Hot Rods When was lead based paint banned in the USA?

The classic car I'm working on was repainted in 1980. I'm sanding the paint to bare metal. I should get it tested for lead just to be sure. I'm wearing PPE. The dust is going every where. I may need to toss the clothes I'm wearing just to be safe.

 

In the U.S it was banned in auto paints in the early 1990's.

 

In 70's as a little kid , I remember hearing about lead paint like 77'
Then around 90ish items from china
Being shipped here with Lead paint .

 

So most likely this has lead. I'm definitely getting it tested now. I'm using a shop vac with a hepa filter. My sanding tools and power tools have this dust all over. I wonder the best way to clean this mess up. I wearing the good 3M p95 respirator. It's all the dust that I'm generating outside hat I'm concerned about.

 

DuPont took the lead out of their paints around 1980. All the paint I had bought around that time, after the formula said lead free. Take precautions, but I would not worry about it too much.

 

I’ve been painting cars since I was in my very early teens and I’m almost 60 now and never even thought about whether the paint had lead or not. I’m still living and I haven’t killed any family or friends from lead poisoning yet so I say you’re over thinking this and just go with the flow. Hose everything down when you’re finished, wash your clothes and take a bath and call it a day

 

If you are that concerned over the old paints content; just handle the work and clean-up properly; but don't tell anyone.

Just remember if you have it tested for lead; the records of the testing will exist forever and may come back to haunt you in the future, like when selling your house.

 

Wasn't ditzler stell selling DP90 up until the late 90's . O.P. I'd guess most of us who are past 70 have ingested more lead than you could imagine , most of us are still here ..

 

Is there anything left on the body you can scrape off with a razor blade?
Send it in somewhere and have it tested.
Say you find out it contains “xxxppm” of lead.
What will you do then? I mean what can you do at home while stripping to eliminate the worry?
I don’t like paint stripper goop, but maybe pay up for some type of wet blasting?
To be honest, I never knew vehicle paint had lead in it, I recall house paint having it way back when.

 

I first started sanding and painting cars in 1965, and still do. No health problems related to lead. I believe most of the lead was in house paint. I found an old receipt from when my dad had his house painted around 1950. It was an itemized bill listing all the ingredients that went into the white paint. One of which was something like 3 pounds of white lead. It would be interesting to know how much lead was actually in automotive paint, compared to house paint. He also grew tomatoes next to the house where all the paint scraped off of the house landed. No wonder those tomatoes were so heavy.

 

I held the EPA RRP (Lead paint) certification for remodeling until I let it lapse last year. Basically it is do everything in your power to contain the mess (NO power tools without RRP dust collection, plastic everywhere, pictures of cleanup, special vacuum cleaner, etc.) There's even an approved method of closing the trash bags.

Then it all goes to the same dumpster as everything else, so long as the dumpster isn't headed to an incinerator.

I let my cert lapse because I really didn't get into lead paint stuff.

FWIW, you can buy lead paint test kits from home improvement stores. 3M quit making them, but there are others.

 

Heat the paint
If it turns into putty it’s most likely lead base

 

Ok, I will.


What dafuq is this shit? I'm waiting for Rod Serling to give a preamble. Testing? HEPA filters? Who gets called next, an EPA hazmat squad? Self tests? Jeezuz H Christopher, I'd be in fuckin jail or burning in hell. Just stop it. Keep a clean decent workspace and don't snort the shit like you're in a late 70s disco. You'll be fine. Hope you don't take up TIG welding. A call to NASA might be in order to confirm that reverse polarity won't cause a wave in the time/space continuum. I don't mean no disrespect, well as far as you know, but holy-kiss my-go ta hell. I'm not against safety, but some shit simply NEVER requires this kind of worry, testing, mitigation, blah, fuckin blah blah blah. Have a beer while you sweep up your mess. Wash the floor when you're done. And for fuck sake DO NOT have this shit tested in some govt lab for safety. If you're sensitized to this shit then simply DON'T DO IT. If you're scared of this shit then simply DON'T DO IT. Go into any body shop. The only one wearing a protective suit is the painter so the stray dog hair on his shirt don't end up in his finish work.

Ok, I'm done. This is the HAMB or I'd have been waaayy off the reservation with this.

 

Lead paint is supposed to be dealt with on a don't ask don't tell basis. If you're worried about the paint being lead deal with it under the assumption that it is lead but don't be stupid and go create a paper trail proving it is by having it tested.

 

I would recommend P100 masks and making sure they fit properly if you are going to deal with lead dust.

My takeaway from the certification class is that it had far more to do with protecting the people in the area than the environment.

 

So that's why I feel stupid after taking the paint off a car....huh....

 

I use a leaf blower to clean the dust off everything. Open the big door and let er rip!

Can't even guess how much toxic shit I've ingested/absorbed over 40 years of doing body/paint. I'm sure I shortened my life by a few years. Still doing it though....

 

Thank you !

 

Chemical stripper and a razor blade scraper works like a charm, little mess and right down to bare metal.

 

I thought lead dust was only a real concern for children with their brain development? Are you using child labor?

 

I was just thinking how much smarter I could have been, if I didn't sand all those cars for the last 60 years without a mask on. Hell I could have worked for NASA.

 

Chemical stripper and a razor blade scraper works like a charm

 

My 57 was painted in 1981 and the lacquer has lead in it. I have done some touchup on it over the years, and the worst part is that the shops have a hard time matching the color. I don't know if it is true but a few guys trying to match it say it has something to do with the lead. Wear a mask and do a cleanup afterwards and you should be okay. I would not want to have it tested and leave a paper trail.

 

Just another thought, a friend of mine from the 70's who worked almost exclusively with lead body work died from the fumes he breathed in st the age of 52 years old, his Wife just died the other day at 87 years old, my friend missed all those years with her because noboby new any better back then, just get in there 12 inches from the fumes and get the job done.

 

I was in the retail end of the paint business, lead was removed from all paint's sold to the public, all interior and exterior paint's were free from lead in 1978, New York was the first city to ban lead based paints, I believe that was in 1970.

The industrial paints, which probably include automotive paint has no hard fast rulings on lead base paints, in some products it has been removed but there is still automotive products that contain lead.

Lead was primarily used to enhance colors.

 

Don’t eat the yellow paint

 

Long term exposure to lead can have numerous negative effects on the body.

It can leave you with behavior problems, including anger issues, organ and nervous system damage, leading to high blood pressure, hypertension, and an increased risk of heart disease, hearing loss, and diminished cognitive function, leading to memory loss, concentration problems, and difficulty with mental tasks.

I'm sure everyone here is totally just fine, or something.

 

Dangerously incorrect.

 

sounds very similar to the symptoms of getting old.