Send a sample to a lab when you want a number that actually compares to the federal limit: PFAS results in parts per trillion, checked against the EPA’s 4 ppt standard for PFOA and PFOS. A nearby lab matters less for accuracy (mail-in kits are built for transit) and more for turnaround and for having someone local to call. KETOS’s Sunnyvale lab is that option for South Bay households.
When Should You Actually Test for PFAS?
Three situations move PFAS testing from someday to now.
- Your home sits near a current or former airport, military site, or industrial facility that used firefighting foam or PFAS in manufacturing.
- You’re on a private well, which gets no utility-side PFAS monitoring at all.
- You want a baseline before a health decision, a home purchase, or installing treatment.
In Santa Clara County, the Santa Clara Valley Water District has found PFOS above the state notification level in six water-supply wells in San Jose, and the retailer stopped using them. Valley Water’s treated water delivered to retailers has not shown PFOA or PFOS above the federal limits, but that finding covers the treatment plants, not every private well or every plumbing system between the meter and your faucet.
Does My Water Utility Already Test for This?
If you’re on a larger public water system, yes, on a schedule set by federal and state rules.
The EPA’s 2024 PFAS drinking water rule requires public water systems to complete initial PFAS monitoring by 2027 and meet the 4 ppt PFOA/PFOS limit (10 ppt for three other regulated compounds) by 2029, with public reporting starting in 2027. California’s own State Water Resources Control Board has been running mandatory PFAS testing orders on public systems since 2019, starting with sites near airports and landfills, and a 2024-2026 program is funding free testing for roughly 3,600 wells in disadvantaged communities. None of that reaches private wells, and utility results describe the system, not necessarily what’s sitting in your own pipes or fixtures. A home test is the only way to check what’s coming out of your own tap.
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Order a Water Test →How Far Does a South Bay Sample Need to Travel for PFAS Testing?
A PFAS test kit works by mail: you collect the sample into PFAS-free bottles, ship it back with a prepaid label, and a lab runs the analysis days or weeks later, so a lab across the country can return a result just as defensible as one down the street. A nearby lab does change three things: less transit time between collection and analysis, a phone number that reaches someone who knows the South Bay’s water systems, and, for KETOS’s Sunnyvale facility specifically, a short physical distance for South Bay samples. If you’re deciding between a rapid test strip and sending a sample to a lab in the first place, our guide to testing for PFAS walks through that decision and the detection limits behind it; this page assumes you’ve already decided a lab is the right call and covers when and how.
What Does a KELP PFAS Test Cover?
| Situation | KELP panel | Price | PFAS compounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| First PFAS check, tight budget | Basic PFAS Screen | $280 | 3 (PFOA, PFOS, PFNA) plus 6 metals and inorganic markers |
| Full household picture | Home Safety Screen | $549 | 18 compounds plus metals and water chemistry |
| Private well or home purchase | Ultimate Water Safety Suite | $699 | 25 compounds plus a full metals suite and alkalinity |
All three tiers run EPA-certified methodology and ship with a prepaid return label, with results back in 5 to 7 business days. Order a KELP PFAS panel once you know which tier fits your situation. For a full comparison against other PFAS test kit vendors on the market, see our PFAS test kit comparison, which prices the whole job across providers; this page focuses on when to test and what happens once you do, not on ranking every kit available.
When to Test: A Quick Decision Guide
- You’re on a private well. Test now. No agency monitors a private well for PFAS, so a lab result is the only way to find out.
- You live near a current or former airport, military base, or manufacturing site. Test now, regardless of what your utility reports, since local sources can affect specific wells or service areas differently than the system average.
- You’re buying or selling a home in the South Bay. Test before closing. A result in hand is worth more than a general area reputation, and it gives you a number to act on either way.
- You’re on a large public system with no known nearby source. Testing is optional but still answers a question utility monitoring won’t fully close until 2027, and it covers your own plumbing, which utility sampling doesn’t reach.
- You already ran a test strip and it came back positive, or you’re not sure you trust a “negative.” Send a sample to a lab. Strips only turn positive at much higher concentrations than the federal limit, so a clean strip does not rule out PFAS at levels that matter; our PFAS testing guide covers why.
Wells and known-source neighborhoods carry the most reason to test soon, because no agency is checking those situations on your behalf. For everyone else, testing is a matter of timing rather than urgency, and a clean result is still a useful thing to have on file.
This Page Does Not Cover Filtration or Removal
Testing tells you what’s in your water, and this page does not cover treatment.
If you already know or suspect PFAS is present and want to know what to do about it, see our guides on whether reverse osmosis removes PFAS, whether a Brita filter removes PFAS, and how to remove PFAS from water at home. The right order of operations is test first, then treat, then test again to confirm the treatment worked; treating water you haven’t tested is a guess.
Frequently Asked Questions
Four questions Bay Area homeowners ask most about PFAS testing near them.
Is there PFAS testing near me in the South Bay?
Yes. KETOS Environmental Lab Services operates a water testing lab at 520 Mercury Dr, Sunnyvale, CA 94085. Sampling is mail-in or walk-in: collect your sample at home and ship it with the prepaid label, or bring it to the lab during business hours if you are nearby. The lab result is the same either way.
How much does PFAS water testing cost?
KELP’s PFAS panels run from $280 for a focused 3-compound screen to $699 for a 25-compound panel with a full metals suite, with results in 5 to 7 business days. Other providers on the market range from about $85 for a screening-only kit to $599 for a 25-compound panel without metals; see our full kit comparison for the vendor-by-vendor breakdown.
Do I need to test for PFAS if I’m on city water?
Larger public water systems are required to test and report PFAS levels under the EPA’s 2024 rule, with initial monitoring due by 2027, but that timeline hasn’t fully landed yet and utility results reflect the treatment plant, not necessarily your own service line or plumbing. If you want an answer now, or you’re on a smaller system, a home test tells you directly what’s in your own water.
What if I’m on a private well?
No agency tests a private well for PFAS on your behalf. That makes a lab test the only way to know what’s actually coming out of your tap, and our well water test kit comparison covers panels built for well owners specifically.
KETOS Environmental Lab Services
The Sunnyvale lab that runs every KELP PFAS panel, for South Bay homeowners who want directions or hours before ordering.
KETOS Environmental Lab Services
520 Mercury Dr, Sunnyvale, CA 94085
(408) 357-4745
Google Business Profile category: Water testing service
See current hours on the Google Business Profile.
Get directions
Ready for a number instead of a guess? Order a KETOS KELP PFAS test and get results in 5 to 7 business days.
Sources: EPA PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (2024); California State Water Resources Control Board PFAS Drinking Water program; Santa Clara Valley Water District PFAS testing disclosures; U.S. Geological Survey 2023 national tap water PFAS study; KELP panel prices and turnaround from ketos.co, checked September 17, 2026.
