PFAS Water Testing in Pennsylvania

Six steps to a real answer

1. Identify who supplies your water

Your water bill names the public water system. If you have no water bill, you are almost certainly on a private well, which nobody tests on your behalf. Roughly one in five Pennsylvania households relies on a private well — the highest share of any state after Michigan.

2. Look up published results for a public system

Public systems publish an annual Consumer Confidence Report and, since the federal PFAS rule, PFAS sampling results. Pennsylvania DEP's statewide PFAS sampling program and the EPA's UCMR monitoring database both hold results for hundreds of PA sources. Search for your system by name and save any PDF you find.

3. Order an accredited test for a private well

Use a laboratory accredited for PFAS analysis under an approved EPA method. Expect roughly $200-$600. Follow the sampling instructions exactly — PFAS is present in many everyday materials, so a contaminated sample bottle or the wrong gloves can invalidate the result.

4. Read the result against the limits

The federal standard is 4 parts per trillion for PFOA and for PFOS, with separate limits for PFHxS, PFNA, and HFPO-DA (GenX) and a hazard index for mixtures. Pennsylvania sets its own state limits for PFOA and PFOS. Note the compound names and the detected concentration, not just pass or fail.

5. Treat the water if PFAS is present

Reverse osmosis and properly sized granular activated carbon are the two proven approaches for household drinking water. Look for NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 certification for PFOA and PFOS reduction. Softeners, standard pitcher and fridge filters, and boiling do not work — boiling makes the concentration worse.

6. Keep everything

Save the full laboratory report, any notice from your water authority, and records showing where you lived or worked and when. Those documents are what turns a general concern into a documented exposure history.

What removes PFAS, and what does not

Method	Effect on PFAS
Reverse osmosis (under-sink or whole-house)	Effective — the most reliable household option
Granular activated carbon, properly sized and replaced	Effective when maintained on schedule
Ion exchange resin designed for PFAS	Effective, typically used at the system level
Standard pitcher or refrigerator filters	Not effective unless specifically certified for PFOA/PFOS
Water softeners	Not effective — they target hardness, not PFAS
Boiling	Makes it worse — water evaporates, PFAS concentration rises

Where PFAS keeps turning up in Pennsylvania

Southeastern PA — Bucks and Montgomery

Decades of AFFF use at the former Naval Air Warfare Center Warminster, the former NAS Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove, and Horsham Air Guard Station drove some of the highest PFAS levels recorded in the state. Multiple authorities shut down wells or installed treatment.

County detail →

Berks and the Reading area

Industrial legacy sites and well sampling have produced PFAS detections across Berks County water sources. Residents on private wells in the townships surrounding Reading are the most common testing questions we see from this area.

County detail →

Western PA — Allegheny, Washington, Greene

Airport AFFF use, industrial discharge, and questions about oil-and-gas wastewater handling all feed PFAS and PFOA water-treatment concerns across southwestern Pennsylvania. Private wells are common outside the municipal service areas.

County detail →

Central PA — Dauphin and Franklin

Harrisburg International Airport, on the former Olmsted Air Force Base, and Letterkenny Army Depot are both documented AFFF sources that affected nearby groundwater.

County detail →

Your area is not listed? Browse all 67 Pennsylvania counties and major cities, or read the background on PFAS contaminated drinking water in Pennsylvania.

Note. This page is general information about water testing, not legal or medical advice, and testing procedures and published limits change over time. Confirm current requirements with your water authority, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, or an accredited laboratory.

Pennsylvania PFAS water testing FAQs

How do I find out if my Pennsylvania tap water has PFAS?

If you are on a public water system, start with your annual Consumer Confidence Report and your water authority's PFAS sampling results, which most PA systems now publish online. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection also ran a statewide PFAS sampling program covering hundreds of public water sources, and the EPA's national UCMR monitoring results are public. If you are on a private well, no agency tests it for you — you have to arrange the test yourself.

How much does a private well PFAS test cost?

A PFAS-specific laboratory test for a private well generally runs from roughly $200 to $600 depending on how many compounds are included. It must be done by a laboratory accredited for PFAS analysis using an approved EPA method; a hardware-store test strip cannot detect PFAS. Keep the full laboratory report, not just the summary page.

What PFAS level is considered too high?

The EPA's national drinking water standard sets enforceable limits of 4 parts per trillion for PFOA and for PFOS, with separate limits for several other PFAS compounds and a hazard index for mixtures. Pennsylvania also has its own state maximum contaminant levels for PFOA and PFOS. Any confirmed detection is worth documenting, even below a limit.

Do water filters remove PFAS?

Some do. Reverse osmosis systems and properly sized, regularly replaced granular activated carbon filters are the two approaches shown to reduce PFAS in drinking water. Standard pitcher filters, refrigerator filters, water softeners, and boiling do not remove PFAS — boiling concentrates it. Look for filters certified to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 for PFOA and PFOS reduction, and follow the replacement schedule.

Does a positive PFAS water test mean I have a claim?

Not on its own. A water test documents exposure, but a PFAS claim also depends on a diagnosed health condition, how long you lived or worked at that location, and the timing between the exposure period and the diagnosis. A test result is strong supporting evidence to include with an intake submission.

I already threw out my old water bills. Does that matter?

It is not fatal. Utility bills, lease and deed records, employment records, and military service records all help establish where you were and when, and much of it can be reconstructed later. Submit the intake with what you have.