Choosing a lead-certified contractor is essential for ensuring the safety and well-being of everyone in your home. Lead paint, used extensively before its ban in 1978, poses serious health risks when disturbed. Hedlund Painting’s lead-certified painters are trained to manage these risks effectively, providing peace of mind alongside superior service.
HEDLUND PAINTING
Lead Certified Painters
If you live in an older home or are planning renovations that might disturb painted surfaces, it’s crucial to consider the safety of your living environment. Hedlund Painting offers lead-certified painting services, ensuring that any project involving potentially lead-based paint is handled safely and in compliance with all regulatory standards.
Why Choose a Lead Certified Contractor?
Expert Handling of Lead-Based Paint
Our team is well-versed in the best practices for handling and disposing of lead-based paint, from initial assessment to final cleanup. We adhere strictly to EPA guidelines to contain and eliminate lead dust and debris, ensuring that your home remains safe and clean.
Comprehensive Risk Assessment
Before beginning any project, we conduct a thorough assessment to determine if lead-based paint is present and plan our approach accordingly. This preemptive step is crucial for protecting your home and health.
Meticulous Documentation and Compliance
Hedlund Painting meticulously documents all procedures involved in the handling and removal of lead-based paint, ensuring full compliance with local and federal regulations. This is crucial for maintaining safety standards and providing homeowners with adequate documentation.
Understanding the Dangers of Lead Paint
Lead is a toxic metal that can cause serious health problems, especially in children and pregnant women. When lead-based paint is sanded or otherwise disturbed during renovations, it can create hazardous dust and particles that pose risks to both workers and residents.
Lead exposure can lead to neurological damage, developmental delays, and various other serious health issues. It is particularly dangerous for children, as their growing bodies absorb more lead than adults. Our lead-certified painters are equipped to handle these dangers, using specialized techniques and equipment to minimize and contain lead exposure.
Our Lead-Safe Practices
At Hedlund Painting, we follow stringent lead-safe practices to ensure that all aspects of our work are conducted safely and effectively.
Safe Work Practices
We use state-of-the-art containment methods to prevent the spread of lead dust during our projects. These practices include using plastic sheeting to seal off work areas, employing HEPA vacuums for cleanup, and thorough decontamination procedures for tools and workspaces.
Proper Disposal
All lead-contaminated debris is disposed of according to federal and state regulations. We ensure that all hazardous materials are handled and discarded in a manner that prevents environmental contamination.
Continuous Training and Certification
Hedlund Painting ensures that all our lead-certified painters undergo continuous training to stay up-to-date with the latest safety protocols and lead-safe practices. This ongoing education includes renewing certifications and learning new techniques as they develop.
Proudly Serving Greater Seattle
At Hedlund Painting, we prioritize your family’s safety by ensuring all our projects meet strict lead-safe standards. Our team is fully trained and certified to handle lead paint safely, providing you peace of mind while we enhance your home’s exterior. Learn more about our commitment to safety and quality.
- Green Lake
- Issaquah
- Kirkland
- Lynnwood
- Medina
- Seattle
- Woodinville
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if my home has lead paint?▾
Homes built before 1978 have a high probability of containing lead-based paint, as it was not banned for residential use in the United States until that year. The only way to confirm the presence of lead is through a certified lead inspection using XRF testing or lab analysis of paint chip samples. Hedlund Painting is EPA Lead-Safe Certified and can help homeowners in the Seattle area determine the right testing approach.
Is lead paint dangerous if it is not peeling?▾
Intact lead paint in good condition poses a low immediate risk, but it becomes hazardous when it deteriorates, is sanded, scraped, or disturbed during renovation work, releasing lead dust and chips. Lead dust is the primary exposure pathway and is especially dangerous for children under six and pregnant women. Any renovation that disturbs painted surfaces in a pre-1978 home requires lead-safe work practices under federal law.
What is the EPA RRP rule for lead paint?▾
The EPA Renovation, Repair, and Painting (RRP) Rule requires that any contractor performing work that disturbs more than six square feet of interior painted surface or 20 square feet of exterior painted surface in a pre-1978 home must be EPA Lead-Safe Certified and follow specific lead-safe work practices. These practices include containment, HEPA vacuuming, and proper cleanup verification. Violations can result in fines of up to $37,500 per day per violation.
Can you just paint over lead paint?▾
Painting over stable, intact lead paint with a high-quality encapsulant or standard primer and paint is an accepted method of managing lead paint in place, as long as the surface is not flaking or deteriorating. However, any sanding, scraping, or surface preparation that disturbs the existing lead paint must follow EPA lead-safe work practices. Hedlund Painting follows all RRP requirements when working on pre-1978 homes in Washington State.
What does lead-safe certified mean for a painting contractor?▾
A lead-safe certified painting contractor has completed EPA-accredited training in lead-safe work practices and is registered with the EPA to perform renovation work on pre-1978 housing. Certified firms must use trained renovators, follow containment and cleanup procedures, and maintain records for each project. You can verify a contractor's EPA certification through the EPA's Lead-Safe Certified Firm database.
How much more does lead-safe painting cost compared to standard painting?▾
Lead-safe painting typically adds 10% to 30% to the cost of a standard painting project due to the additional containment setup, specialized equipment, HEPA vacuuming, and cleanup verification required by EPA regulations. The exact premium depends on the scope of work and how much painted surface will be disturbed. This added cost protects your family from lead exposure and keeps the project in compliance with federal law.
Do all painters need to be lead certified to work on older homes?▾
Federal law requires any contractor who disturbs painted surfaces in homes built before 1978 to be EPA Lead-Safe Certified, regardless of whether lead has been confirmed present. Homeowners performing work on their own primary residence are exempt, but all hired contractors must comply. Hiring an uncertified contractor for this work puts your family at risk and exposes both you and the contractor to significant EPA fines.
What year was lead paint banned in homes?▾
Lead-based paint was banned for residential use in the United States in 1978 by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Homes built before that year, particularly those constructed before 1960, often contain multiple layers of lead paint on interior and exterior surfaces. In the Seattle metro area, many older neighborhoods in Capitol Hill, Ballard, Wallingford, and surrounding communities have homes that fall into this category.
