Many of us already know or have at least heard about the many dangers of lead-based paint and where it can be found. Buildings built before 1978 commonly used lead-based paint throughout, and those odds increase the older the building is: some 62% of pre-1978 buildings, 80% of pre-1960, and 90% of pre-1940 buildings have lead, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
What you may not know is that paint is not the only source of possible household lead contamination. The water crisis in Flint has opened wide the eyes of America to other sources of lead that can easily infiltrate a home.
Just because your home was built after 1978 doesn’t necessarily mean it’s lead-proof. Any home built before 1986 is likely to still have used lead pipes or fixtures for plumbing and drinking water. And up until 2014, legally labeled “lead-free” plumbing was allowed to contain up to 8% lead.
When those pipes begin to corrode, that lead can leak into your potable water supply — which is exactly what happened in Flint.
Lead exposure can be dangerous to everyone, but its effects are most pronounced in children whose intellectual and cognitive skills are still developing. It’s estimates that 600,000 new cases of developmental disabilities will be caused by lead exposure every year.
The good news is that more stringent laws and regulations have been passed to stem the tide of lead poisoning even further. Plumbing must now contain no more than 0.25% lead, and paints no more than 0.1%.
If you’re in the market for a remodel, be sure to only hire EPA lead certified contractors. EPA lead certification courses train builders, painters, and plumbers on how to handle lead in old and new buildings and how to make sure your home is safe to live in. They have to go through lead abatement training and have lead paint certification in order to even work on your home.
An EPA lead certified contractor will help you reduce the risk of lead contamination throughout your home, whether it’s paint on the walls or pipes in the plumbing. Renovating your home will not only improve your aesthetic, it’ll improve your quality of life.
