Faucets Are Safe

Following an interview I did recently with staff writer Don Lee, I read with interest the article on Price Pfister (Valley Edition, Jan. 26) and then reprinted, in edited form in the Feb. 1 issue areawide. I appreciate your reporter taking the time to speak with me about the issue of lead and faucets, however, I believe the resulting story was a gross misstatement of the situation.

We were particularly disappointed to read speculation by someone outside of our company regarding the future of our manufacturing plant in Pacoima. Any such speculation is false and causes unnecessary anxiety among our more than 1,500 employees. We were further disappointed to see repeated negative references to our manufacturing process with no attribution other than “rivals say” and “competitors and analysts said.” Price Pfister is very proud of the performance of our Pacoima manufacturing facility and the productivity of our employees. The Price Pfister family consistently produces the highest quality products with great efficiency. We are justified in resenting implications to the contrary, particularly by unnamed sources.

Price Pfister has been a leader in the plumbing industry throughout its history and continually explores and implements new technologies which will improve the quality and performance of our products. In fact, in the next couple of weeks, Price Pfister’s new President Mike Hoopis will be making important announcements focusing on the company’s dynamic plans for the future which I believe will be of interest to you and to all of our customers.

The bottom line is consumer safety. The health and safety of our customers has always been the top concern at Price Pfister. We understand the importance of the lead issue and I strongly believe the articles which were printed do not fairly convey our genuine concern for customers. Our faucets can be used with complete confidence. There are four major points that are important for consumers to know about lead in drinking water, however many of these have been virtually ignored. First, a small amount of lead may accumulate in a “new” faucet after a period of non-use, for example overnight or after a day at work. However, it’s important to remember that this lead “leaching” will not take place, to any detectable level, with a faucet that is in regular use; the water must sit undisturbed for a period of time.

Furthermore, should a faucet sit unused for a period of time, running the faucet for just two or three seconds prior to use virtually eliminates even that small amount which may have accumulated in the tap. We recommend using this “first draw” water for such things as watering plants. This is a practice the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has supported for many years.

We also believe that consumers should be made aware of just how little water rests in a faucet--typically just a half cup, depending on the model. During normal use, this amount is flushed away before most people even put their glass under the faucet. Beyond this, after the first 90 days of use, the amount of lead which may show up in water that stands in the faucet during a period of non-use drops dramatically. In most cases after the first year, virtually no lead leaches from the faucet into tap water.

J. DOUGLAS MARTINEZ

Pacoima

Martinez is vice president,

marketing of Price Pfister Inc.