Can renters test their apartment water?

Yes. You don't need your landlord's permission to test your own tap water. You collect a sample from your faucet and mail it to a certified lab. The process is the same as for homeowners. Mail-in services like Tap Score and National Testing Laboratories send collection kits directly to you.

Do I need my landlord to test my water?

No. You can order a mail-in water test independently. The lab sends you a sterile collection bottle with instructions. You collect the sample, mail it back, and receive results by email. Your landlord has no role in the process unless you choose to share results with them afterward.

What water test should apartment renters get?

Lead is the highest priority for renters in buildings built before 1986. A targeted lead test runs $15 to $30 from a certified mail-in lab. If you want a broader picture, a basic panel covering lead, nitrates, bacteria, iron, hardness, and chlorine runs $50 to $80. PFAS testing adds roughly $50 to $100 more.

What if my apartment has lead in the water?

You can't force your landlord to re-pipe the building, but you can take immediate protective steps. Always flush cold water for 30 to 60 seconds before using it for drinking or cooking. Never use hot tap water for cooking or infant formula. An NSF 53-certified faucet filter or pitcher filter with lead certification (Clearly Filtered, PUR) reduces lead to safe levels at the tap.

Is my landlord required to fix lead in the water?

It depends on your jurisdiction. In many cities, habitability standards include safe drinking water, and a documented lead problem may give you legal standing to request remediation. Some cities require lead pipe disclosure at lease signing. Check your local housing code, and put any findings in writing to your landlord to create a paper trail.

Water Testing for Renters and Apartment Dwellers

You don’t need permission to test your own tap water. You turn on the faucet, fill a sample bottle, mail it to a lab. Your landlord doesn’t enter the picture.

Most renters don’t realize this. Testing feels like a homeowner thing. It isn’t.

What Renters Are Most at Risk For

Lead is the main concern for apartment dwellers, particularly in buildings built before 1986.

When Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1986, it banned lead solder in new plumbing. That means any building constructed before that year can have lead solder at pipe joints throughout the entire structure, not just the service line from the street. In older cities, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, Detroit, and Baltimore have the highest concentration of pre-1986 rental housing stock. A significant portion of that stock has lead pipe risk.

The utility’s water is often clean at the main. Lead leaches into water as it sits in building pipes and fixtures. A clean CCR from your city tells you nothing about your specific apartment.

How to Collect a First-Draw Sample

For lead testing, the most informative sample is a first-draw sample taken from the cold tap first thing in the morning before running any water. The goal is to capture water that has been sitting in the pipe directly outside your faucet overnight, at least six hours of contact time. That gives the highest-lead result and represents your worst-case daily exposure.

Use the sterile sample bottle your mail-in lab sends with the kit. Don’t rinse it first. Remove the aerator screen from your faucet if you have one before collecting. Fill to the line indicated, cap it, and follow the lab’s specific instructions for temperature and mailing.

Second-draw sample: some labs ask for both a first-draw and a flushed sample. The flushed sample, taken after running water for 30 seconds, represents water from the building’s main supply line rather than your immediate fixture. If your first-draw lead is high and your flushed sample is low, the lead is coming from your fixture or nearby plumbing. If both are high, it’s coming from deeper in the building’s supply.

Mail-In Labs for Renters

National Testing Laboratories, Tap Score (SimpleLab), and US Water Systems all sell collection kits that ship directly to you. A targeted lead test runs $15 to $30. A broader basic panel covering lead, nitrates, iron, hardness, pH, chlorine, and bacteria starts around $50 to $80.

If you’re in a city with aging infrastructure and want to test for PFAS alongside lead, expect to add $50 to $100 to the panel cost. Tap Score’s “Essential” plan covers 111 contaminants including PFAS for around $100 to $130. That’s the most thorough option for renters with broad concerns.

What to Do If Lead Shows Up

You can’t force your landlord to replace pipes. What you can do immediately, at low cost.

Always flush cold water for 30 to 60 seconds before drawing water for drinking or cooking. During the flush, the water sitting in your building’s pipes clears out and is replaced by fresh water from the main supply, which typically has lower lead.

Never use hot tap water for cooking, drinking, or mixing infant formula. Heat increases lead leaching, and hot water heaters can concentrate lead that’s been accumulating.

Install a point-of-use filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for lead reduction. NSF 53 is the specific certification that covers lead at the tap. Products certified to this standard include Clearly Filtered pitchers, PUR faucet mounts, and several Brita models (though not all, so check the specific certification on the model you buy). An NSF 53-certified filter at your kitchen tap covers your drinking and cooking water.

Renter Rights and Disclosure

The EPA’s Lead Disclosure Rule (1996) requires landlords to disclose known lead-based paint hazards in pre-1978 housing at lease signing. Lead pipes in plumbing are a separate category and disclosure requirements vary widely by city and state.

New York City has mandatory lead pipe disclosure requirements. Chicago has audited its service line inventory. Several California cities have enacted similar rules. Outside major cities, there’s often no disclosure requirement for lead plumbing.

If your test shows a problem, document everything in writing to the landlord. A dated letter or email creates a paper trail. In many jurisdictions, habitability standards include safe drinking water, and a documented lead test result may give you standing to request remediation, rent abatement, or, in some cases, lease termination for cause.

Don’t threaten or speculate. Just state what the test showed, what certified lab ran it, the date of the result, and ask what steps the landlord plans to take. Their written response (or silence) matters if you pursue the issue further.

The Bottom Line

If you’re in a pre-1986 apartment building in a city with aging infrastructure, a $20 to $30 lead test is worth doing. The knowledge costs almost nothing compared to the peace of mind, or to knowing you need a filter.

If results show lead above 5 ppb, a Clearly Filtered pitcher or an NSF 53-certified faucet filter gives you immediate protection at the tap while you decide what to do next.

See the best mail-in water tests for specific lab service picks. For more on lead sources and health effects, the lead contamination page covers the full picture. If you’re uncertain what your test numbers mean, how to read water test results explains MCLs, MCLGs, and the action level for lead specifically.