21st Century Home Improvement Specializes in lead-based paint containment.

Many homes and other structures built prior to 1978 have paint that contains lead. This lead-based paint can pose serious health hazards if not taken care of properly. Lead's effects on children can include damage to the brain and nervous system, behavioral and learning problems, slowed growth, hearing problems, and headaches. In adults, lead can cause difficulties during pregnancy, reproductive problems, high blood pressure, digestive problems, nerve disorders, memory loss, and muscle and joint pain. Lead can enter the body when people put their hands on or eat objects covered with lead dust, eat paint chips or soil containing lead, or breathe in lead dust.

Lead-based paint which is in good condition is usually not a problem. It becomes a serious threat when peeling, chipping, chalking, or cracking. It may also be a hazard when found on surfaces that children can chew or that get a lot of wear-and-tear, such as window sills, doors and door frames, stairs, railings, and porches. If not conducted properly, home renovation projects can create lead hazards. Dry scraping, dry sanding, and heating lead-based paint create lead-paint chips and lead dust. This dust settles on objects that people touch and can re-enter the air when people vacuum, sweep or walk through it.

The city of San Francisco, the state of California, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) all have adopted laws governing lead-based paint. These laws require any structure built prior to 1978 to be tested for lead based paint before disturbing or removing painted surfaces. If lead is present, various practices for containing the lead have been established at the city, state, and federal levels. 21st Century Home Improvement Painting & Roofing has adopted these practices. All of our painters have attended lead classes and are state certified in lead containment. We have also had each employee's blood tested for hazardous levels of lead. Our field supervisors help to assure that every job is performed in accordance with city, sate, and federal guidelines.

Once we test the structure for lead, the project foreman receives the results so that lead containment practices are used should lead be present. These precautions include the use of respirators and protective full body suits; establishing "containment barriers" to prevent the migration of lead paint contaminants (covering all areas with plastic tarps and netting to contain dust and paint chips); and posting warning signs conspicuously to notify the public of lead danger. We also avoid prohibited practices such as open flame burning; scraping, sanding, grinding or sandblasting without containment barriers or the use of a HEPA vacuum; and hydroblasting without containment barriers. These precautions are taken to protect our clients, their families, and our employees from lead hazards.

For more information about lead hazards or containment barriers, contact:

The National Lead Information Center 1-800-424-LEAD or 1-800-FYI-LEAD

EPA's Safe Drinking Water Hotline 1-800-426-4791

Housing and Urban Development (HUD) 1-800-245-2691

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