In North Carolina, 58 of 128 city reports had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit. PFAS across North Carolina →
Your tap usually reflects the system’s water, but results vary between samples and sources. Only a certified lab test tells you what reaches your glass today.
How to test for PFASPFAS are measured in parts per trillion. Home strips can’t read that low, so a certified lab is the only way to get a number for your tap.
These are the methods behind the federal results. Ask which compounds are on the panel, so PFOS, PFHxS and PFBS are included, and keep the reporting limit with your result.
Find a certified lab in North Carolina ↗ (opens in a new tab)No home strip has been shown to detect PFAS at the levels federal limits use. A mail-in lab kit is the closest at-home option; check that its lab is accredited and that its panel names the compounds you need.
Read your lab results →Why: these are the technologies certified to reduce PFAS. Certification is compound by compound, so check that a listing names the compound you need to reduce.
★ Best choice: Aquasana Claryum 2-Stage Under-Sink Filter (AQ-5200), certified for PFOS.
| Pick | Product | Details and price | Certification | Why it’s listed | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ★ Best choice | Under-sinkAquasana Claryum 2-Stage Under-Sink Filter (AQ-5200) | TreatsPFOSPrice$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, WQA) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price on Amazon |
| Also good | Under-sinkAquasana Claryum 3-Stage Max Flow Under-Sink Filter (AQ-6300M) | TreatsPFOSPrice$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, WQA) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Aquasana |
| Also good | CountertopAquasana Clean Water Machine Countertop Filter (AQ-CWM2) | TreatsPFOSPrice$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, WQA) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Aquasana |
| Pick | Product | Details and price | Certification | Why it’s listed | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Also good | Reverse osmosisSmartFlow® Reverse Osmosis | TreatsPFOSTechnologyReverse osmosisPrice$$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53 (includes P473), WQA) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Aquasana |
| Also good | Under-sinkWaterdrop G3P600 Tankless Reverse-Osmosis System | TreatsPFOSPrice$$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, IAPMO) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Waterdrop |
| Also good | Under-sinkWaterdrop G3P800 Tankless Reverse-Osmosis System | TreatsPFOSPrice$$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, IAPMO) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Waterdrop |
| Also good | CountertopAquaTru Carafe Countertop Reverse-Osmosis Purifier (AT100) | TreatsPFOSPrice$$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, IAPMO) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price on Amazon |
| Also good | CountertopAquaTru Classic Countertop Reverse-Osmosis Purifier (AT2000) | TreatsPFOSPrice$$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, IAPMO) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price on Amazon |
| Also good | CountertopPatriot Pure Ultimate Water Filtration System | TreatsPFOSPrice$$ | Certified for PFOS (NSF/ANSI 53, NSF, IAPMO) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price on Amazon |
| Also good | Reverse osmosisiSpring RCC7AK Alkaline Reverse Osmosis SystemUse code REFISPRING at checkout: 10% off your first iSpring order. | TechnologyReverse osmosisPrice$$ | Brand lab-tested for PFAS, not independently certified for PFOS, Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS), Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), PFHxS and Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) | See the evidence | Check price at iSpring |
| Also good | Reverse osmosisiSpring RO5004F Tankless Reverse Osmosis System with UVUse code REFISPRING at checkout: 10% off your first iSpring order. | TechnologyReverse osmosisPrice$$$ | Brand lab-tested for PFAS, not independently certified for PFOS, Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS), Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), PFHxS and Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) | See the evidence | Check price at iSpring |
| Also good | Reverse osmosisWaterdrop X12 Reverse Osmosis System | TechnologyReverse osmosisPrice$$$$ | Brand lab-tested for PFAS, not independently certified for PFOS, Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS), Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), PFHxS and Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) | See the evidence | Check price at Waterdrop |
★ Best choice: HealthShield™, certified for PFOS and PFHxS.
| Pick | Product | Details and price | Certification | Why it’s listed | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ★ Best choice | Whole-houseHealthShield™ | TreatsPFOS and PFHxSPrice$$$$ | Certified for PFOS and PFHxS (NSF/ANSI 53, WQA) | Why it’s listed: its current certification names PFOS and PFHxS, found in Harrisburg’s record.See the evidence | Check price at Aquasana |
| $ Budget pick | Whole-houseiSpring WGB32B-PFKS PFAS & Heavy Metals Whole House FilterUse code REFISPRING at checkout: 10% off your first iSpring order. | Price$$$ | Brand lab-tested for PFAS, not independently certified for PFOS, Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS), Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), PFHxS and Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) | See the evidence | Check price at iSpring |
PurityMap earns a commission from these links. "Best choice" and "Budget pick" go to certified products first; commission never decides them. As an Amazon Associate, PurityMap earns from qualifying purchases. Affiliate disclosure.
These results describe HARRISBURG, TOWN OF’s water system, not the water in your glass. Compliance with the 2024 limits is judged on a running annual average, with a compliance date of 2029 (EPA has proposed allowing until 2031 for PFOA and PFOS). The 24 compounds not detected were below the lab’s reporting limit, which is not the same as zero. And 29 compounds were tested; PFAS not on that list have no result here.
One PFAS had a sample above a 2024 EPA limit. In EPA UCMR 5 testing of HARRISBURG, TOWN OF (2025-01-13 to 2025-10-15): PFOS 10.3 ng/L (limit 4), PFHxS 4.9 ng/L (limit 10), PFBS 4.2 ng/L (EPA health advisory 2,000), PFHxA 3.3 ng/L (state limit 400,000), PFPeA 4.1 ng/L (no federal or state limit) and the other 24 PFAS tested not detected. "Not detected" means below the lab's reporting limit, not proven zero.
EPA's 2024 drinking-water rule set maximum contaminant levels of 4.0 ng/L for PFOA and for PFOS, and 10 ng/L for PFHxS, PFNA and HFPO-DA (GenX). In May 2026 EPA proposed keeping the PFOA and PFOS limits, with the option of until 2031 to comply, and rescinding the other three. Until a final rule, all five limits apply. The 2024 rule also set a Hazard Index of 1 for mixtures of two or more of PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS; EPA has proposed rescinding it, and it applies until a final rule.
No. They have no federal drinking-water limit (MCL); the 2024 rule sets limits only for PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA and HFPO-DA (GenX). PFBS has no limit of its own; the 2024 rule counts it only inside the Hazard Index for mixtures, which EPA has proposed rescinding. PFBS has an EPA health advisory of 2,000 ng/L, a screening level, not a legal limit. PFHxA has a 400,000 ng/L state limit. Harrisburg's results: PFBS 4.2 ng/L, PFHxA 3.3 ng/L and PFPeA 4.1 ng/L.
No. "Not detected" (ND) means the result was below the lab's reporting limit, not that the compound is absent. In Harrisburg's record, 24 of the 29 PFAS tested were not detected. Their reporting limits run from 2 to 20 ng/L.
29 PFAS compounds in EPA UCMR 5 testing of HARRISBURG, TOWN OF (2025-01-13 to 2025-10-15), including the five with federal limits. PFOS, PFHxS, PFBS, PFHxA and PFPeA were detected. PFAS not on that list have no result here.
Yes. These results describe the water system as a whole, and levels vary between samples and sources over time. PFAS come with the water rather than from home plumbing, so your tap usually reflects the system's water, but only a certified lab test of your own tap gives a number for your glass.
Use a state-certified lab that runs EPA Method 533 or 537.1, the methods behind the federal results. Ask which compounds are on the panel, so PFOS, PFHxS and PFBS are included, and keep the reporting limit with your result. No home test strip has been shown to detect PFAS at the levels federal limits use.
Reverse osmosis, activated carbon and anion exchange can reduce PFAS, but certification is compound by compound. Look for NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 naming the compound; RO systems often carry it under 53. Choose a model whose current listing names the compound you need to reduce, here PFOS, PFHxS and PFBS, check it in the certifier's listing (NSF, WQA or IAPMO), and replace cartridges on schedule.
Look for PFOS, PFHxS and PFBS by name in the certifier's listing (NSF, WQA or IAPMO) for the exact model: NSF/ANSI 53 and 58 listings name each PFAS a filter was tested to reduce. A listing for PFOA and PFOS alone does not cover PFHxS and PFBS.
Compliance with the 2024 limits is judged on a running annual average, with a compliance date of 2029 (EPA has proposed allowing until 2031 for PFOA and PFOS). EPA has proposed rescinding the PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and Hazard Index limits; they apply until a final rule.