Lead poisoning is a serious health problem, especially for kids age 6 and younger, and the primary source of that lead is dust from deteriorating lead paint. But if you live in a house with lead paint, the problem doesn’t have to paralyze your remodeling plans or make you wish you lived somewhere else.
Lead poisoning occurs primarily in homes built before 1978, the year that lead was banned from residential paints. Its caused by paint that's flaking, peeling, chipping and chalking, or by dust from a remodeling project. But if you follow a few commonsense steps, you can control the dust and keep your home lead-safe with lead paint removal tips and worry-free.
In this lead paint removal article, well show you safe dust control techniques used successfully by lead reduction experts. Use them when you're redecorating, remodeling, making repairs or otherwise disturbing lead paint.
In this lead paint removal demonstration, we plan to repaint woodwork around old double-hung windows, a significant source of lead dust. The paint on the old sashes rubs off as they slide up and down. The paint on the sash exteriors also tends to flake and peel and fall on the sill or blow inside. Use the same dust control and paint removal techniques when working on other woodwork, windows, walls, and ceilings.
The three basic techniques well show control the dust, work wet and clean up thoroughly will seem cumbersome and slow at first. However, they're little more than the basic dust control measures you'd expect from any first-class painters and remodelers. After you get used to them, you'll see that they're pretty much commonsense methods. If your home contains lead paint, ask any contractors you hire if they use lead-safe dust control methods. If they don't, hire someone else.