Needle guns and needle scalers with vacuum dust control safely remove lead-containing paints and coatings from surfaces.
Hazard Analysis — Lead
Problem:
Workers that prepare surfaces with hand tools may face hazards from lead.Risk Description:
Exposure to lead can cause a variety of health problems. Although it has systemic effects throughout the body, some of the most dangerous outcomes are neurological. In adults, overexposure to lead can cause memory loss, headache, irritability, cognitive dysfunction, kidney damage, joint pain, and digestive issues. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has described inorganic lead compounds as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” (WHO, 2006). Lead can enter the body by inhalation, skin contact, or by mouth.
Sources of lead exposure in the construction industry include demolition, bridge maintenance, grinding, cutting, and welding on surfaces containing lead paint. Lead is a common component of many building materials, and lead alloy can be used to solder pipe joints, as a component of ductwork, and in electrical fittings and conduits. Although lead paint was banned for residential use in 1978, it is still legal to use on bridges and other industrial structures. Painters, plumbers, and welders are some of the construction workers most commonly exposed to lead.
Assessment Info:
Working in demolition, bridge renovation, residential remodeling, or any other area where paint is scraped, sprayed, sanded, or blasted, raises the risk of being exposed to unsafe levels of lead. Performing hot work such as welding, brazing, soldering, or thermal cutting on surfaces that may have been coated in lead paint can release large quantities of lead fumes. Lead can also be present in solder, mortar, tank linings, batteries, and glazes. If you are not sure if the substance you are working with contains lead, consult the Safety Data Sheet (SDS). However, it is important to keep in mind that SDS are not always 100% accurate, and may not exist when performing remodeling or demolition work.
Lead dust and fumes do not have a distinctive smell, so personal air monitoring is necessary if workers suspect they may have airborne exposures. A pump and filter can be attached to a worker’s clothing during their shift, and an accredited lab will analyze it for lead content. Settled lead dust can also be sampled using a wipe sample, which measures the amount of lead on a horizontal surface. Sampling should always be done under the supervision of a professional industrial hygienist.
