Owner Update “Question of The Month”

Q: 1: Since I don’t know if my rentals contain lead paint, why do I need to use special methods to repair it?

A: You won’t know by just looking if paint is LBP. Testing is needed and typically not done because of expense. The age of housing is an indication. Studies show that 70% of housing built before 1960 contain LBP. For housing built before 1940, 98% contain some lead paint, so age of housing is a good indicator.

Q. 2: What are the techniques used to repair paint in older housing that might contain lead?

A: These techniques are called Safe Work Practices. They keep exposure to LBP contamination to a minimum for maintenance people and the unit environment. Workers and occupants are protected from ingesting large amounts of dust. Dust is kept from spreading to other areas. Safe work practices include the following methods:

Isolation of interior work areas with plastic sheeting on room doors. Cover floors and furnishings with plastic sheeting. Use sheeting on exterior foundations to protect soil from contamination of dust and chips.

Wet Sanding/Scraping. Work wet to avoid releasing dust into the air. Wet the affected areas while scraping/sanding, except electrical areas, and use equipment and materials made for wet sanding.

Use safe chemical stripper either on site, or remove doors, etc. and strip off site.

Scrape with an infrared or coil-type heat gun with temps. below 1100 degrees F.

Complete job by cleaning areas with powdered dishwasher detergent or tri-sodium phosphate detergent to remove any remaining dust.

Vacuum work areas with a HEPA vacuum cleaner to remove dust.

Training on Lead Safe Work Practices is available at no or low cost.

There are two training programs coming up which are targeted to people who own assisted housing or do maintenance work in assisted housing. It is also designed for people working in the remodeling and renovation industry.



HEY! WE’VE GOT A HEPA VACUUM FOR LOAN

Periodically, we like to remind our owners that we have this vacuum available to help in cleaning up sites where paint has been repaired. If you are getting ready for a clearance inspection, it’s a must for clearing the unit of paint dust & debris.

There are many “HEPA’s” out there, but not all do a good job of really filtering LBP dust, which is very fine. Our HEPA is approved by the Ohio Department of Health and is on loan to us from them for clean-up work. There is no charge for borrowing the vacuum Just call to schedule use. ODH requires that all users watch an 8-minute video on proper utilization and cleaning of the HEPA Vacuum.

Back to Page 1