Specialty Testing Guide › Heavy Metals Testing
If you live in an older Pennsylvania home, the most likely source of lead is not your water or your food. It is old paint, and especially the fine dust that forms when that paint wears, peels or gets disturbed during repairs.
Adults are not immune. Renovation projects, sanding and scraping can raise an adult's lead level quickly. The good news is that the steps that matter most happen before any test: knowing your home, finding the source and working safely.
Key takeaways
- Most Pennsylvania homes predate the 1978 federal ban on lead-based paint for homes.
- Intact paint is a smaller concern than chipping paint and the dust created by sanding, scraping and demolition.
- Paid contractors working on pre-1978 homes must follow federal lead-safe rules, while homeowners doing their own work usually are not covered.
- Finding and controlling the source comes first, and a blood lead test is the standard way to check your own level.
Why Pennsylvania's housing matters
Pennsylvania has some of the oldest housing in the country. According to the state Department of Health, sixty-six percent of Pennsylvania homes were built before 1978 and seventy-five percent before 1986, the years federal rules banned lead-based paint and then lead in water pipes and solder.1
That includes Philadelphia rowhouses, Main Line stone houses, and many twins and farmhouses across the suburbs. Owning an older home does not mean you have been exposed. It means lead paint is likely somewhere under the newer layers, and it becomes a hazard when it breaks down or is disturbed.
How lead from paint reaches adults
Lead paint that is intact and painted over is a smaller concern. The problem is dust. When old lead paint cracks and peels, it creates lead dust.2 Friction surfaces like windows and doors can also grind paint into dust every time they open and close.
That dust settles on floors and sills and gets onto your hands, and from there it can be swallowed.3 Adults also breathe it in during work that disturbs paint. The common adult scenarios are:
- Renovation and repair: sanding, scraping, cutting into walls, replacing old windows.
- Buying and fixing up an older house, particularly one that sat empty or had peeling paint.
- Cleaning up after work done by someone else without dust control.
- Living with deteriorating paint on porches, windows and trim.
What lead does in adults
Lead's effects in adults build quietly. A review of adult lead exposure linked blood lead levels below 40 micrograms per deciliter to higher blood pressure, reduced kidney function and cognitive problems.4 Many adults with these levels feel nothing specific.
Pregnancy deserves extra care. The same expert panel advised that pregnant women avoid work or hobbies that would raise their blood lead above 5 micrograms per deciliter. If you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, avoid renovation work in an older home and leave the house while it happens.
Renovating safely: what the rules cover
The federal Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule applies to paid work that disturbs painted surfaces in homes built before 1978.5 Contractors doing that work must be certified and use lead-safe work practices. Before you hire anyone, ask to see their certification.
The rule usually does not protect you if you do the work yourself. In general, it does not apply to homeowners working on their own pre-1978 homes, unless they rent out the home or run a child care business in it. If you take on a project yourself:
- Assume older painted surfaces contain lead unless a test shows otherwise.
- Keep children, pregnant people and pets away from the work area until cleanup is done.
- Seal off the room with plastic and keep dust from spreading to the rest of the house.
- Mist surfaces before scraping, and avoid dry power sanding and open-flame paint removal.
- Clean with a HEPA vacuum and wet wiping, not dry sweeping.
- Change clothes before leaving the work area and wash them separately.
What to do before testing
Testing your body tells you your current level. It does not tell you where the lead is coming from. These steps usually come first:
- Know your home's age. Pre-1978 means lead paint is likely somewhere in the house.
- Look for hazards. Peeling or chalking paint, sticking windows, and dust on sills are worth attention.
- Consider a professional inspection. A certified lead inspector or risk assessor can find where lead is and whether it is a hazard.
- Check other sources too. Older plumbing, jobs and hobbies can add to the total. See lead in drinking water in Pennsylvania and jobs and hobbies with metal exposure.
If a young child lives in or visits the home, talk to their pediatrician about a blood lead test. Children are far more vulnerable than adults, and testing for them runs through their own doctor.
When a blood test makes sense for you
For adults, a blood test is the standard way to measure lead. It is worth discussing if you recently renovated or lived through renovation in an older home, if you have deteriorating paint at home and symptoms or high blood pressure without a clear cause, or if you are planning a pregnancy in an older house.
Hair tests and "provoked" urine tests are not reliable ways to measure lead. A blood lead result is most useful alongside a clear picture of your exposure, so you know whether removing a source should bring it down.
Your next step
To understand what a number means, read adult blood lead levels explained. For an overview of the tests available and how they compare, visit the heavy metals testing hub.
Frequently asked questions
Is lead paint dangerous if it is covered with newer paint?
Intact paint under newer layers is a lower risk. It becomes a hazard when it peels, wears on friction surfaces like windows, or is disturbed by sanding, scraping or demolition.
Can I get lead poisoning from living in an old house?
Living in an older home does not by itself mean you are exposed. Risk rises with peeling paint, dust from windows and doors, and renovation work done without dust control.
Do home lead test kits work?
Kits that test painted surfaces or pipes can tell you whether lead is present in that material. They do not tell you how much lead is in your body. Only a blood test does that.
Should I test myself after a renovation?
If you did dusty work in a pre-1978 home without lead-safe practices, it is reasonable to ask your clinician about a blood lead test. Fix the dust problem first, so a retest can show improvement.
Related reading
This article is for general education and is not medical advice. Decisions about testing and treatment should be made with your clinician. If you have severe symptoms, call 911. For a suspected poisoning, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
