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Moms dealing with elevated lead levels

76K views 623 replies 117 participants last post by  4lilfarmers 
#1 ·
As I am waiting for the results of my DD's 4th lead test it occured to me that I can't be the only mother going through this. This is a "tribe" I am reluctant to be in, but we found out when they did her 12 month blood test that her lead level was high (31). I am so glad we did that test. We are now giving her iron twice a day and have located the lead paint in and around the house. I would love to talk to other moms dealing with this. Have you had trouble giving your child the liquid iron? How do you get the stains off the teeth? Have you had the Dept of the Environment and Social Services come through your house? How long did it take for the lead to leave their system?
 
#3 ·
Hi, you are not alone, I have seen other mothers posting about this issue. Until 2 years ago we lived in a real old tenement type apartment. It had been repainted before we moved in when I was pregnant with dd1. Because the lead was well covered her lead levels were fine, never going above 5. When dd2 was born 4 years later I had lead tested at 6 months and it was already 14. Where we live in MA we were able to force landlords to de-lead. I was also giving her iron and cleaning like crazy. Iron levels went up after de-leading (this is normal) and since then have gone down. DD2 is 4 now and lead levels have been below 10 for 2 years. We have since bought a condo. There is lead in this building too. Isn't it great living in the northeast!? However the windows are replacement vinyl and the exterior of the house is sided. Windows I learned are a major form of contamination. The paint on the trim is in good condition and we plan to keep it that way. Some of the trim is natural wood and we would love to strip some of the painted woodwork but we will not do that until girls are older.

Both my girls are doing well, bright and energetic. PM me if you want. I know how crazy all this can make you feel.
 
#5 ·
Yep, I'm part of this tribe too. Not one that I would love to be in, but here I am.

Three years ago, we discovered that our now almost 5 year old daughter had lead posioning. Her lead level at her highest was 47.8. She got it for the apartment that we live in. At that time, I never really knew much about what lead posioning was. All I knew was that it had been a big problem in the 80's and early 90's. I didn't even know there was lead paint still around.

My daughter had to be admitted to Buffalo Children's Hospital for six days for chelation treatment. That was the hardest thing that I have ever had to witness. Seeing my innocent baby deal with that, a nd being almost powerless in helping her. Watching her in pain seriously ripped my heart out of my chest. After 6 days her level was down to 21.3, and they finally let us take her home.

Yes, I had the county health dept. in and they took an assesment of our home to see where it was coming from. It was everywhere. They told me that I had to find some place to place Haylea-Ann while the abatement process was taking place, because she couldn't be back in the home until it was taken care of. At that time my support system was pretty much nil, so I was scared. Thankfully my next door neighbor took her, and let her stay with them until it got done. I was so grateful because if I couldn't find someplace for her to go, the state would've place her into foster care. And the sad part is my ex-landlord knew that it was here. He knew that it was a health risk to children, and he knew that when I moved into the apartment that I had children. My oldest son was 3 and I was a very visably 8 months pregnant when he moved in here. By law he was required to tell us that there was still lead based paint in the home. And he never did. What happened could have been prevented, if he would have just cared enough to say something to us.

We sued our old landlords and got Haylea-Ann a pretty nice settlement. If she uses it wisely as she grows older, she will never have to worry about money. But that is a small concilation to all the after effects of what she has had to deal with since then. There are still after effects that we may not see for years yet. My 4 year old baby may be sterile and not able to have her owb babies someday. That thought kills me.

Fortunently she has never had many of the problems that we were told that she could. She had been tested by a specialist that worked for my ex-landlord that Haylea-Ann was learning disabled. Which at that time worked to our advantage because it helped her settlement phase. But she has been tested at her school, and she is on the "Above Normal" charts in just about everything. She is very intelligent.

The things that we do have to work with is her temper. Because of what has happened, Haylea-Ann has a very hard time bringing herself back into control when she gets angry. We were warned that the lead could cause severe behavioral problems, but I definately wasn't prepared for what I got. When she is in a good mood she can be the sweetest most caring child you ever did see, but when she is mad or upset watch out. She has ripped apart her room, banged her head off things, and just generally having a hard time expressing how she is feeling. It is frustrating for me because disipline that you would use on a "regular" child does not work with her.

I am working with her school in trying to find some programs to help her, and our family. It's hard because there aren't many programs in the area for anything like this. So, now she school (HeadStart) is trying to help me find a specialist that can show me ways to cope with her behavior, and more importantly, help Haylea-Ann cope with how she feels sometimes.

It has been 3 1/2 years since all this began. Her lead level in December was 3.7. It is lowering, but as you can see it is a long process. I have been trying to find someone else on here that has gone through this same thing. It's nice to know that we aren't alone.
 
#7 ·
Told you I'd be back


We moved into our current apartment when ds was 3 months old. It's a pretty old house, and we knew coming in there was lead paint in the trim still. Doorways, windows. Our landlord(who is so fabulous) made sure we knew before formally agreeing. It's law here to test rental properties and inform tenants of hte results, also she has young kids so had everyhting tested when they moved in. Their youngest was a toddler at the time and they tested her levels pretty often to make sure her levels weren't elevated. it wa snever an issue, and that child is 3 1/2 now....
Also, htis apt has been completely redone since they bought the house. The tenant at the time was filthy and awful and everyhting had to be cleaned up. Like, floors ripped up and replaced due to cat boxes not taken care of, bag and bags of trash and cigarette butts, etc... Really gross. So the whole place has been completely cleaned, fresh paint, etc..

So, knowing there was lead paint we tested a little early. Our doc does it routinely at 12 months but we asked about it so we tested at 9 months. That was..let me think...September. His lead level then was 11. Just barely over 'acceptable'. We tried not to panic. Made a bigger effort to wash his hands and face more often, clean everyhting more regularly. He was just starting to be more interested in solid foods so we made sure he was getting good healthy foods. Also at that time, we were just coming into a new england winter. We always plastic our windows up for the cold season(saves a TON on heating bills) and we thought that would help a lot too. This apt has lots of windows, the really low ones. We assumed that not having access would help reduce his exposure.

At his 12 month appointment in December, we tested again. Up to 13. Ok. Wash hands and face before eating every time, also started the habit of wiping hands and face at every single diaper change. Wipe everyhting down with damp rags at least twice a week. I have a rotating schedule for this so the whole house gets done twice weekly. All the windows and doorways and stuff like that. Also cleaning hte kitchen floor more often, vacuuming more often (buying hepa filter bags for the vacuum). Learned that iron and calcium can help the body process lead and get it out. He already eats lots of yogurt and cheese and loves green veggies like broccoli. I also added green leasfy veggies. Spinach, kale, etc.. He can't eat them raw so what I do is cook up a bunch all at once until it's really soft, stick it in the blender, and freeze in an ice cube tray. In addition to other foods, try to get one or two cubes a day into him. Luckily he loves it. Then I read that lead is absorbed the most in the lower intestines and regular bowel movements help push it out before it's absorbed. So I monitor his food to make sure he poops at least once a day. Oatmeal and applesauce. Also raisins, he eats a lot of those and I hear they're good for iron.

So then we just tested a couple weeks ago, at his 15 month appointment. Since December his levels have jumped to 18. Now I'm really freaked out.

I just read(somewhere here I think) that when dealing with lead, yes you need to damp dust often and damp mop and vacuum-but you should be using paper towels, not rags that you wash and reuse! I had no idea! Still not sure why, maybe it stays on the cleaning rags even after washing? I don't know, but here I was feeling so good about not using as many paper products and stuff. That's out the window. If it'll keep my son healthier I'll have an extra bag of trash each week.
:

I just don't know what else to do now. We're trying to get in a good, thorough, spring clean. Wash every damn surface in our home. Vacuum out every nook and cranny. Wash everyhting that's washable. My husband is going to put together a few friends to help him put a fresh coat of paint over all the trim. Ds and I will just have to plan a whole day out of hte house so they can get it done, that's easy enough for me. We're trying to find ways to rearrange furniture so he has less access to the windows. We're planning to move(we were planning it before we got the most recent results, but a lead free building is a must now for our next place(cheap, lead free, good location, 2-3 bedroom apt in new england, lol. yeah right, we're dreaming) but not until fall.

We've been in touch with the health dept. More accurately, they've been in touch with us from the beginning. Over 10 they contact you. I'm not sure at what point they actually come out to your home. The woman who is our contact there has been very nice to us. She is sending a kit so we can test the water. In the meantime I've switched ds to bottled water just in case. If there is lead int he water from the pipes that might expain the jump in his levels, as he eats a lot more now so drinks a lot of water too.

I don't know what else to do. Should I supplement with iron and calcium? What is a good brand, or does it have to be Rx? How much? What kind of natural solutions are there? I'd be very interested int hat, can you post it here? I'm sure lots of people would find in helpful.

Stinks being part of this tribe, doesn't it?
 
#8 ·
Well, I don't know about natural supplements much other then the ones that you have already mentioned, but yes, I would check with your son's Dr. about getting him on iron supplements. Haylea-Ann's Dr. gave me an Rx for multi-vitamins with iron and flouride added in. Lead can cause the enamel on their teeth to wear away too.

We were told not to vacuum the chips up because it can just cause more lead dust in the air. We rented a steam cleaner twice a month for six months for the rugs. It got to be very expensive. Also the county health dept. gave me a lead cleaning kit. Basically it is two buckets, two sponges (one for washing, and then one for drying, but you MUST make sure that you never mix them up) two mops (for the same reasons), rubber gloves, and cascade dish detergent. I guess that it cleans to the lead better then anything else.
My landlord was required to come have the apartment abated. He had to come and replace windows, doors, and repaint all the trim in the house. Careful for those that are going to try and repaint themselves, because there is some kind of primer that has to go on first. I will check through Haylea-Ann's records and see if I can get the name of it. I guess that the lead can leak through the new paint without it.

Hope this helps!!!
 
#9 ·
Yes Pagan Princess, it does help. Cascade, eh? The liquid kind? My IL's have a steam cleaner that I know they'll let us use. Good good good.

Someone mentioned knowing about natural remedies....scrolling down... provocativa says she knows natural ways, that's whay I saw.

My husband is going to a seminar for contractors, homeowners, and parents, about dealing with lead paint and proper steps to take for construction/renovation/painting stuff. So we'll know he's doing it right. Our landlord may also attend or help. They've been very concerned about it all, always asking what they can do, etc.. so maybe they'll help with the painting or pay for it. They are they ones who told me about the lead sealing paint, probably the same stuff you're talking about.

The doc hasn't mentioned supplements yet. Probably because we're on the lower end of hte high levels? And ds hasn't shown an iron defficiency(sp?)-they test for that at hte same time they test for lead.

At any rate it's good to see I'm not alone. Makes me feel less like a bad parent and mor elike someone just dealing with a problem other people have, too.
 
#10 ·
We too live in New England...old houses - love 'em but not the lead!

DS had lead level of I think 9 or maybe it was 11 when he was tested at 12 months. Anyway, very close to the "red flag" number.

Our Doctor gave us a prescription for liquid iron supplements immediately & DS has been on them since. His numbers have continued to come down, so that is a good sign.

My understanding is that the body will absorb the iron over the lead (the iron helps prevent lead from being absorbed), so I would definitely ask your doctor for an RX.

There are lead-blocker paints available - they are really thick (and expensive - about $50 per gallon around here) but are NOT effective for doors or windows - anywhere surfaces rub together.
 
#11 ·
I'll tell our story later;. Actually, lead mimics iron and calcium in our blood, metabolic pathways, etc. So the diet that is adequate in those leaves fewer holes, so to speak, in the whole system for the lead to slide into. Lead has a half-life of 20+ years in bone. How's that for mamaguilt? Check your bathtub, too! Old cast iron bathtubs can leach lead into the water. I would recommend against a fluoride supplement, if your water is fluouridated- too much fluoride is toxic. And as for iron supplementation, the difficulty is that there is much arguement as to the true bioavailability of the iron in supplements. Doctors give supplements because they are expected to give a pill, and because it's easier than educating their patients. And, the kind of iron in many supplements (some are better than others) can be very constipating to young children, and constipation is very counterproductive to lead poisoning. The best iron is in food sources. Liver, of course. Molasses. Chickpeas. Leafy greens are the best because they also have calcium. I envy the pp whose child would eat them pureed and frozen- none of that with my 21month old dd. Try to pair iron and calcium rich foods with those high in vitamin C- it increases their absorbption. You can vacuum with a hepa filter. Lead cleaners are high in phosphate, which must bond with the lead- oops, baby awake, more later!
 
#12 ·
well, I knew I couldn't have been the only one. thanks for the replies.
her last results came in at 21. still toxic, but slowly coming down from 31 in November.
I guess I just really don't know how to mentally deal with this. how much do I freak out? my husband's boss (and the guy who sold us the house) has this attitude that the lead poisoning thing is all hype. and this house was built in 1930 and i am sure many kids grew up in here. so then i start to calm down and think that maybe its like the stuff you see on the evening news like about the killer bees. hyped out of proportion. but then i read stuff like what pagan-princess wrote about the behavior problems. we immediatly had the health department contact us and i opted then to have our daughter tested to see how she was doing developementaly. some occupational therapists and nurses came to the house and spent a few hours "playing" with her. she was actually above her age level for almost everything. but sometimes when she gets mad and loses control and bites me, I wonder if that is normal for a 17mo or if that is a result of the lead. never considered the possibility of her being sterile.
we also received the double mops and buckets and were told to stop washing my husbands clothes with my daughters. cant afford a HEPa vac .
we got a perscription for ferrous sulfate (liquid iron) drops. we were told to give it to her twice a day. i magically and intuitively only remember to give it to her once a day. it turns her poop very green (doesn't that mean it is not being absorbed as much and the excess is being passed through?) and i think it is constipating but i eat alot of flax, still b-feeding, and i think that helps. just try ot give her lots of good food, toddler typing too. more later
 
#13 ·
My daughters level at 12 months was 11, but we had just finished remodeling (including deleading) an old house. We weren't living in the house at the time, but she did visit the house with us a few times when we were there to check things out and supervise. And we *were* living there when we had the exterior painted, which probably stirred things up, even though they were pretty careful wiht the chips when they scraped.

Anyhow, we were pretty lucky. Our doctor recommended putting her on a multivitamin with iron, which we did, even though we had to bribe her to take it (I think it tasted awful), and when they checked again at 18 months her level was back to normal range.
 
#14 ·
Hi All.
We don't know if our girl has increased lead yet (she's seven months) but our house does have lead on the window sills, at the very least. I am quite worried. We are going to replace all the windows in the house with a company that has some training with lead abatement.
Have you or your spouses been tested? I had a zero lead level, then went to eight during pregnancy (when my husband, who didn't believe the lead issue was real ... grrr... stripped both the front and back porches of paint... got all over the house). I want to get another test. Is eight in an adult bad? The md's said not to worry. Am I passing the lead on to the baby through my breastmilk?
Yes, I am very worried. Has anyone found a lead abastment grant program in their state? It is so expensive to take care of this. We are takign out a second mortgage.
Liz
 
#15 ·
we are working on a grant program right now in Maryland. we first found out about it when the health department and dept of environment came through and (with his neat little lead reader) told us all the places we had lead. As they were listing all the things we needed to do to de-lead, we just kind of laughed. our income has of course dropped considerably since I quit my job. So we applied for the Maryland housing rehabilitation program for lead abatement through the department of housing and community developement.
Marylands wesite is www.dhcd.state.md.us so you should just be able to replace md with your state
this so far has been a long and stressful process. they took six weeks just to decide that the first estimate was too high and they want another contratoer to give an estimate. i am worried now that we are just a number so I sent along some pictures of my daughter. more later
 
#16 ·
ok, back online.
so we are hoping of course to get a grant. but they also have a no interest, no payment loan in which they put a lien on the house. as soon as they replace all the old windows and de-lead the house the value will go up considerably so it seems like a no-brainer investment to me. this last contrator who came through on monday knows the guy who makes the decisions so hopefully he can help speed things up a bit. i am terrified to open my windows and now the weahter is getting so nice.
i have not gotten a lead test done for myself. i think since my brain is developed it doesn't matter as much, but man, i am so glad i have not gotten pregnant.
i also don;t know about the lead going through the breast milk, but i am soooo glad i am still breastfeeding. my mom was a LaLecheLeague leader so a big advocate of b-feeding of course and a big support. she said the extra IQpoints Anorien gets from this should make up for the loss of IQ points from the lead. that makes me feel slightly better some days.
 
#18 ·
I did a quick check for NY. No out and out grants for our area that I have found. Some areas have $1000 grants. That would not go far. We were told that to replace all the windows with someone who was certified for lead removal would be about $14,000.

You are right, the value of the house would go up, wouldn't it.

For us, the next big "watershed" will be when Lulu gets her blood test. That will help us really reckon with how bad a problem we have.

Oh mamas, this is hard isn't it? Its difficult when your own home doesn't feel safe. I worry about opening windows, letting Lulu play on the floor, etc.

Big hugs to you all.
 
#19 ·
my DS had a high level when he was one.
Other than increasing iron foods, eatin vit C with the foods high in iron increases the absorption.
Also_CILANTRO
Cilantro is a natural chelator-rids the body of toxic metals. Do an online search for Cilantro Chelation Pesto. I think we did 3 T daily of the pesto. It is yummy and works.
Good luck
 
#20 ·
oh my gosh, gratefulmom, Thanks.
just did a quick skimming of cilantro chelation pages, wow, definitely going to the store tomorrow. in case any one else doesn't have time to search, here is a recipe i found.

Cilantro Chelation Pesto

You will need:
. 4 cloves garlic
. 1/3 cup Brazil nuts (selenium source)
. 1/3 cup sunflower seeds (cysteine source)
. 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds (zinc, magnesium sources)
. 2 cups packed fresh cilantro (coriander, Chinese parsley) (Vitamin A source)
. 2/3 cup falxseed oil
. 4 tablespoons lemon juice (Vitamin C source)
. 2 tsp. Dulse Powder
. Bragg's Liquid Aminos
DIREctions:
Process the cilantro and flaxseed oil in a blender until the cilantro is chopped. Add the garlic, nuts, and seeds, dulse, and lemon juice and mix until the mixture is finely blended into a paste. Add a squirt of Bragg's Liquide Aminos to taste and blend again. Store in dark glass jars if possible. It freezes well, so purchase cilantro in season and fill enough jars to last through the year.

One person suffering from high blood pressure due to mercury poisoning had her blood pressure return to normal after eating 2 teaspoons of this pesto daily for only a week. So whether you need to detoxify heavy metals from your body or just wish to use it as a preventative measure, 2 teaspoons a day is all you need to take.
-----------------------------------

on one site someone was saying that even rubbing cilantro on your wrists can help. i wonder if my daughter will like the taste.

and yes, catskillmama, this is hard. i am so angry at my house (trying not to be angry at my husband who wanted to buy this house!).
thanks for the hug.
 
#22 ·
I read about cilantro early on, but my toddler rejected it. That recipe sounds so yummy I am going to try again with her this week, and see if I can get the rest of my familty to try it too. Apples also help alot, particularly if the child is still being exposed to the lead. They are one of the traditional herbal remedies, and helping to bind lead in the stool to pass it, and as a blood purifier. Added bonus that even wee ones can handle apple sauce. Garlic and onions are also traditional blood purifiers. I just upped the onion content in all our food, since we love them anyway. DD, 22 months, identifies them by taste now and says oinyun, yummy, which of course makes papa chef proud.
Sea vegetables, particularly kelp, are also good for detoxifying metals, due to their high iodine and glutamic acid (an amino acid, so braggs has it too) content. Glutamates are key to heavy metal metabolism in a way science is just now discovering, and recent research indicates that children with autism, particularly those thought to have vaccine-related injury, may not metabolize glutamic acid properly. One can take medicidal iodine and glutamic acid supplements, but since such are unadvised for little ones, I occaisionally take glutamic acid myself and figure maybe a little gets to her in my milk, but considered iodine supplements too risky for the same reason. Kelp is easy, just add a dried piece to any pot of beans as they cook, or crumble into soup. It absorbs extra H20 so add extra. Of course one can make lovely sea vegetable salads, Annie's makes a sea vegetable dressing, dd will eat neither so it's only stealth kelp here.
If you own your own home, there is a national law that requires that you were notified of the lead paint when you bought it. Call 1 800 424 LEAD for info. The law also applies to renters, but there are more loopholes. I haven't learned everyone's name yet, but the poster who bought the house from her dp's boss should find out about this, and sue after dp gets a new job! We were renters, and haven't sued yet. We have another 8 months for the statute of limitations, and we will. The Drs. are such a pain, I'm not ready to deal with the lawyers yet. . . . but would appreciate any info that would help in the process. Home owners: an architect in the extended family told me that lead painted windows can be removed and acid dipped rather than replaced, He said it was cheaper than replacement and good for historic homes as it preserved authenticity. Renters, just move. All three of us feel better, less joint pain, fewer headaches, less fatigue. Dd acts like she feels better, too. We didn't have the resources to move, but managed it anyway. there are probably public resources to help.
 
#23 ·
I'm another less-than-thrilled member of this tribe. Thankfully our lead issues are over now, but it was a nightmare when we were in the middle of them. We moved into a new older home when my dd (now 3.5) was a little under a year old. We knew it had lead based paint in it because of the age, and we knew the windows would need attention at some point, but in the meantime, we planned to simply not open and close them very often. Three months after we moved in, my dd's lead level came back at 20, which totally alarmed us. We moved out of the house instantly and stayed in my parents' townhouse (my mother had died the month before, and my Dad moved out of town very suddenly, so it was not being used by anyone but us). Our city had no lead abatement program with financial incentives or help, so we were on our own. And there seemed to be no clear choice residential lead abatement contractors in our area, so it was very frustrating.

The city Health Dept came to our house to do dust wipes and to check the water and soil. We believe the largest source of contamination for us was in the soil around the house, since the paint on the wood on the house had been scraped shortly before the house was listed for sale. That dust got on shoes and feet and then got tracked into the house, where it ended up in the carpet. Stupid us pulled up the carpet while our kids were still playing on it! So I can only imagine that a lot of the lead buildup in my dd happened as a result of that. She was crawling and had just learned to walk a few months earlier, so her hands were always all over the floor.

Anyway, the dust wipes showed high lead levels on the windowsills, on the floor around the edges where the carpet had been, and on some floors. We wiped with paper towels and TSP (talk about an environmentally unfriendly procedure!) as often as we could. After the heel prick came back at 20, we had a venous sample done, and that one came back at 12, which was much more acceptable and closer to the normal range. During the time we were out, we had the exterior wood shakes of our house covered in vinyl siding, we had all 28 windows replaced in the house, we had all of the windowsills removed on the interior and replaced them with new wood. We had a lot of doorway trim replaced, quite a few window frame moldings on the interior replaced, and we had any carpet in the house taken out and all the hardwoods sanded and refinished. Even so, her bll was still at 7 when we had it all done 6 months later. My older boys were not affected, and they were 4 at the time.

The key is avoiding exposure and containing the dust. We used a vaccuum with HEPA filtration, which we hope helped prevent the dust from flying around. Before we had all the abatement work done, we would wet dust with TSP and we avoided using a broom or sweeping in any way--just sucking stuff up in the HEPA vac.

We ended up spending big $$$ on getting rid of the lead, and eventually the stress of it made us just put the house on the market (with full disclosure). Then my dh lost his job and we moved to a new city altogether, so that is all part of our past now, and we firmly decided that for now, for our sanity, we needed to live in a house built after 1978.

Good luck dealing with this. I appreciated the free dust wiping and results so I knew where to target abatement. We used iron supplements, but I used Floradix liquid, which doesn't stain like the other liquid irons can. We also upped her calcium. 2 years later, I don't see any obvious lasting effects of our adventure, so hopefully we caught it quickly and dealt with it efficiently and this is the end of it.

Nancy
 
#24 ·
I can't wait to write about all this in the past tense and say that my daughter was uneffected. Sometimes I lie in bed at night and just freak out about it. Pagan_princess, how did you find out your DD is sterile?
I keep forgeting the reason that we are in this house, though. We put a contract on this nice little house before I was even pregnant. Then after a huge mess with an FHA loan and the bank, two days before we were supposed to close on the house, the house burnt down. I was 20 weeks pregnant. Luckily we were not already moved in. But we suddenly had no house and needed to be out of our apartment. there was another house on the same nice street, but a fixer upper. ha! We bought it "as is" and signed a paper saying that it may or may not have lead. My husband put up new drywall over all the old plaster walls. We redid everything, except the windows. at the time we just figured we would replace them one at a time as our budget could allow. I had of course heard of the dangers of lead poisoning, but I don't know why I thought we would not be affected. We also found out that a lot of the lead dust was outside around the perimeter of the house and we (and the cats) were constantly tracking it in. So, because of the "as is" purchase, I don't think we can sue the sellers.
Now we are in red tape, paper work, government grant hell. the second contractor still has not completed his estimate and we are coming up on two weeks. why does it take so long? for some reason they were saying it would be cheaper to just replace the windows then to try to get the paint off. and I think now we do have to get it done by a certified lead abater.
well, I bought a huge bunch of cilantro but my daughter doesn't like it. I ended up mixing it with all different things in the blender, even ranch dressing, to make this concoction that she will eat. she loves carrots and dipping, so now she has a secret cilantro dipping sauce. I also mixed some with pasta and parmesean cheese and she ate that.
 
#25 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by nantwins
The key is avoiding exposure and containing the dust. We used a vaccuum with HEPA filtration, which we hope helped prevent the dust from flying around. Before we had all the abatement work done, we would wet dust with TSP and we avoided using a broom or sweeping in any way--just sucking stuff up in the HEPA vac.Nancy
Hi there nancy et al.
Any one have a recommendation for a good HEPA vac to deal with our lead? Should one have a bag system (versus the convenient bagless?) or does that not make a difference?

Also, what does TSP mean??

Thanks !
 
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