PFAS — the “forever chemicals” — have been detected in Arizona water supplies, including near airfields and military bases. CreekWell’s whole-house PFAS system is built on a Pentair cartridge certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for PFAS reduction, and every system is matched to your test results.
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a family of thousands of man-made chemicals used in firefighting foam, non-stick cookware, water-repellent fabrics, and industrial coatings. They are called “forever chemicals” because many of them break down very slowly and build up in people, animals and the environment over time.
The EPA finalized enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for six PFAS compounds in 2024, including PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, PFHxS, and HFPO-DA, with the limit for PFOA and PFOS set at 4.0 parts per trillion (ppt). Part of that rule is being reconsidered in 2026; where it stands is in the questions at the bottom of this page. The EPA links PFAS exposure to kidney and testicular cancer, a reduced immune response, developmental effects in children, and elevated cholesterol.
In Arizona, ADEQ reports PFAS detections in public drinking water systems statewide and maps the results. Near Luke Air Force Base in the West Valley, a water utility’s supply wells tested above the EPA’s 2016 PFAS health advisory, and in Tucson high PFAS concentrations have been found in groundwater at the Tucson International Airport Area site. A private well is on nobody’s sampling list but yours.
Sources: EPA, PFAS drinking water regulation · EPA, health risks of PFAS · ADEQ, PFAS and private wells and Luke Air Force Base area data · EPA, Tucson International Airport Area.
In its 2024 rule the EPA named the Best Available Technologies for PFAS in public water systems: granular activated carbon, anion exchange, and reverse osmosis (with its close relative, nanofiltration). The same three are the options for a home.
A high-capacity carbon bed adsorbs PFAS as water passes through. Effective for long-chain PFAS (PFOA, PFOS) and the most common whole-house option; the EPA notes shorter-chain PFAS do not adsorb as well. At CreekWell this is The Caracal Package.
$3,450Whole house, installedAbout the systemPFAS-selective anion-exchange resin captures both long- and short-chain PFAS more effectively than GAC. Higher upfront cost but longer service life. Not a CreekWell flat rate.
EPA research puts high-pressure membranes like RO at typically more than 90 percent effective across a wide range of PFAS, short-chain included. The most cost-effective route for drinking and cooking water if you do not need whole-house treatment.
$8295-stage installed · $999 for the 6-stageAbout the RO systemsOne thing to know about our under-sink RO. The EPA’s advice for a home PFAS filter is to look for certification to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 for PFAS reduction. The Charger HydroSplash systems CreekWell installs make no NSF/ANSI certification claim, for PFAS or anything else, so we do not sell them as a certified PFAS filter. The Caracal’s Pentair cartridge does carry that certification.
CreekWell designs the system around your water test — some Arizona homes need only an under-sink RO, others need whole-house carbon plus an RO at the kitchen tap. We don’t install a stage you don’t need.
Sources: 40 CFR 141.61(d), the EPA’s list of Best Available Technologies for PFAS · EPA, Reducing PFAS in drinking water with treatment technologies · EPA, Reducing PFAS in your drinking water with a home filter.
A Pentair FloPlus Protect PFAS cartridge paired with a CreekWell catalytic carbon tank on a Clack WS1 control valve. Pentair’s cartridge is certified by IAPMO R&T to NSF/ANSI 53 for up to 99.82% reduction of five PFAS compounds — PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA and PFHpA — with a 40,000-gallon capacity, roughly a 12-month cartridge life.
PFAS needs its own lab method, so it is not on the $185 panel. SimpleLab’s PFAS Water Test is ordered by you, from the lab; CreekWell reads it with you free.
$334SimpleLab’s priceOrder the test kitPentair FloPlus Protect 20BB cartridge, catalytic carbon tank (Centaur NDS carbon) on a Clack WS1 valve, all parts and the loop plumbing.
$3,450Installed, flat rateNot bookable yet. This work costs more than $1,000, which puts it outside what CreekWell can take on until its Arizona contractor licenses issue. The details here are accurate so you can plan and compare. Why
Cartridge figures: Pentair, FloPlus Protect 20BB specification sheet.
If any of the following applies, get a PFAS-specific test:
The $185 Premium Water Test does not include PFAS — PFAS testing requires a specialized lab method (EPA 537.1) and is ordered on its own. SimpleLab’s PFAS Water Test is currently $334 for 18 compounds, including PFOA, PFOS and the other four PFAS in the EPA’s 2024 rule, with a standard turnaround of about 10 business days at the lab. You order it directly from the lab — the kit is on our water testing page — and CreekWell then reads the results with you against the EPA’s PFOA and PFOS limits, free.
SimpleLab’s price, parameter list and turnaround were checked on its PFAS Water Test page on 23 September 2026. SimpleLab sets them, not CreekWell.
CreekWell covers PFAS testing advice and removal across Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Dewey-Humboldt, Mayer, Paulden, Sedona, Cottonwood and the rest of Yavapai County, with priority for any home flagged in an Arizona Department of Environmental Quality PFAS notice.
Same flat rate across the whole service area. This price applies everywhere in Yavapai County — Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Dewey-Humboldt, Mayer, Paulden, Sedona, Cottonwood, the Verde Valley and the outer county — it is not a Prescott-only rate.
Related: under-sink reverse osmosis, whole-home reverse osmosis, whole-house carbon filtration, all water treatment, water testing.
Aqua Cat Plumbing & Water Treatment is now CreekWell Plumbing & Water Treatment. Same owner, same phone number.
We are adding Arizona contractor licenses, and we are not booking new work until that is done. New work restarts the first week of November. Jobs already on the schedule are not affected.
For new work, request a November visit or call or text 928-228-5770. Bookings go in the order they come in, at the prices published on this site. No deposit.
Not for new work. We are rebranding and adding Arizona contractor licenses. New work restarts the first week of November, once the licenses are issued. Jobs already on the schedule are not affected.
Leave your name on the list or call or text 928-228-5770. Bookings go in the order they come in, at the prices published on this site, with no deposit.
4.0 parts per trillion each for PFOA and PFOS — enforceable limits the EPA finalized in April 2024.
In April 2024 the EPA finalized Maximum Contaminant Levels for six PFAS compounds. The PFOA and PFOS limits remain in force, with public water systems required to comply by April 2029; on May 18, 2026 the EPA proposed letting systems request two more years, to 2031. The limits for PFHxS, PFNA and HFPO-DA (GenX) and the hazard-index mixture are the subject of a rescission the EPA proposed the same day, which was still a proposal and not final as of September 2026. Private well owners are not covered by any of it, and face the same health risks regardless. (Reviewed September 2026 — check the EPA’s PFAS drinking water page for the current status.)
PFAS levels in Prescott municipal water have not been widely flagged in public Arizona Department of Environmental Quality reporting, but statewide sampling is incomplete.
Homes near current or former military airfields, airports, fire training facilities, or on private wells in industrial corridors should test individually. Arizona has documented arsenic, chromium-6 and PFAS concerns statewide; PFAS specifically is concentrated near point sources. ADEQ publishes the results it has on an interactive map, linked from its PFAS and private wells page.
Order SimpleLab’s PFAS Water Test directly from the lab — currently $334 for 18 compounds.
PFAS testing requires a specialized lab method (EPA 537.1); it’s not part of a standard mineral panel. The lab mails you the kit, you take the sample and mail it back, and SimpleLab’s standard turnaround is about 10 business days at the lab. CreekWell reads the results with you against the EPA’s PFOA and PFOS limits at no charge. Order the kit here.
Most basic carbon faucet and pitcher filters do not effectively remove PFAS.
They are not certified to NSF/ANSI 53 PFOA/PFOS reduction or NSF/ANSI 58 reverse osmosis standards. To verify, check the filter packaging for NSF certification specifically naming PFOA and PFOS — which is also the EPA’s advice. Uncertified filters may reduce PFAS partially but cannot be relied on for compliance with the EPA’s 4 ppt limit. That includes the under-sink RO systems CreekWell installs, which carry no NSF/ANSI certification claim.
Three ways: granular activated carbon, PFAS-selective ion exchange, and reverse osmosis — the EPA’s Best Available Technologies for PFAS.
GAC is the most common whole-house solution. Ion exchange handles short-chain PFAS more effectively. Reverse osmosis at a kitchen sink is the lowest-cost way to cover drinking and cooking water; EPA research puts high-pressure membranes at typically more than 90 percent effective across a wide range of PFAS.
Whole-house PFAS treatment is $3,450 flat installed — The Caracal Package.
That is a Pentair FloPlus Protect PFAS cartridge plus a catalytic carbon tank. The cartridge is certified by IAPMO R&T to NSF/ANSI 53 for up to 99.82% reduction of five PFAS compounds (PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA and PFHpA), with a 40,000-gallon capacity — roughly a 12-month cartridge life. Point-of-use reverse osmosis is $829 (5-stage) or $999 (6-stage) installed and covers drinking and cooking water, without a PFAS certification claim. PFAS-selective ion-exchange systems cost more up front but offer the longest service life and broadest spectrum of removal; they are not a CreekWell flat rate. CreekWell sizes systems to your water test rather than upselling capacity you don’t need.
CreekWell handles PFAS treatment, and reads your PFAS lab results with you free, across Yavapai County — an owner-operator who does the install himself.
That covers Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Dewey-Humboldt, Sedona and Cottonwood and everywhere between. PFAS needs its own lab method (EPA 537.1) — currently $334 at SimpleLab, see water testing — because PFAS cannot be seen, smelled or tasted, and no home test strip detects it. If results come back positive, treatment is usually whole-house carbon for every tap, an under-sink system for drinking water, or both. Private well owners in Yavapai County are not covered by any utility testing program — if you are on a well, no one is testing your water but you.
New work restarts the first week of November, once we finish rebranding and the contractor licenses are issued. Jobs already scheduled are not affected.
