Lead Paint and Window Replacement in Homes Built Before 1978

Lead-based paint was banned for residential use in the United States in 1978. Houses built before then may still have it, usually under later coats of paint. It is not a hazard while it is intact and undisturbed. Windows are a part of the house where it tends to be neither.

This page is part of our California window guide. It is general information, not legal or medical advice. If you are worried about exposure, especially for a young child or during pregnancy, talk to your doctor and your county's lead poisoning prevention program.

Why windows are a lead problem

Two reasons, and they apply at different times.

In everyday use: friction and impact

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's guidelines on lead-based paint hazards single out friction surfaces, which are painted surfaces subject to abrasion that may generate leaded dust. HUD's first example is the window: the parts that are rubbed when the window is opened and closed, including the jamb, the stop bead and the parting strip, and sometimes the sash.

Every time an old painted wood sash slides in its track, it grinds a little paint into dust. The dust settles on the sill inside and in the trough between the sash and the storm or screen. HUD and EPA set dust-lead standards specifically for windowsills and window troughs for that reason.

Impact surfaces are the other category. They are surfaces that get knocked. A sash dropping onto a sill and a casement banging its stop both qualify.

HUD's guidance notes that where a component is deteriorated, replacing it can be more cost-effective than trying to treat its friction surfaces. That is one reason window replacement shows up so often in lead hazard work. Done properly, it removes the source.

During replacement: demolition dust

Taking a window out means prying off painted stops and casing, cutting or breaking painted frames, and sometimes cutting back painted siding or plaster. EPA names replacing windows among the common renovation activities that can disturb lead-based paint and create hazardous dust and chips.

So the same job that removes a long-term dust source can spread a large amount of dust in an afternoon if it is done carelessly. That is what the federal rule is for.

The federal rule: EPA's RRP program

EPA's Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule is at 40 CFR Part 745, Subpart E. It applies to renovation performed for compensation in homes, child care facilities and kindergartens built before 1978.

Window replacement is always covered

The rule defines "renovation" as modification of an existing structure that results in the disturbance of painted surfaces, and its list of examples includes the removal of building components such as windows.

There is an exemption for minor repair and maintenance: work that disrupts 6 square feet or less of painted surface per room for interior work, or 20 square feet or less for exterior work. But the definition in 40 CFR 745.83 limits that exemption to work that "does not involve window replacement or demolition of painted surface areas."

The result is simple. In a pre-1978 house, replacing even one window is a renovation under the rule, whatever the area of paint involved.

Certified firm, certified renovator

EPA requires renovation firms to be certified, and individual renovators to be trained by an EPA-accredited training provider in lead-safe work practices. A firm applies to EPA for certification. EPA runs a public search tool where you can look up lead-safe certified firms near you.

The Renovate Right pamphlet

Under 40 CFR 745.84, the firm must give the owner EPA's pamphlet, "Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers and Schools", no more than 60 days before the renovation begins, and either get a signed acknowledgment or obtain a certificate of mailing at least seven days before the work.

In a rental, the pamphlet also goes to an adult occupant of the unit. If you have not been handed this pamphlet and asked to sign for it before work on a pre-1978 house, the firm is not following the rule.

Containment

The work practice standards are in 40 CFR 745.85. For a window job they apply both inside and outside, since the work is done from both sides.

Prohibited and restricted practices

• Open-flame burning or torching of painted surfaces is prohibited.
• Power tools that sand, grind, plane or blast painted surfaces may be used only with shrouds or containment and an attached HEPA vacuum.
• A heat gun may be used on painted surfaces only below 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cleaning and verification

Waste must be contained before it leaves the work area and stored and transported so dust is not released. Protective sheeting is misted before it is folded. The work area is then cleaned until no dust, debris or residue remains, using a HEPA vacuum and wet wiping, working from higher surfaces to lower ones.

Then comes cleaning verification. A certified renovator inspects the area visually. For interior work, the renovator wipes each windowsill in the work area with a damp disposable cleaning cloth and compares it with a cleaning verification card. If the cloth is darker than the card, that surface is cleaned again and re-tested. Floors and countertops are checked the same way in sections.

The rule allows dust clearance sampling by a certified inspector, risk assessor or dust sampling technician in place of the cloth test, where a contract or another law calls for it.

What California adds

California has lead rules of its own, and they apply alongside the federal ones.

• Lead-safe work practices under Title 17. California Code of Regulations, Title 17, section 36050 requires any individual conducting lead activities to use containment and to ensure the work area has no visible dust or debris after the project is completed. The person must be able to show compliance to the Department of Public Health or a local enforcement agency on request.
• No creating a lead hazard. Health and Safety Code section 105255 prohibits doing lead-related construction work on a residential or public building in a manner that creates a lead hazard. It lets the state and local enforcement agencies enter and inspect job sites and order the work stopped.
• Enforcement. Under section 105256, an agency can order an owner to correct a lead hazard and order the person causing it to stop. A first violation of an order is an infraction with a fine of up to $1,000. A later violation is a misdemeanor.
• Lead hazards as a housing violation. Health and Safety Code section 17920.10 treats a dwelling as in violation where it contains lead hazards likely to endanger occupants, and it counts "disturbing lead-based paint without containment" as a lead hazard in its own right. Its thresholds include 10 percent of the surface area of a small component such as a windowsill.
• State certification for lead professionals. The California Department of Public Health accredits training providers and certifies individuals for lead-related construction work in residential and public buildings under Title 17.

In short, California's rules on containment and cleanup do not depend on who is doing the work or whether they are paid. A homeowner exempt from the federal rule is still not free to spread lead dust.

Retrofit or full-frame in an older house

The installation method changes how much paint is disturbed.

• Retrofit installation leaves the old frame in the wall and sets the new window inside it. The sash, stops and some trim come out. The frame, casing and exterior finish mostly stay. Less painted material is broken up.
• Full-frame replacement removes the entire window down to the rough opening, including interior casing and often exterior trim or a strip of stucco or siding. It disturbs much more painted material, and it removes all of the old painted window parts from the house.

Neither is automatically right. Retrofit creates less dust during the job but can leave old painted frame parts in place behind the new window. Full-frame takes everything out and is the only way to deal with rot or failed flashing. See retrofit versus new-construction installation for the full comparison. Either way the rule applies.

What to ask a window contractor

1. Is your firm EPA lead-safe certified? Ask for the certificate, and check the firm on EPA's locator.
2. Who is the certified renovator on my job, and will that person be on site?
3. When will I get the Renovate Right pamphlet? It should come before the work, with an acknowledgment to sign.
4. How will you contain the work area inside and outside? Listen for plastic on the floor six feet out, ground cover outside, closed windows and doors, and covered vents.
5. Do the installers who come to my house work for you? If the crew is subcontracted, ask about that firm's certification as well.
6. How do you clean up, and who does the cleaning verification?
7. How is the debris taken away? Old sashes and frames should leave wrapped or bagged, not carried loose through the house.
8. Is the lead-safe work included in the price? It should be a visible part of the quote, not a surprise. See how to compare window replacement quotes.

A contractor who says "your house is fine, we do not need to do all that" about a pre-1978 home is telling you they intend to skip a legal requirement. If the paint has been tested by a certified inspector and found not to be lead-based, ask for the report and keep it.

What you can do during the job

• Keep children, pregnant household members and pets out of the work area until cleaning has been verified.
• Move furniture, bedding, toys and food away from the windows before the crew arrives.
• Leave the warning signs and plastic alone until the contractor removes them.
• Do not sweep or use a household vacuum on construction dust.

The same rules apply to exterior cladding work. See lead-safe siding work on pre-1978 homes. If you own rental property, landlord window obligations in California covers the disclosure and tenant-notice side.

Sources

• EPA: Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program rules
• 40 CFR Part 745, Subpart E (sections 745.83 definitions, 745.84 pamphlet, 745.85 work practice standards)
• EPA: RRP program information for consumers
• EPA: lead-safe renovations for do-it-yourselfers
• HUD Guidelines for the Evaluation and Control of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in Housing, Chapter 11: Interim Controls
• California Code of Regulations, Title 17, section 36050 (lead-safe work practices)
• Health and Safety Code section 105255, section 105256 and section 17920.10
• California Department of Public Health: Lead-Related Construction Program

Working with Heritage Exteriors

If your house was built before 1978, raise it when we quote, and we will explain how lead-safe work practices apply to your job and how they are reflected in the scope. Ask any contractor you are considering, us included, for their EPA firm certification before you sign. Licensed in California, CSLB #1055919. Call (916) 546-2991.