Is Bull Run, VA tap water safe?
The short answer
Neither of the 2 utilities serving Bull Run has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and CDC’s records.
Fairfax County Water Authority, which serves the most people here, has 2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029 and 2 results above the health goal. The worst: PFOA at 7.4 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.
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 Bull Run’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
Fairfax County Water Authority
Virginia · serves 1.1 million people · about 38,100 in Bull Run
2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029 and 2 results above the health goal. The worst: PFOA at 7.4 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Pwcsa - West
Virginia · serves 136,409 people · about 4,800 in Bull Run
Nothing in its records is above a health goal.
No 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 Fairfax County Water Authority’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.
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ZeroWater 10 Cup Pitcher (ZP-010)
Pitcher
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: PFOA, PFOS, Lead
Aquasana Claryum Direct Connect (AQ-MF-1)
Under-sink carbon
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
Certified for: PFOA, PFOS, Lead
Express Water StreamLine Direct Connect System (USC001)
Under-sink carbon
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
Certified for: PFOA, PFOS, Lead
Water testing near Bull Run
The 3 labs Virginia certifies closest to Bull Run, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Fairfax County Health Department Joanne Jorgenson Laboratory
Fairfax, VA · about 8 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics
Water Testing Labs of Virginia
Burke, VA · about 11 miles
Certified for bacteria
Fairfax Water
Herndon, VA · about 13 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts
Virginia Household Water Quality Program, Virginia Cooperative Extension: Drinking water clinics in about 70 counties a year, run through local Extension offices: pick up a kit, collect the sample on the set day, and drop it off locally. Each kit tests well, spring or cistern water for 28 things, including bacteria, nitrate, lead and arsenic. $70 a kit, with funding to help if you need it. Virginia Household Water Quality Program.
All 145 certified labs for VirginiaWhich ZIP codes are in Bull Run: 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: DCLS, drinking water laboratories with certification detail; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near Bull Run
Other towns in Fairfax County with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read Fairfax County Water Authority’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- Filters for PFOARanked by certification and what they cost over five years.The best water filters for PFAS, ranked
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water