December 24, 2008 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 3 Area Moritz: Issues stem from plumbing, not water by John Koster Ridgewood Water Company Director Frank Moritz said water company consumers in Ridgewood, Glen Rock, Midland Park, and Wyckoff should not be con- cerned about lead levels as long as they run their taps before collecting water to drink. “The key to the whole thing is to run the water,” Moritz said late last week. Moritz said the problem is a lead-pipe cinch. Resi- dents whose homes’ internal pipes have been contami- nated with lead from old-fashioned plumbing techniques could indeed experience water quality problems due to the lead solder in the pipes, but these problems can be quickly alleviated by running the water for 15 to 30 seconds before using it to drink. Running heated water through the pipes accelerates the lead problem, so hot water should not be used for cooking food or making baby formula. Instead, homeowners should dispense cold tap water and heat it for cooking. The lead, Moritz explained, does not come from the water provided by the Ridgewood Water Company but from the pipes in older homes. Ridgewood Water tested 63 homes for lead in September and found that eight homes had results of more than 15 parts of lead per billion. The ranges of these homes over the line were anywhere from 16 to 30 parts per billion. Under federal regulations, a test in which more than 10 per- cent of samples produced results of more than 15 parts per billion requires a general notification of consum- ers. The Ridgewood Water Company sent a notice to more than 20,000 of the 60,000 customers’ homes warning about the problems caused by the plumbing – not the water – and urging residents to run their fau- cets for 15 to 30 seconds with cold water before they collect water for drinking or cooking. The water utility will now have to test twice in 2009, rather than the one time required under state regulations. If the problem continues to be detected, a program of line replacement must be initiated. Musical outreach Ridgewood High School English teacher Matt Cheplic has created a new six-song CD ‘Who Burned the Book of Love?’ Proceeds will benefit the Palisades Emergency Relief Corporation, a homeless shelter and soup kitchen in Union City. PERC also provides job training to help people in need get back on their feet. The CD is available on iTunes, CDBaby.com and by contacting Cheplic directly at mattcheplic@gmail.com. COMPUTER REPAIR SLOW? Is your computer running Get it running like NEW again! Call Prestige Design at (201) 445-4220 to schedule a computer pick up or an in home consultation. Mention this ad and get 10% off!!! Our Services Include: Virus and Spyware Removal - Hard Drive Data Recovery Computer Upgrades - Software Installation - Computer Setup Prestige Design 127 East Ridgewood Avenue Ridgewood, NJ 07450 Suite #205 Winter specials available now for a limited time only. Call Robin at 973-636-7000 prestige-wd.com