Lead is the one contaminant worth taking seriously in Canadian homes — and the one most likely to come from your own plumbing rather than the water supply.
Where it comes from
Treated water leaving a Canadian plant contains essentially no lead. It is picked up on the way to your tap, from lead service lines connecting the street main to the house, from lead solder used in copper plumbing, and from older brass fixtures.
The dividing line is roughly the mid-1970s. Homes built before then are the ones at risk. Several Canadian cities, including Toronto, Montreal and Hamilton, have long-running programmes to replace lead service lines — but replacement takes decades, and the portion on private property is usually the homeowner’s responsibility.
How to find out
Many municipalities offer free lead testing for residential properties, and some publish maps showing which streets still have lead service lines. Start with your city’s water department — this costs nothing and removes all guesswork.
You can also look at your own pipe where it enters the house. Lead is dull grey, soft enough to scratch with a coin, and not magnetic. Copper is obvious by colour. If you are unsure, a plumber will identify it in seconds.
What actually removes it
This is where filter shopping goes wrong. A filter certified to NSF/ANSI 42 handles chlorine, taste and odour — aesthetic effects. It does not remove lead. For lead you need NSF/ANSI 53 certification, and the packaging should state lead reduction specifically.
Reverse osmosis also removes lead effectively. Boiling does not — it concentrates it, because water evaporates and lead does not.
Simple habits that help
Lead leaches into water that sits still. Running the cold tap for thirty seconds to a minute before drinking, especially first thing in the morning, flushes the standing water out. Never use hot tap water for drinking, cooking or making baby formula — hot water dissolves lead far more readily than cold.
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