Cottage Hills, IL: 6 Violations - Home Safety 81/100
1 ZIP code · 4 water systems · Updated
ZipCheckup grade for Cottage Hills: B.
This ZIP looks solid, with a few items worth a quick check.
Water systems in Cottage Hills, IL serve households with few reported safety events.
How Cottage Hills Compares
Data: EPA SDWIS
Cottage Hills Water: The Quick Version
- Your city's water systems recorded 6 violations in the past 5 years.
- Average lead level: 0.003 mg/L.
- Homes built before 1986: 75% - older plumbing may contain lead solder.
- Estimated remediation: $2,100 per household.
- CDC health risk index: 13.16 - above typical levels.
Water Systems Serving Cottage Hills
Residential addresses in Cottage Hills, IL are served by 3 primary water providers out of 4 systems in federal records. Each system maintains separate infrastructure and files its own EPA compliance reports, so service conditions are not uniform across the city.
- B
- B
- B
Overview
We track home safety data for 1 ZIP code in Cottage Hills, Illinois (population ~3,006), covering 4 community water systems serving approximately 75,063 people region-wide. The EPA snapshots used for this build directly map water systems to 1 of 1 ZIP codes.
1 of 1 ZIP code with a reported violation count in the available EPA record (100%) have recorded EPA violations. The available record reports no health-based violations for this measured scope.
Home Safety Score
Average Home Safety Score for Cottage Hills: B (81/100)
Model 4.0.0 uses four measured components across three equally weighted domains. If a required domain is unavailable, no score is published:
| Factor | What It Measures |
|---|---|
| Water Quality | EPA violations and compliance history |
| PFAS MCL Screen | UCMR 5 testing against the covered federal MCLs |
| Radon Risk | EPA radon zone classification |
| Annual AQI | EPA AirData county-year median with at least 90 observed days |
Water Sources
Cottage Hills water systems draw from: Groundwater, Surface water.
Lead & Copper
- Average lead level (90th percentile): 0.0030 mg/L (EPA action level: 0.015 mg/L)
- 0 of 1 ZIP code with known status exceed the EPA lead action level
Radon Risk
Dominant radon zone: Zone 2 (Moderate Risk)
The EPA recommends testing homes in Zone 1 and Zone 2 areas for radon.
Top Contaminants
| Contaminant | Category | Violations | ZIPs Affected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM) | Disinfection Byproducts | 4 | 1 |
| Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) | Disinfection Byproducts | 4 | 1 |
| Contaminant 1006 | Other | 2 | 1 |
| Surface Water Treatment Rule | Treatment Technique | 2 | 1 |
Areas with Most Violations
| ZIP Code | Safety Score | Violations | Health-Based | System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 62018 | B | 6 | 0 | Bethalto |
All ZIP Codes in Cottage Hills
- 62018 [B] - 6 violations
Data Sources
- Water quality: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS)
- Lead/copper: EPA Lead and Copper Rule sampling data
- Radon: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Reporting periods vary by source. Missing data is shown as unavailable, not as zero.
CDC Health Data for Cottage Hills
Source: CDC PLACES (County-level estimates). Water contamination can correlate with respiratory and chronic health conditions.
Compared to National Average
Vertical line = national average. ■ Above national · ■ Below national
Key Contaminants Detected in Cottage Hills
Based on EPA violation records. Check your ZIP code report for system-specific contaminant data.
How Old Is Cottage Hills's Housing Stock?
With 75% of homes built before 1986, lead solder in plumbing is a potential concern. The EPA banned lead solder in 1986, but many older homes retain original plumbing.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS).
Housing Age Profile
Cottage Hills's housing stock is predominantly older, with a median build year of 1950 that reflects decades of construction before federal plumbing standards were tightened. The 1986 ban on lead solder and the pre-1970 era of lead service lines are both relevant benchmarks here - a significant share of the residential inventory predates one or both of those cutoffs, creating an elevated baseline for plumbing-related lead risk that aggregate water quality data may not fully reflect at the household level.
Over half of homes in Cottage Hills were built before 1986, when lead solder was banned. Older plumbing may leach lead into drinking water, especially with corrosive water chemistry.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS B25034.
Cottage Hills: Remediation Cost in Perspective
The equity share of documented remediation in Cottage Hills is high - a cost-to-value ratio that places this market in the elevated tier and means most homeowners are weighing a financial decision where scoping by urgency, mapping costs against household budget, and knowing what assistance options exist are practical steps that can materially improve outcomes.
At 2.7% of home value, remediation costs in Cottage Hills represent a significant financial burden. For homes valued near the median, fixing water and safety issues could cost $1,100–$3,400. Home values here are 57% below the Illinois average.
Protecting Children from Lead in Cottage Hills
Why children are most at risk: The CDC states there is no safe level of lead exposure for children. Children under 6 absorb lead more readily than adults, and even low levels can cause developmental delays, learning difficulties, and behavioral problems.
Pulling a tap sample fills the gap that utility data cannot close, particularly here where 75% of housing dates from the pre-rule era and citywide monitoring sits at or above the regulatory mark in Cottage Hills.
Sources: EPA Lead and Copper Rule, U.S. Census Bureau ACS, CDC childhood lead poisoning prevention guidelines.
Historical Flood-Claim Evidence for Cottage Hills
Historical NFIP data for Cottage Hills contains 11 flood insurance claims. Among claims with payment data, the average reported building, contents, and ICC component sum is $3,715. Among ZIP codes with claim records, 100% have an A- or V-family dominant rated zone recorded in those historical claims. This is not a complete current FEMA property-map inventory.
How flooding affects water quality: Flood events can introduce sewage, agricultural runoff, and industrial chemicals into water supplies. Even after floodwaters recede, contamination can persist in wells and aging infrastructure. The <strong>$2,100</strong> remediation estimate shown here excludes flood insurance and is not derived from NFIP claim count.
Claim count does not establish current property risk. Check the exact address in FEMA's current map and obtain a property-specific insurance quote when relevant.
Source: historical FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claim records. No current FEMA property-map designation is asserted.
Deep Dive Reports
Detailed analysis for Cottage Hills, IL