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Schoolhouse Hill Apts

What EPA’s and Pennsylvania’s records show in this utility’s water: PFAS; nitrate, arsenic and other regulated chemicals; and violations since 2016, with the certification that handles each result.

Serves
38 people
Connections
20
Water source
Surface water bought from another system
Based in
Montrose, PA
County
Wyoming
Owner
Public and private
Hardness
Moderately hard
The ZIP code it serves

18629

The short answer

1 result is above the limit’s level with no violation recorded, 1 more is above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029, and 2 more are above the health goal. The worst: Haloacetic acids (HAA5), above the limit’s level, no violation. 1 health-based violation since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

PFAS: Pennsylvania’s own results under its PFAS rule, entry point samples taken from March 12, 2025 to Oct. 22, 2025.

Haloacetic acids (HAA5), arsenic, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), nitrate, fluoride, chromium (total) and uranium: Pennsylvania’s own results, samples taken from Sept. 14, 2020 to Sept. 8, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

PFAS: PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS and PFBS were found, of the six PFAS in EPA’s 2024 drinking water rule; their results are below.

EPA’s 2024 PFAS rule, compound by compound

PFASEPA’s limitResult
PFOA4.0 pptAbove the health goal2.6 ppt highest, found in 1 of 4 samples. Details
PFOS4.0 pptAbove EPA’s new limit (2029)4.5 ppt highest, found in 1 of 4 samples. Details
PFHxS10 pptBelow EPA’s limits2.2 ppt highest, found in 1 of 4 samples. Details
PFNA10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 4 samples
HFPO-DA (GenX)10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 4 samples
PFBSIndex onlyBelow EPA’s limits2.1 ppt highest, found in 1 of 4 samples. Details
Results from Pennsylvania’s own PFAS monitoring, samples where water enters the pipes; each compound’s card has its four-quarter averages, the way limits are judged. The limits are EPA’s 2024 rule, with compliance due from 2029; EPA has since proposed changes to some of them, explained on each compound’s page. Pennsylvania’s own limits for PFOA and PFOS are in force now. PFBS has no limit of its own and counts only toward EPA’s Hazard Index, which TapBuff works out only from UCMR 5’s averages, so it isn’t given here.

About PFAS certifications

NSF’s PFAS claims are tested to below 20 ppt. EPA’s limit is 4.0 ppt, and EPA says no certification yet shows a filter reaching its levels.

Above the limit’s level, no violation recorded1

Haloacetic acids (HAA5)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the limit’s level, no violation

62.4ppb

Highest yearly average, 2022 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 62.4 ppb, in 2026, above EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. Its highest single sample was 64.4 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. EPA judges this limit on running averages at each sampling point, and recorded no violation for haloacetic acids (HAA5) at this utility since 2020. Results like these with no violation often include water sampled before treatment or blending; the utility’s annual report says what reaches the tap. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 12 ppb, in 2016.

What handles it

No certification claim covers this compound yet.

Above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 20291

PFOS

Comes from the source

Above EPA’s new limit (2029)

4.5ppt

Highest sample, March 12, 2025; found in 1 of 4

2025 average: 1.1 ppt

The highest sample was 4.5 ppt, above EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt, which takes effect in 2029. EPA’s health goal is zero. Compliance will be judged on a running annual average, not one sample. Averaged over four quarters at one entry point, the way both Pennsylvania’s limit and EPA’s are judged, the highest was 1.1 ppt, for the year to Dec. 31, 2025: below Pennsylvania’s limit of 18 ppt and below EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt. Its only year on file is 2025, when its four samples averaged 1.1 ppt.

What handles it

Above the health goal2

PFOA

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

2.6ppt

Highest sample, March 12, 2025; found in 1 of 4

2025 average: 0.66 ppt

The highest sample was 2.6 ppt: below EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt, which takes effect in 2029, but above its health goal of zero. Averaged over four quarters at one entry point, the way both Pennsylvania’s limit and EPA’s are judged, the highest was 0.66 ppt, for the year to Dec. 31, 2025: below Pennsylvania’s limit of 14 ppt and below EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt. Its only year on file is 2025, when its four samples averaged 0.66 ppt.

What handles it

Arsenic

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

5.3ppb

Highest yearly average, 2021 to 2026

2026: not found

Averaged by year, the highest was 5.3 ppb, in 2021: below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. Its highest single sample was 11.6 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample. EPA recorded no violation for arsenic at this utility since 2020. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 9.3 ppb, in 2017.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”

Below EPA’s limits5

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

58.4ppb

Highest yearly average, 2022 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 58.4 ppb, in 2026, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. Its highest single sample was 65 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 49.8 ppb, in 2016.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”

PFHxS

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

2.2ppt

Highest sample, March 12, 2025; found in 1 of 4

2025 average: 0.56 ppt

The highest sample was 2.2 ppt, below EPA’s new limit of 10 ppt, which takes effect in 2029. Averaged over four quarters at one entry point, the way EPA’s limit is judged, the highest was 0.56 ppt, for the year to Dec. 31, 2025: below EPA’s new limit of 10 ppt. Its only year on file is 2025, when its four samples averaged 0.56 ppt.

What handles it

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

1.6ppm

Highest sample; found in 4 of 7

2026, one sample: 0.19 ppm

The highest sample, in 2025, was 1.6 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, its one sample was 0.19 ppm. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 1.3 ppm, in 2018.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”

Fluoride

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

0.24ppm

Highest yearly average, 2021 to 2024

2024: not found

Averaged by year, the highest was 0.24 ppm, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. In 2024, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 0.15 ppm, in 2015.

What handles it

PFBS

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

2.1ppt

Highest sample, March 12, 2025; found in 1 of 4

2025 average: 0.53 ppt

The highest sample was 2.1 ppt, below EPA’s hazard index benchmark of 2,000 ppt. PFBS has no legal limit or health goal of its own. Its only year on file is 2025, when its four samples averaged 0.53 ppt.

What handles it

4 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.

From routine monitoring

  • Chromium (total)
  • Uranium

PFAS, from Pennsylvania’s own monitoring

  • HFPO-DA (GenX)
  • PFNA

What handles it

A certification covers specific claims, not a whole standard. Look for these claims on the certifier’s listing, not the box. Wording varies a little: NSF writes “Lead Reduction,” WQA just “Lead.”

  • NSF/ANSI 53

    Claims: PFOS Reduction, PFOA Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction

    For: PFOS, PFOA, Arsenic

    Other certifiers’ wording: Total PFAS Reduction; Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS); Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA); Arsenic (III) (50 ppb influent level)

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS), Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA), Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction

    For: PFOS, PFOA, Arsenic

    Other certifiers’ wording: Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=300 ppb Reduction; Arsenic (V) (300 ppb influent level)

At the tap, or for the whole house?

These come with the water itself, so a whole-house system certified for the same claims treats every tap and shower. A filter at the tap treats drinking water for much less. How whole-house systems compare.

Filters with those claims on a certifier’s listing

Disclosure: TapBuff earns a commission if you buy through some links on this page. It does not change which standard or filter we name. As an Amazon Associate, TapBuff earns from qualifying purchases. How TapBuff makes money

Compare five-year costs

The best water filters for PFAS, ranked

The best reverse osmosis systems, ranked

Hardness

Moderately hard, 74 mg/L (4.4 grains per gallon), at its one sampling point, in 2023.

Hardness is calcium and magnesium. EPA sets no limit for it: it shows up as scale on fixtures and in water heaters, and as soap that won’t lather. USGS calls water above 60 mg/L moderately hard, above 120 hard and above 180 very hard.

Softeners compared at 4.4 grains per gallon, salt includedSoftener or salt-free conditioner?Pennsylvania water hardness, utility by utility

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
Groundwater RuleRequired treatment for surface water or groundwater was not met.EPA: Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR)July 1, 2016 to July 31, 2016—Resolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 46 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Haloacetic acids (HAA5), arsenic, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), nitrate, fluoride, chromium (total) and uranium results here are Pennsylvania’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Schoolhouse Hill Apts’s own annual report, which it must send you every year, has the contaminants this page does not show.

  • Your own plumbing. Lead results are the 90th percentile across homes the utility samples. Your home’s service line, solder and fixtures decide yours. A certified lab test is the only way to know.

  • What it means for your health. This page reports what the records show and EPA’s limits and goals; it is not medical advice. If you are worried about a health effect, talk to a doctor or your local health department.

  • Anything after the latest data. SDWIS data is from 2026 Q3; UCMR 5 didn’t sample this utility; Pennsylvania’s results run from Sept. 14, 2020 to Sept. 8, 2026; Pennsylvania’s PFAS results run from March 12, 2025 to Oct. 22, 2025.

Testing your own tap

Schoolhouse Hill Apts’s results are for the water it sends out. What your own service line, solder and fixtures add shows up only in a test of your tap, by a lab Pennsylvania certifies.

The 3 labs Pennsylvania certifies closest to the area Schoolhouse Hill Apts serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Pace Analytical Services, LLC - Wysox

    Wysox, PA · about 22 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (570) 866-0195

  • A E Kirby Memorial Health Center

    Wilkes-Barre, PA · about 23 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics

    (570) 822-4278

  • Microbac Laboratories, Inc. - Pittston

    Pittston, PA · about 26 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts

    (570) 348-0775

Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory: Drinking water test kits from many county Extension offices, mailed back to the lab overnight with payment. Packages cover bacteria and basic chemistry, with add-ons for nitrate, metals, lead, and mining or gas drilling concerns. The standard package of bacteria, pH and total dissolved solids is $60, or $70 with nitrate; bacteria alone is $40, nitrate $15 and lead $25. Drinking Water Testing, Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Lab.

All 108 certified labs for Pennsylvania

Sources

PWSID PA2660050. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Wyoming County

All Pennsylvania utilities

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