Lead paint in older properties, what to check before you disturb it

Where lead paint is most likely to be found

Lead paint was used most heavily on joinery and metalwork rather than wall emulsions, because it gave a hard, durable, quick-drying finish that suited gloss and enamel work. It is most often found under many later coats rather than on the surface, so a property that looks freshly painted can still have lead buried in the paint history.

• Skirting boards, door frames and internal doors
• Window frames, sashes and glazing bars
• Metal railings, gates and radiators
• External soffits, fascias and barge boards
• Older stairs, banisters and picture rails

Testing rather than guessing

Visual age is not a reliable test on its own. Where there is any doubt on a pre-1992 property, a lead paint test kit or, for larger or commercial jobs, a laboratory paint sample gives a proper answer before work starts. This matters most where children, pregnant occupants or extensive sanding are involved, because the risk comes from dust and paint chips being ingested or inhaled, not from an intact painted surface being left alone.

What must never be done to suspected lead paint

Certain preparation methods are specifically dangerous with lead paint because they generate fine airborne dust or fumes, and these are the methods most likely to cause exposure to occupants and operatives alike.

• Dry power sanding without extraction
• Uncontrolled heat gun or blowtorch stripping, which produces toxic fumes
• Grinding, needle gunning or abrasive blasting without containment
• Sweeping up paint dust or chips dry

Safer methods when lead is present or suspected

Where lead paint is confirmed, work under the Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002 uses controlled methods, wet sanding to keep dust down, chemical strippers used with proper ventilation and disposal, or sanders fitted with dust extraction and HEPA filtration. Encapsulation, sealing sound lead paint under a suitable barrier coating rather than removing it, is often the most practical and lowest-risk route where the existing paint is stable and well adhered.

Duties for landlords, employers and contractors

Under the Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002, anyone carrying out work likely to disturb lead paint has a legal duty to assess the risk, control exposure and, where relevant, monitor it. Landlords and employers commissioning refurbishment work should ask contractors directly what precautions they will take and expect a clear answer, not a shrug.

• Risk assessment before any stripping or heavy sanding begins
• Suitable PPE and respiratory protection where dust is unavoidable
• Controlled containment and correctly labelled waste disposal
• Records kept of testing and control measures on larger jobs

Living in the property during works

On occupied jobs we plan around the room being worked in, sealing it off, using dust sheets and extraction, and cleaning down thoroughly with a suitable vacuum before the space is handed back. Children and pregnant occupants are kept out of the work area entirely while stripping or sanding suspected lead paint is underway, and food preparation surfaces are protected or avoided nearby.

Disposal of lead paint waste

Paint chips, sanding residue and stripped material from confirmed or suspected lead paint should not go into general household or commercial waste. Depending on the quantity and concentration, this waste may need to be treated as hazardous and taken to a facility licensed to accept it, with appropriate records kept for commercial jobs. Double-bagging waste at source, labelling it clearly, and avoiding any sweeping or handling that could release dust are straightforward habits that reduce risk right through to final disposal, not just during the stripping itself.