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Division of Environmental Health
> Environmental & Occupational Health > Childhood Lead Poisoning > Homeowners
Environmental & Occupational Health -
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Homeowners
Is your home putting your family at risk for lead poisoning? |
If your house was built before 1950 it is very likely that it contains lead paint.
Any building built before 1978 may have lead paint.
Dust from lead paint is the most common way children in Maine are poisoned.
Lead paint was often used inside homes around windows, doors, trim and on painted floors.
It was also used on the outside of houses, such as doors, windows, wood siding, trim, porches and stairs.
Lead paint can turn into lead dust from the normal wear and tear of daily living such as:
Scraping, sanding, or grinding paint can make a lot of lead dust very quickly.
This dust can blow in windows,
stick on your clothes and shoes and
spread around your house.
Either assume your older home has lead paint, or test to make sure.
Use the following tips to live safely in an older home.
Keep the paint in your home in good condition.
If your children are young, do touch up work and put off big renovations until they are older.
Make sure your children are out of the room when you do touch up work.
Protect yourself by wearing proper protective gear and protect your family by
working lead safe.
Make sure you clean the work area, yourself and your tools
so you don’t move lead dust around.
See Essential Maintenance for a Lead Safe Home 
for more information on how to keep your home lead-safe.
Moisture and Water:
Take care of any water leaks or moisture problems in your home as quickly as possible.
Moisture can cause paint to break down faster.
Cleaning
Vacuum and damp mop to clean. Don’t sweep, it moves lead dust around.
Use an all purpose cleaner in your wash water and change your wash water
often to help get rid of the lead. Flush the dirty water down the toilet.
Rinse the bucket and mop well. Mop again with water (no soap) to
remove as much lead dust as possible.
Click here for a Step by Step Guide (Adobe PDF*) on how to clean thoroughly.
To renovate or repair your house safely, you can hire a contractor
who has either a one day lead safe training class or hire a lead abatement expert.
Always ask for references and see the Maine State Attorney Generals Model Contract 
.
You can also be trained yourself. Free training classes are held through out the state.
You can find out where and when by going to the DEP Training Calendar
Lead safe work practices aren't hard, but take a little more planning and time.
The basics steps of lead safe work are:
See a short video clip explaining lead safe work.
"Lead Paint Safety A Field Guide for Painting, Home Maintenance, and Renovation Work 
" (PDF*)
is a booklet produced by the US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.
It is an excellent guide to working lead safe in an older home.
"Don't Spread Lead" " (PDF*) is a do-it-yourself guide to lead-safe painting, repair and home improvement - To request a CD showing how to work lead-safe, contact Maine DEP Lead Hazard Prevention Program at 1-800-452-1942
There are two options for hiring someone to work on your older home.
If you want to remove lead permanently, you can hire an “abatement contractor”.
To renovate and not make a lead dust problem, hire a “lead smart renovator.”
and has tips on hiring them. who have completed this course. There are several ways to test your home for lead. Some tests you can do yourself.
These tests only tell you if there is lead paint on the surface. Hiring a professional
lead inspector will identify all the lead in your house and will cost more.
Household Lead Test Kit:
You can buy household lead test kits at a hardware store.
These tests only test the paint they touch. They will not tell you
if there is lead paint COVERED by a layer of non-leaded paint. 
These tests work best on woodwork that is already chipped
so you can test all the layers of paint.
Lead Dust Tests:
You can request a lead dust test kit from the Health and Environmental
Testing Lab
at 207-287-8017. Knowing if you
have lead dust around
window sills or doorways
can help you
keep your children safe from lead.
Soil and Water Tests:
You can also test for lead in soil by contacting the State Health and Environmental Testing Lab (287-8014)
or the University of Maine Extension 
. Soil around old houses often have high levels of lead.
Keep children away from dirt next to buildings.
If you child plays in an areas with bare soil,
you can test that soil for lead.
You may also want to test your garden soil for lead.
Public water supplies are tested for lead. You can contact them to find out the test results.
If your water comes from a private well, you should test it for lead and other problems.
Professional Lead Inspectors:
You can hire a lead professional to test your home 
. They have equipment
that allows them to measure lead in paint, even if it is covered. They can test
the whole home or selected rooms. They can also do soil, dust and water testing.
While this is the most expensive option, it is the most thorough.
Contact the Maine DEP for a list of lead testing professionals.
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