Excerpt from 37 Preservation Briefs: Appropriate Methods for Reducing Lead-Paint Hazards in Historic Housing In 1978, the use of lead-based paint in residential housing was banned by the federal government. Because the hazards have been known for some time, many lead components of paint were replaced by titanium and other less toxic elements earlier in the 20th century. Since houses are periodically repainted, the most recent layer of paint will most likely not contain lead, but the older layers underneath probably will. Therefore, the only way to accurately determine the amount of lead present in older paint is to have it analyzed. It is important that owners of historic properties be aware that layers of older paint can reveal a great deal about the history of a building and that paint chronology is often used to date alterations or to document decorative period colors (see figs. 2, Highly significant decorative finishes, such as graining, marbleizing, stenciling, polychrome decoration, and murals should be evaluated by a painting conservator to develop the appropriate preservation treatment that will stabilize the paint and eliminate the need to remove it. If such finishes must be removed in the process of controlling lead hazards, then research, paint analysis, and documentation are advisable as a record for future research and treatment. Figure 2. The paint chronology of this mantel, seen in the exposed pain layers in the left corner, proved it had been relocated from another room of the house. To remove a significant feature's paint history and the evidence of its original sequence of color by stripping off all the paint is inappropriate and unnecessary as part of a lead hazard reduction project. Careful surface preparation and repainting with lead - free top coats is recommended. Photo: nps Piles. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.