Example Lead Paint Projects in Grand Prairie

Scope of work

A walk through every room and around the outside, readings on walls, doors, casings, baseboards, windows and exterior trim, paint chips to the lab where a reading is unclear, and a written report the family can hand to a buyer, a tenant or a contractor.

Project overview

In this example, a family inherits a parent’s 1960s house in Grand Prairie. The door frames along the hall are worn down to bare wood in places, and before they decide whether to sell it, rent it out or fix it up, they want to know where the lead paint is.

A full inspection answers that for the whole house at once. The report shows lead paint on the door casings, doors and window trim but not on the walls, so any later work can focus on those parts, and the family has the paperwork a buyer or tenant is owed.

The goal

The goal is a clear picture of the lead paint in the house before the family decides what to do with it.

Process

1. Booking Keys arranged and every room and closet opened up.
2. Inspection Every room and the outside walked and tested, with lab chips for any doubtful reading.
3. Report A written list of positive and negative parts, with notes on the worn casings.

Planning right

• A seller or landlord has to pass on known lead reports. This one goes with the house.
• Worn casings by the doors are the first thing to fix if a young child will live there.
• Walls that test clear can be painted the usual way.
• Keep the report with the deed papers.

Scope of work

Plastic on the ground along each wall and under the porch, the gable siding, fascia, porch gable and window trim stripped with a paste stripper and wet scraping, waste bagged each day, rotten pieces replaced, primer and two coats, and a clearance check of the soil line, porch and sills. The brick and the metal porch posts are not part of this price.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1950s brick ranch in Grand Prairie get a notice from the city about peeling paint. The paint is failing on the white gables, the fascia, the small porch gable and the window trim, and a test shows the old layers are lead paint.

A quick scrape and repaint would leave chips in the beds, and the paint would fail again. The owners choose to strip the wood for good, so the job is abatement. The firm tells the state before starting, and the family stays away while the work runs.

The goal

The goal is wood trim with no lead paint left on it, and a house that meets the city notice.

Process

1. Notice The plan goes to the city officer, and the state is told at least seven working days ahead.
2. Setup Plastic laid along the walls and under the porch, windows closed off.
3. Stripping Gables, fascia, porch gable and window trim stripped wet, waste bagged daily.
4. Paint Rotten pieces replaced, then primer and two coats on the bare wood.
5. Clearance Soil line, porch and sills checked for chips and dust before the family returns.

Planning right

• Call the officer on the notice early if its date leaves too little room for the state notice.
• Do not power-wash peeling paint on an older house. It spreads chips across the yard.
• The brick stays as it is. Only the painted wood is part of the job.
• Keep the clearance report with the house papers.

Scope of work

Plastic inside and out, the vinyl window covered, the old wood sill and frame stripped with a paste stripper and scraped wet, soft wood dug out and rebuilt with epoxy, primer and two coats of lead-free paint, cleanup and a wipe test of the inside sill.

Project overview

In this example, a 1970s house in Grand Prairie had its kitchen window replaced with a vinyl unit years ago. The installer left the old wood sill and frame in place, and their paint now flakes into the sink and onto the counter. A test shows the old paint is lead paint.

The window itself works, so only the old wood around it is stripped and repaired. Some of the sill has gone soft from water, and that part is dug out and rebuilt with epoxy rather than replaced.

The goal

The goal is a sound, painted sill and frame that stop dropping paint into the kitchen.

Process

1. Testing The sill, frame and window tested, and the soft spots probed.
2. Setup Plastic laid inside and outside, the vinyl window and the counter covered.
3. Repair Wet stripping of the old wood, epoxy in the soft spots, then two coats.
4. Check Cleanup and a wet-cloth check of the inside sill.

Planning right

• A new window does not mean the wood around it is new. Test the old sill and frame too.
• Replacing a window in an older house always falls under the lead-safe work rules.
• Keep water off the sill. Caulk the joint between the new window and the old wood.
• If several windows look like this, the price per window drops.

Scope of work

Plastic on the ground well past the wall, the window covered, a paste stripper laid on the brick and peeled off with the paint in it, a low-pressure rinse caught on the plastic, waste sealed in bags, and a check of the soil line for chips. Repointing soft mortar and stripping the wood window frame are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1960s brick house in Duncanville have a west wall painted white decades ago. The paint is flaking off in patches, and a test of every layer finds lead in the bottom coat.

They want bare brick again rather than another coat of paint. A paste stripper reaches all the layers and comes off with the paint held in it, so no dust is blown around. The wood window frame on the same wall is priced as its own item.

The goal

The goal is a bare brick wall with no flaking paint and no lead left in the beds below.

Process

1. Testing Paint tested through every layer, on the brick and on the window frame.
2. Test patch A small patch stripped to see how many coats come off at once.
3. Stripping Plastic laid, stripper applied and peeled off, rinse water caught.
4. Cleanup Waste sealed in bags and the soil line checked for chips.

Planning right

• Sandblasting painted brick spreads lead dust and can damage the brick face.
• Stripping can show soft mortar the paint was hiding. Budget for some repointing.
• Bare brick needs no paint again, so the lead problem on this wall ends here.
• Keep children and pets off the ground beside the wall until the check is done.

Scope of work

Plastic on the ground around the house, loose paint misted and scraped and the chips bagged, house wrap over the old boards, primed lap siding nailed through to the studs, new trim at the windows and corners, and cleanup of cuttings and chips. Painting the new siding is extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1960s wood-sided house in DeSoto are tired of paint peeling off the siding. A test shows lead paint on the old boards, but the wood under it is sound.

Stripping 1,500 square feet of siding would cost more than covering it, so the old boards stay and new lap siding goes on top. The aim is to close off the lead paint for good, which makes this abatement. The firm tells the state before starting, and the lead stays behind the new boards, so it goes on the disclosure if the house is sold.

The goal

The goal is a house that needs no more scraping, with the lead paint closed off behind new siding.

Process

1. Notice State notice filed at least seven working days before work; siding delivered.
2. Prep Plastic laid around the house, loose paint misted and scraped, chips bagged.
3. Siding House wrap on, new lap boards nailed through to the studs, trim at windows and corners.
4. Cleanup Cuttings and chips picked up and the soil line checked.

Planning right

• Covering only works over sound boards. Rotten ones are replaced first.
• Nailing and cutting still disturb the old paint, so the plastic stays down until the end.
• Seal the edges at windows and doors so water cannot get behind the new boards.
• Write down what was covered and where. A buyer is owed that record.