Time To Get The Lead Out
At a time when home sales continue to struggle and more people are trying to fix up their homes rather than move, the cost of renovation is about to get more expensive.
On April 22, new regulations concerning lead-safe renovation practices will kick in. As of that date, if you hire
someone to strip the paint from windows or use a sander to smooth chipping paint from an old door, that person will likely need to be certified by EPA.
The new rule applies to contractors that perform renovation or repairs that disturb paint in homes, child-occupied facilities and schools built before 1978. Contractors that undertake such work must be trained and certified by April 22, 2010. Currently, only Wisconsin and Iowa are federally authorized to administer and enforce the Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Program.
A few of the high points of the Program are:
• The rule applies when more than six square feet of lead-based paint is disturbed in a room or more than twenty square feet of lead-based paint is disturbed on the exterior;
• For a pre-1978 structure, testing of the paint may be done or all paint will assumed to be lead-based;
• Work areas must be sealed off, dust minimized and cleanup done by wet mopping HEPA vacuuming. EPA warns “you may even want to move out of your home temporarily while all or parts of the work are being done" (p. 8);
• Workers that will be affected include, but are not limited to: painters, HVAC installers, carpenters, roofers, carpet installers, plumbers, repairmen, electricians, flooring installers and window/door installers;
• If you are a homeowner performing your own work, the RRP rule does not apply to your project.
EPA estimates that the work will add an average of $35 to the cost of projects in pre-1978 buildings; others believe the costs will be significantly more. In the short term, it will be interesting to see what the regulations will do to federally and state funded weatherization projects.
While EPA has been asked to extend the deadline based on the fact that there are few contractors currently certified to do the work, there are no indications that there will be a delay. So be prepared to spend some money to make the environment a little safer -- one house at a time.
