Is University Heights, IA tap water safe?
The short answer
1 of the 2 utilities serving University Heights has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and Iowa’s records: University Water System.
Iowa City Water Department, which serves the most people here, has 1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 47 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. Health goals are stricter than legal limits and are not enforced.
A town can be served by more than one utility, and some homes are on private wells. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours, and your ZIP code narrows it down. They are listed by how many people each serves in University Heights’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
Iowa City Water Department
Iowa · serves 68,753 people · about 320 in University Heights
1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 47 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
University Water System
Iowa · serves 47,136 people · under 100 in University Heights
1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 72 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
2 health-based violations since 2016
What handles it
Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in Iowa City Water Department’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.
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Brita Tahoe Pitcher with Elite Filter (OB60, OB06)
Pitcher
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 13, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 53checked Oct. 13, 2026
Certified for: Lead
Brita Everyday Pitcher with Elite Filter (OB46, OB06)
Pitcher
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 13, 2026
Certified for: Lead
PUR PLUS 11-Cup Pitcher (PPT111W)
Pitcher
- NSF listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: Lead
Water testing near University Heights
The 3 labs Iowa certifies closest to University Heights, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
State Hygienic Laboratory - Coralville
Coralville, IA · about 3 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts, PFAS, radioactivity
Linn County Public Health Department
Cedar Rapids, IA · about 23 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate
Ion Environmental Solutions
Muscatine, IA · about 30 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate
State Hygienic Laboratory at the University of Iowa: Through the Grants-to-Counties program, private well owners in participating counties can have their water tested for total coliform bacteria and nitrate. Start with the county sanitarian at your county health department. No cost in a participating county. The Grants-to-Counties Program, State Hygienic Lab at the University of Iowa.
All 36 certified labs for IowaZIP codes in University Heights
Which ZIP codes are in University Heights: Census 2020 relationship files. Which utilities serve them, and how many people: EPA SDWIS and EPA’s service area map. Each utility’s results: EPA UCMR 5, EPA SDWIS, and EPA’s and the state’s compliance monitoring, as its report lists them. How they are measured: methodology. Certified labs: Iowa DNR, laboratories certified for drinking water; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near University Heights
Towns nearby with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read Iowa City Water Department’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- About LithiumWhat it does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.About Lithium
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water