lead paint abatement

dkpatton

My daughter, son-in-law and 1 year old grandson live in an older house with another couple. The property they live on includes a smaller house that needs a lot of work. My son-in-law began to remodel the smaller house in hopes of purchasing it when done. He removed all of the sheet rock which was painted with paint that contained lead. He also used a belt sander on floors and trim. A lot of this work was done with windows and doors wide open and the debris from this work was stacked in the front yard for several days before being hauled away. They also did a lot of sanding on the exterior paint which may or may not have contained lead in one of the layers. Because he did not know better, he took no precautions when going home. He picked up the baby in dust covered clothes and I am sure tracked a lot of dust into the other house. All of this has gone on over about 6 months. At a recent doctors appointment my grandsons lead levels came back very high.

My question is this. Can the home he was remodeling and the yard around it ever be made completely safe? Also, how dangerous is the home they are living in and can it be made safe? Also, if the homes and yard can be made safe, can someone give me a ballpark figure as to how much this can cost? The yard is very large, perhaps an acre?

sdsester

Have not commented on this site in awhile but let me just say that as much a pain in the ass they are, this is why the lead abatement regulations had to be put in place.

There is no way to go back and clean up now save for raking and containing anything obvious. Clean the ducts and all the HVAC system components you can reach. Change the filters.

If levels continue to rise it may be more to do with ancient lead plumbing? In your place, servicing your place, or the sink at pre-school.

The good news is lead is a heavy metal. It will leach down through the soil eventually one hopes. Along with all the mercury tossed in landfills.