In an effort to protect contractors and homeowners from lead-paint poisoning, stringent new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations are cracking down on who can remodel potentially lead-tainted surfaces.
Under the new regulations, which were published on April 22, 2010, contractors must be lead-paint certified to work in rooms or areas where they disturb as little as 6 sq. ft. of surface containing lead paint. This applies not just to painters who scrape and sand the surfaces but to plumbers, electricians, window installers, carpenters and general handymen who cut, drill or demolish them. The new regulations affect homes built before 1978.
We now know the biggest risk is not in children eating lead paint chips from peeling windowsills. It is from fine lead paint dust that’s released from deteriorated surfaces through friction and then spread by air movement. Old double-hung windows often pose the greatest danger because incoming breezes blow lead particles onto the floor where they are ground down and spread by foot traffic; then ultimately inhaled or ingested.
Because lead exposure poses the biggest risk to young children and fetuses, the rules were originally written to apply primarily to work on any home where a child under 6 years old or a pregnant woman lives or spends six or more hours per week. So if you owned a pre-1978 home and, for example, your grandchild spends Saturdays there or your teenager babysits a neighbor’s toddler there one day a week, your home was considered a “target property” and is subject to the new rules.
However, an Opt-Out provision, which exempted renovation firms from the new requirements in cases where occupants did not include pregnant women or pre-six-year-olds has been dropped. With this important revision (written on May 6, 2010), contractors must follow the new regulations regardless of the ages or gestational status of the building’s occupants. This amendment (and a few other changes) will now be effective on July 6, 2010. You can find details on the Federal Register: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/2010-10100.htm
The EPA estimates that 35 million single-family homes in the United States still contain lead paint. That includes nine out of 10 homes built before the 1940s, six out of 10 built between the mid-1940s and mid-1960s and three out of 10 built between the mid-1960s and 1977.
To become certified, contractors must pay a fee and obtain training that includes both classroom and hands-on instruction. They learn how to inform residents, protect themselves, maintain a safe work zone, clean up effectively and legally dispose of hazardous waste. Contractors who fail to get certified, ignore best practices and attempt to conceal their actions can be fined up to $37,500 a day in both criminal and civil courts or sentenced to a year in jail.
Although the law does not apply to DIYers who work on their own properties (except for those who buy and personally remodel or redecorate a home to resell for profit), anyone would be irresponsible to ignore the safeguards the law prescribes. Beyond the health risks, the presence of lead paint in a home has potential financial consequences. You must disclose the presence of lead when selling a home, and if you own a target property, the test results must be preserved and shared with the prospective buyer. Buyers can demand up to 10 days to conduct their own lead-hazard test.
Whenever you’re remodeling a home with potential lead-paint hazards, be sure to take the following safety precautions:
1. Contain dust and debris in the smallest practical area, and use plastic sheeting taped at the edges to keep it off of permanent surfaces.
2. Require anyone entering the work area to wear disposable coveralls, disposable or rubber booties and an approved N-100 respirator (not merely a dust mask or bandanna). Bar anyone with asthma or claustrophobia who is not medically fit to use an approved respirator. Note: The seal on disposable respirators typically fails when the wearer sweats.
3. Mist surfaces while working to reduce airborne dust. Connect power tools that create dust or chips to a high-efficiency HEPA vacuum. Never use open torches and high-temperature heat guns: They create lead-paint fumes that are even more dangerous than lead dust.
4. Clean the floor daily to prevent people from tracking dust into other areas, and dispose of used plastic sheeting, collected dust and chips in heavy-duty plastic bags.
5. After cleaning surfaces with a HEPA vacuum, wash them with soapy water followed by clear water, using separate disposable rags to avoid cross-contamination.
6. Once surfaces are dry, test them for lead residue using an approved kit, and repeat the cleaning process until the surfaces are lead-safe.
Note: Lead-safe does not necessarily mean lead-free. Sometimes it is better to enclose the coating or to replace the surface — for example, install 1/4-in. gypsum drywall over a peeling ceiling, repaint a wall that’s in good shape, or remove and replace windows, doors or exterior siding rather than attempt to remove the coating.
PRO TIPS
Handyman Club member Brad Nelson from Nelson First Consulting and Midwest Environmental Consulting teaches contractors how to work safely around lead paint. He shares this hands-on advice, including what he calls the WWW: work wet, work smart, work clean.
• Before removing interior trim, cover the trim/wall joint with blue painter’s tape. Then cut through the tape to break the paint seal. The tape will trap lead chips and dust.
• Clean and finish wood floors, seal concrete and wax old vinyl floors before disturbing surfaces containing lead paint. Lead paint dust and chips are easier to remove from hard surfaces that are clean, smooth and sealed, and the space will more likely test lead-safe after the job.
• Erect 6-mil-plastic curtains from floor to ceiling to minimize the size of the area that will need to be contained and cleaned. Tape plastic to the floor; then tape the vertical sheets of plastic to the floor plastic. Tape all seams. Support the 6-mil plastic with telescoping ZipWall poles or springboards made from 1x2 lumber that’s 3/4 in. longer than the wall height.
• Dispose of dust, chips and contaminated plastic sheeting in large, heavy-duty plastic bags. Before sealing a bag, remove excess air with a HEPA vacuum. Then seal the top using the gooseneck technique (twist the top, wrap with duct tape, fold over and tape again).
• If work will continue for days or weeks, install two layers of 6-mil plastic sheeting on the floor, and replace the top layer daily to keep the workspace clean and reduce tracking outside the area.
• Before removing and transporting a badly peeling building component such as a window or door, stabilize the surfaces with a slap coat of paint.
• Work wet whenever possible – mist the surface before sanding, scraping or wire-brushing to minimize airborne dust.
• Clean from the top down to work with rather than against gravity: Lead is heavy and falls downward.
Useful Links
www.epa.gov/lead
www.realtor.org/library/library/fg712#topicc
www.nahb.org/generic.aspx?genericContentID=118467
www.nelsonfirst.com
www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/lead/test.html
bradnelson@nelsonfirst.com