Do you use hot tap water when cooking?- Lead exposure?

DH thinks I should be careful to always fill the pot with cold water from the tap when I need to boil the water for pasta or something. I've always filled it with hot tap water because I feel it cuts the boiling time significantly. DH is convinced that I'm lead poisoning the whole family, b/c he claims there's lead in most water pipes and a higher % in hot water.
Have you ever heard of this? I did a google search and found the CDC website , but it doesn't look like it's a huge health threat...
Does anyone else only use cold water when they need to boil a pot? I always thought the hot tap water was a brilliant shortcut! What should I do? I really can't stand waiting for water to boil from ice cold, I feel like it takes f....o....r.....e....v....e.....r....!

Silver Member Joined: Nov 17 2011 Posts: 912

I use cold water for this reason. I don't think it really adds that much time to boil the water, and in the grand scheme of things I'd rather avoid the lead.

Gold Member Joined: Sep 23 2008 Posts: 1261

It's not a good idea to use hot tap water for cooking. Hot water is more likely to carry unwanted things such as lead. What I do is put about 1 inch of cold water in the pot, then put that on to boil. Meanwhile, I fill my electric teapot and once that's boiling, I pour that into the pot. It cuts down the time, and saves us from whatever nasties lurk in the hot water.

This is what the EPA says:
http://water.epa.gov/drink/info/lead/lead1.cfm

Only Use Cold Water for Consumption
Use only water from the cold-water tap for drinking, cooking, and especially for making baby formula. Hot water is likely to contain higher levels of lead.The two actions recommended above are very important to the health of your family. They will probably be effective in reducing lead levels because most of the lead in household water usually comes from the plumbing in your house, not from the local water supply.

Diamond Member Joined: Nov 11 2007 Posts: 3791

No. I learned it leaches lead out of the pipes. So I always used cold since hearing this. And now we have a good quality filter on our sink to keep all that junk out, but it still only works with cold water.

Platinum Member Joined: Nov 17 2008 Posts: 5050

While I agree there may be other reasons not to use hot water, I'm not so sure about the lead in your home plumbing at least if your home is on the newer side. Most newer plumbing (ours is over 20 years old) is made of PVC (white plastic-like material) not lead or any kind of metal. There may be some metal pipes right at the water heater (though that part of our home is much older, close to 65 years), but not elsewhere.
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Platinum Member Joined: Apr 06 2008 Posts: 5149

No way do I use hot water.
Only cold or like someone else said she does, I head it in the kettle sometimes.

Instructions on trying to avoid lead include running the cold water for 2 MINUTES before using for cooking or drinking.
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Wow. This is all truly blowing my mind.
I can't believe ppl are this conscious about the lead in (hot) tap water!
I guess I'll have to be more careful.
But, come on, does anyone really run the tap for 2 MINUTES before having a glass of water?? I tried it tonight, but don't think I made it past like 26 seconds before my patience ran out....

Thanks, everyone!

Senior Member Joined: Jun 21 2010 Posts: 176

I only use cold. And I do run the tap for a minute or two if it's been a few hours since I last used the faucet.

Moderator Joined: Jun 05 2011 Posts: 3377

Medola, don't feel bad. I happen to have been raised knowing this about hot water, but I was also raised with the words, "those pesticides on fruits and veggies are meant to stay on during rainstorms, so it doesn't help to wash them." My mother never washed fruits and veggies, and when I realized that everyone else does, I tried to incorporate it in my kitchen, but I still sometimes forget.
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Platinum Member Joined: Apr 06 2008 Posts: 5149

Platinum Member Joined: Apr 06 2008 Posts: 5149

I don't use the hot tap in cooking. Dh does. It has, for us at least, a lot to do with the houses we grew up in, the presence of lead and the hot water tank system (open tank = bugs eugh).

I grew up in a pre-war house, his parents house was built in the 70s, very different water systems.

I also get cross with him if he doesn't run the cold tap for a minute or two before making a cold drink because in mixer taps especially it isn't properly cold straight away...he's welcome to a warmish glass of water, but it's not for me.

Gold Member Joined: Feb 25 2009 Posts: 1317

I never heard of this. woops!
I usually don't use hot water for cooking, but I was never conscious not to.
thanx

no, never.
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I always used to use cold water, but when we moved into our house my dh decided I was nuts. All our pipes are new and there is no lead in them, so what for? So now I use hot water to cook with.

I always thought you're not supposed to use hot water for cooking/drinking, because the water sits in the hot water tank for a while, thereby potentially increasing bacteria, whereas the cold water comes directly to your tap on demand.

Silver Member Joined: Jul 12 2010 Posts: 654

My house is 11 years old and the pipes are all plastic so I most certainly don't worry about lead. I also don't generally have hot water available from the tap for washing dishes or cooking. I use boiling water from my stainless steel hot water urn. Smile

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