a photo and ask your water district or a plumber.
What else affects water at the tap
Even with no lead service line, older solder and some brass fixtures can contribute small amounts of metal. Copper piping inside the house can also corrode with age, causing blue-green stains or a metallic taste. Running cold water for a short time after it sits overnight and using cold water for cooking are simple steps.
Updating the pipes inside
If your home's copper is showing its age, a PEX-A repipe replaces the supply lines inside the house with lead-free fittings and new shutoffs. We can also replace the homeowner side of the service line when it is part of the project. Work is permitted and inspected through the City of Rancho Santa Margarita, and we follow your association's rules for access.
Related reading
See what goes into a two-story house repipe or a rental property repipe. Neighbors can visit Mission Viejo, Coto de Caza and Trabuco Canyon, or see every city we serve at repipeinc.com.
Questions about your water line?
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Repipe OC, 23821 Hillhurst Drive, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677, (949) 524-2362, CSLB #1087885 C-36.
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Written by Repipe OC · CSLB #1087885 C-36 · 23821 Hillhurst Drive, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677 · (949) 524-2362