Category: Lead Paint

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Lead Paint Remodeling

What Home Owners Need to Know About Lead Paint

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enacted a new rule for professional contractors in April 2010 to help keep small children safer from the dangers of lead dust exposure.

If you live in a home built before 1978 and you’re contemplating any work that will disturb more than six square feet of painted surfaces inside the home or 20 square feet on the exterior of the home – for example, replacing a window, installing cabinets, or adding on to your home – the contractor you hire is required by law to be trained and certified by the EPA.

Keep your family safe from the dangers of lead exposure by hiring an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Renovator. Call your local home builders’ association for a list of certified remodelers or use the tool at www.leadfreekids.org to find one near you.

Tips for Home Owners

  1. Hire an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Renovator for your home remodeling project.

    Professional remodelers who have achieved EPA Lead-Safe Certification are trained and prepared to work in pre-1978 homes for minimizing dust and potential lead paint exposures. These workers also have certified their firms and will carry an EPA seal verifying their qualifications to follow lead-safe work practices. Certified Renovators have the knowledge and tools to contain dust and keep your family safe. Do not attempt remodeling work yourself or hire an uncertified remodeler as this puts you at risk of lead poisoning. Use the search tool on the EPA website to find a Lead-Safe Certified Renovator near you or call your local home builders’ association for a list of certified remodelers.

  2. Read Renovate Right.

    Your Certified Renovator will provide you a copy of the Renovate Right brochure produced by the EPA. This brochure describes the dangers of lead poisoning and how the practices of the remodeler will be employed to contain dust, clean, and minimize the dangers of lead paint exposure.

  3. Pay attention to warning signs and do not enter containment areas.

    The Certified Renovator will post warning signs and set up areas of containment using plastic to keep dust under control. Pay attention to these notices and stay away from these areas. The remodeler uses these techniques and lead-safe work practices to minimize lead dust exposure.

  4. Consider testing for lead.

    You may ask the Certified Renovator to use LeadCheck or D-Lead test kits for testing certain surfaces for lead. If the test comes back negative, the remodeler will not need to use lead safe work practices because the component has tested lead-free. Alternatively, a home owner may choose to hire a certified risk assessor or lead inspector to conduct testing in the home for lead. Any pre-1978 home can be tested for lead and if the results are negative, the EPA lead rule does not apply.

  5. Maintain records about your home remodel.

    After the remodeling job is complete the EPA Certified Renovator will share records with you, such as a checklist describing the work practices used and any results from lead testing. Be sure to keep these records and share them with the next home owner if you should sell your home.

Learn more about EPA’s lead paint rule by visiting http://www.leadfreekids.org/ or by downloading the pamphlet, Renovate Right.

The BOLD Company is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Renovator and can help you with your eremodeling project.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

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Basement Remodeling Home Maintenance Lead Paint

You Must Hire a Lead Safe Certified Professional to Remodel Your pre-1978 Home

When you are ready to remodel or renovate your pre-1978 home, it’s important to hire a Lead-Safe-Certified professional, recommends the National Association of Home Builders.

Before being banned in 1978, lead was a common ingredient in exterior and interior house paint, and is still present in many older homes. Lead ingestion has been shown to cause developmental delays and disabilities in young children.

In April 2010 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enacted the Lead: Renovation, Repair, and Painting rule that requires training in lead-safe work practices for all remodelers working in pre-1978 homes. EPA Lead-Safe Certified Renovators are equipped to use lead test kits, educate consumers about the dangers of lead and use prescribed lead-safe work practices.

“Lead-Safe Certified Renovators are trained to help keep your family safe from lead exposure during your remodeling project,” said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Donna Shirey, CGR, CAPS, CGP, and remodeler from Issaquah, Wash.

“It always pays to get the job done right,” said Shirey. “Remodeling professionals have expertise in design solutions, managing product choices and completing beautiful projects. Plus lead-safe certification means the remodeler will understand and apply practices to minimize dust and lead exposure and protect the safety of your family.”

When planning your home remodel, read the EPA’s Renovate Right pamphlet to better understand the dangers of lead exposure and how to conduct a safe home remodel. Consider hiring a certified risk assessor or lead inspector to determine if your home contains lead paint. After completing the renovation, be sure to maintain records of the work that’s been done.

For sound advice on lead safety, visit www.nahb.org/leadsafe. The BOLD Company is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Renovator. To find others near you, contact your local home builders’ association or use the search tool at http://www.leadfreekids.org/. For more information about home remodeling, visit www.nahb.org/remodel.

Builders Of Lifelong Dreams

Categories
Home Maintenance Home Safety Lead Paint Remodeling

Lead Paint Rule's Opt-Out Provision Ends July 6

The EPA has gone forward with its proposal to eliminate a provision to its Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting rule that previously allowed owners of older homes to opt-out of the lead-safe work practices mandated by the rule if no children under six or pregnant women resided in their home. An amendment that makes this rule change official was published in the Federal Register on May 6, with an effective date of July 6. This means that after July 6, 2010, renovations in all 78 million pre-1978 homes could be subject to the new work practice standards as stipulated in the rule. This is despite EPA’s own estimates that a significantly smaller portion of homes — more like 38 million — still contain lead paint.

The new rules also require a post-renovation notification to be presented to the home owner. This means that the remodeler must give the property owner and/or residents a copy of the post-renovation checklist or similar form. Importantly, the EPA has also extended the expiration date for any certified renovator who completed his or her training before April 22, 2010. The new expiration date is July 1, 2015.

One more thing to keep in mind: the EPA has previously given notice that it is writing another rule to require more complex dust-wipe or clearance testing, effectively requiring remodelers to fill the role of lead-paint abatement workers. If approved, this rule would become effective in July 2011.