Guides

PFAS testing is often a separate panel

PFAS testing is usually not included in a basic drinking-water metals package. You need a lab certified for PFAS methods — and you need to confirm that before you pay for bottles.

A strip, a TDS meter, or a generic "home water test" kit is not a certified PFAS result.

Why PFAS is different

PFAS covers a family of compounds (PFOA, PFOS, and others). Labs run specific EPA or state-approved methods at low detection limits. That scope is listed separately on certification records — not bundled into every coliform or lead line item.

What to ask the lab

  1. Are you certified for PFAS in drinking water in my state?
  2. Which compounds and reporting limits are on your panel?
  3. Do you supply PFAS-specific bottles and preservatives?
  4. Is this informational only, or for a named regulation?

City water vs private well

Both can be tested for PFAS at a certified lab. Your utility CCR may discuss PFAS at the system level; a tap sample answers what reaches your faucet.

Official contacts: EPA certified laboratory contacts. EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline: 800-426-4791.

Find a certified lab