Remodelers who conduct work in homes built prior to 1978 may want to consider the EPA’s newly published “Paint Chip Sample Collection Guide” as required reading, according to an informative article in the Oct. 17 edition of Nation’s Building News. The guide provides a detailed description of how to properly take a paint chip sample that can be sent to a certified testing lab to ascertain whether lead-safe work practices are necessary in your client’s home.
This procedure is allowed by the EPA in accordance with its Lead: Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) rule due to the fact that there currently is no inexpensive, reliable lead paint test kit available on the market. Without the paint chip test, in homes built before 1978 the remodeler must assume that lead paint is present and work accordingly.
The NBN article, which will be published this Monday evening, also provides additional key information pertaining to EPA’s amended LRRP rule, including links to the agency’s publication titled “Steps to Lead Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting” and a Small Business Compliance Guide to Renovate Right brochure, plus information on recent amendments to the LRRP regarding vertical containment requirements, HEPA vacuums and surface coatings.
For all the details, be sure to check out this Monday’s edition of Nation’s Building News when it arrives in your email. Look for the article titled “New EPA Paint Chip Guide ‘Essential’ for Determining if Lead Is in Homes.” Contact: Matt Watkins (800-368-5242 x8327)