Do you live in a house built before 1978? If your answer is yes, call MAS Labs to have your home tested for lead.
1.800.470.4844
SOURCES OF LEAD
Until 1978, lead was used as an additive in paint to increase durability. Although the practice has been discontinued, lead-based paint may still be present in older homes. Paint containing lead is commonly found on window frames, floors, baseboards, and home exteriors. As the paint degrades, lead dust is released into the air or washed into soil outside the home, below the painted surface.
Contamination can also come from drinking or cooking with water that flows through lead pipes, lead fittings, or lead solder. Boiling water does not remove lead. Lead solder, like lead paint, was also discontinued by 1978, but like paint, it still remains in homes built prior to that time.
LEAD POISIONING
Lead poisoning is of greatest concern among children, as they frequently put their hands or other objects that may be contaminated with lead dust in their mouths. Children may also eat sweet tasting lead paint chips, chew on surfaces coated with lead paint, or play in soil that is contaminated with lead.
Children’s growing bodies absorb more lead than adults’: 50% of the lead they ingest. And their brains and nervous systems are far more sensitive to the damaging effects of lead. Even children who appear healthy can have dangerous levels of lead in their blood. Known health effects of lead exposure in children include brain and nervous system damage, behavioral problems, slowed growth, hearing problems, and headaches. Lead exposure is also harmful to adults. It is known to cause problems during pregnancy and other reproductive problems that are not limited to women. It may also cause high blood pressure, nerve disorders, memory problems, and muscle and joint pain.
You should consider having your home screened or tested for lead if:
- You own a home that was constructed prior to 1978
- You are planning to renovate or remodel your home. Renovations can add large amounts of lead dust to the air inside a home if lead paint is present
- You are considering the purchase of a home that was built before 1978
- You are a renter living in a home built before 1978
MAS Labs’ Lead Surface Screen offers homeowners and renters the opportunity to determine whether their homes have the possibility of lead contamination. If a painted surface is found to contain lead, our inspector can collect a wide range of samples to send to the lab for thorough analysis. MAS Labs will collect and analyze paint chip, soil, water, and dust samples to ascertain whether lead content is within acceptable EPA thresholds.
Do you live in a house built before 1978? If your answer is yes, call MAS Labs to have your home tested for lead.
1.800.470.4844
Lead is a naturally occurring
element that is highly toxic to
humans. In nature, lead is found
with other metals in rock; however,
it is the commercial use of lead that
creates the greatest risk of exposure.
While the largest commercial use of lead
today is in batteries and ammunition, even
discontinued uses of lead still pose a health risk.
The main sources of lead contamination are:
· Lead-based paint
· Airborne lead paint dust
· Lead in drinking water
Lead detection and testing in PA, MA, NJ, CT, VA, MD, IL, DE, IN, WI and MI
