Can You Paint Over Lead Paint Safely?
Always take precautions before painting over lead paint
Highlights
Exposure to lead paint can be dangerous.
Painting over lead paint is effective in some cases.
If the lead paint is flaking, encapsulation is not safe.
You may need to hire a pro to remove the lead paint.
If you have lead paint in your home, you need to deal with it, but there is no reason to panic. Perhaps you are wondering if it is possible to paint over it. You often can use a process called encapsulation to cover the lead-based paint. This process, however, requires several precautionary steps for a DIY job, or you will need to reach out to a local painting pro who has prior experience dealing with lead paint.
Why Is Lead Paint Dangerous?
Lead is toxic to humans. If you ingest paint that contains lead, you may suffer damage to the organs in your body. You could also suffer seizures and cognitive damage. Lead paint is most dangerous when no longer intact, i.e., flaking and chipping, which increases the chances of ingestion or inhalation. Small children may chew on surfaces that have lead paint, attracted by its sweet taste.
How Do I Know if I Have Lead Paint?
Before figuring out if you can paint over lead-based paint, you will want to know for certain what it is. You cannot just look at paint and determine for certain whether it contains lead. Instead, you should hire a local lead paint testing company to be certain.
To help figure out if you need to test paint for lead, consider the age of your home. The United States outlawed the use of lead paint in 1978. A home built before then could have lead-based paint somewhere, unless a previous property owner removed or encapsulated it.
Occasionally, home builders may have continued using lead-based paint illegally in homes built in the 1980s. If you have flaking paint in a home built after 1978, you may still want to reach out to a testing company.
Can You Paint Over Lead-Based Paint With Encapsulation?
You can paint over lead paint using an encapsulation technique; however, you must follow certain techniques and rules to do the job properly and safely. Do not assume that just any coat of paint works for encapsulation. You must use a special kind of liquid or adhesive encapsulant paint that is proven safe for sealing lead paint surfaces.
How Does Encapsulation Work?
As long as you or a professional painter is using a type of paint that specifically says it will encapsulate lead paint, the material will seal it properly. When the encapsulating paint dries, it creates a strong layer that prevents the lead paint below from reaching the environment. The encapsulating paint is thicker than typical paint, creating a membrane that seals it in. Follow the instructions for applying the encapsulating paint if you are doing a DIY job.
Is It Safe to Encapsulate Lead Paint on Your Own?
As long as you follow precautions, it is usually safe for you to paint over lead paint and encapsulate it. You should always wear full-body personal protective equipment (PPE) to do the work, including gloves, a respirator mask, eye protection, and coveralls with a hood.
Keep other people away from the area while you work. Put down a drop cloth to catch any lead paint that may flake away.
Never chip or scrape the lead paint before encapsulating it, which could release the dangerous flakes and dust into the air. In fact, if the lead paint is already flaking and peeling, you should not try to encapsulate it. Instead, rely on a pro to remove it entirely.
Should You Hire a Pro to Paint Over Lead-Based Paint?
If you do not feel comfortable working around dangerous lead paint, that is perfectly understandable. Hire a professional to do the encapsulation. A local interior painting service may be willing to do the encapsulation process for you. If not, the local painter can recommend a lead paint expert. Pros will have the know-how and PPE gear to do the job safely.
When Should I Not Paint Over Lead Paint?
If lead paint is flaking, encapsulation is not an option, as the encapsulating paint cannot seal it properly. Flaking lead paint is far more dangerous than when it is intact; at that point, removal is the only solution.
Who do you call to remove lead paint? A local lead paint removal company is the best solution. You should not try to figure out how to remove lead paint on your own. It is more likely that you will inhale dust or paint flakes if it is already peeling. Instead, call a pro to do the job safely. Additionally, you should not try to encapsulate lead paint in areas that have a lot of wear and tear, such as on steps or floors. Removal is the best option in these places.
Lead paint removal cost usually fits in a range of $1,400 to $5,600, depending on the square footage requiring removal. Compared to encapsulation, which costs $4 to $8 per square foot, lead paint removal costs are about double, ranging from $8 to $17 per square foot.