ad info

CNNin
 MAIN PAGE
 WORLD
 ASIANOW
 U.S.
 LOCAL
 POLITICS
 WEATHER
 BUSINESS
 SPORTS
 TECHNOLOGY
 NATURE
 ENTERTAINMENT
 BOOKS
 TRAVEL
 FOOD
 HEALTH
 AIDS
 Alternative
 Cancer
 Diet & Fitness
 Heart
 Men
 Seniors
 Women
 STYLE
 IN-DEPTH

 Headline News brief
 daily almanac
 CNN networks
 CNN programs
 on-air transcripts
 news quiz

  CNN WEB SITES:
CNN Websites
 TIME INC. SITES:
 MORE SERVICES:
 video on demand
 video archive
 audio on demand
 news email services
 free email accounts
 desktop headlines
 pointcast
 pagenet

 DISCUSSION:
 message boards
 chat
 feedback

 SITE GUIDES:
 help
 contents
 search

 FASTER ACCESS:
 europe
 japan

 WEB SERVICES:
Health

Study: Some home water filters may make lead problem worse

faucet
Some filters may actually increase water's lead content  

Brass faucets in filtration systems eyed as culprit

June 18, 1998
Web posted at: 11:27 p.m. EDT (0327 GMT)

SAN FRANCISCO (CNN) -- A California environmental group says some home water filtration systems, designed to make drinking water more pure, may actually be increasing the amount of lead in the water.

The Center for Environmental Health had 16 different brands of water filtration systems tested by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Asheville. Six brands produced water that exceeded California's limit for lead, with two -- made by Franke Inc. of Pennsylvania and Omni Corporation of Indiana -- generating water with readings substantially higher than the limit.

The California standard was used because there is no federal standard for lead in water.

Researchers point to brass faucets in the filtration systems as the lead-generating culprit. Brass is a combination of copper and lead.

"The water is left standing in the faucets themselves, and if these faucets contain lead, over the hours that this sits, what will happen is that this (lead) will gradually build up (in the water)," said Richard Maas, director of research at UNC-Asheville's Environmental Quality Institute.

The situation may be made worse by the fact that the filtration process makes the water more corrosive, allowing it to leach even more lead out of the brass faucets than it would if there was no filter hooked up at all, Maas said.

Although their products are certified by the National Sanitation Foundation, both Franke and Omni said they would investigate the results of the center's study. Franke is pulling the system in question from the market until tests can be conducted.

In the meantime, the Center for Environmental Health suggests two ways people with home water systems can combat the problem -- replace brass faucets with ones made of stainless steel, or let water run for at least 10 seconds before using it to discharge any fluid that has been stagnant inside the faucet.

San Francisco Bureau Chief Greg Lefevre contributed to this report.
Related stories:
Latest Headlines

Today on CNN

Related sites:

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not
endorsed by CNN Interactive.

SEARCH CNN.com
Enter keyword(s)   go    help

  
 

Back to the top
© 2000 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.