Reduce the Risk of Lead Exposure at Home

Lead and lead compounds have historically been used in a wide variety of products and can be found in many different places, including in our homes and the environment. Your family’s chance of exposure depends on where you live, your job and your daily habits. 

Laws restricting lead in products like paint, water pipes and gasoline have lowered the overall amount of lead we are exposed to. However, you can be exposed to lead in your home from sources like paint and dust, soil, drinking water, consumer products, and jobs and hobbies. These exposure sources can be dangerous if not managed properly.

This page contains information about protecting you and your family from important sources of exposure to lead in homes. While different homes have different sources of lead exposure, this information is relevant to communities across the United States. 

Find more information about actions you can take to reduce potential lead exposure.

Learn more about EPA programs and laws to reduce lead exposure.

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Potential Sources of Lead Exposure at Home

Lead-Based Paint

If your home was built before 1978, it is more likely to have lead-based paint. One of the most common sources of lead exposure in homes is dust and paint chips from lead-based paint. In 1978, the federal government banned the sale of lead-based paint for use in homes and childcare facilities. 

People who live in or spend time in pre-1978 homes and buildings, particularly where paint is peeling or chipping, are at risk of exposure to lead dust. Painted surfaces can deteriorate, peel, chip or crack, becoming a hazard. If the lead-based paint is in good shape, it is usually not a problem. Old or worn lead-based paint – especially on surfaces subject to constant friction like doors or window sills – can produce chips and dust that can become a hazard when inhaled or ingested by children, residents and workers. 

Renovation or repair activities that disturb painted surfaces in older homes, buildings and structures may create large amounts of lead dust. Projects that create even a small amount of dust can pose health risks to your family. 

• The main concern is young children who crawl, play on floors and put their fingers, toys and other objects in their mouths. 
• Workers involved in demolition, renovations and repairs can be exposed to lead dust at job sites, which can end up on their skin, hair, clothing or equipment, potentially transferring to their car or home creating additional risk of lead exposure to their families.
• Lead paint chips and dust can get on surfaces and objects that people touch. 
• Settled lead dust can re-enter the air when the home is vacuumed or swept or when people walk through it. 

Drinking Water

Lead can enter drinking water when plumbing materials that contain lead corrode over time, especially where the water has high acidity or low mineral content that corrodes pipes, fittings and fixtures (e.g. plumbing products). Corrosion is the dissolving or wearing away of metal and is caused by a chemical reaction between water and plumbing.

The most common sources of lead in drinking water are lead pipes, fittings, faucets and fixtures. In homes with lead pipes that connect the home to the water main – also known as lead service lines – these pipes are typically the most significant source of lead in drinking water. Leads pipes are more likely to be found in older cities and homes built before 1986. Other sources of lead in water are from brass or chrome-plated brass faucets, as well as plumbing with lead solder.

Because you cannot see, taste or smell lead in water, testing is the only way to know whether there are harmful amounts of lead in your drinking water. 

The extent that lead enters water is affected by many factors, including:

• The chemistry of the water (acidity and alkalinity)
• The amount of lead it comes into contact with
• How long the water stays in the plumbing materials
• The presence of protective coatings inside the plumbing materials

Soil

Lead in soil can be tracked into homes on shoes, clothes or other objects that touch lead-contaminated soil or dust, contributing to lead being present in household dust.

Higher levels of lead are typically f­ound in soil near:

• Roadways because of air emissions from vehicles that used leaded gasoline
• The perimeter of buildings (e.g. the dripline) that used lead-based paint
• Hazardous waste sites or industrial areas where lead has been released

Yards and playgrounds can become contaminated when exterior lead-based paint from houses, other buildings and older playground equipment flakes or peels and gets into the soil. 

Both children and adults can be exposed to lead in soil at home through activities such as playing in contaminated soil, gardening, eating fruits and vegetables grown in contaminated soil, ingesting soil or touching hands to mouths.

Products

Lead has historically been used in a wide variety of products found in and around our homes, including collectible items no longer produced in the U.S., but passed down through generations. It can also be found in some consumer products made in other countries that are imported into the U.S., especially in products used in immigrant communities. Find more information about lead and other heavy metals in cultural products.

Lead exposures can also occur through eating or drinking products with lead in them. For example, both adults and children may ingest lead by using dishes or glassware that contain lead. Certain foods can also contain lead, either because the food itself has been contaminated with lead or because lead can be in dirt or packaging on food products.

Some of the products in our homes that could have lead in them include:

• Painted and plastic toys and toy jewelry
• Jewelry
• Cosmetics
• Candies
• Imported, hand-made, lead glazed pottery
• Candles
• Dishware used for cooking and storing food
• Ceremonial or religious powders
• Folk remedies and traditional medicines
• Plumbing materials, including faucets
• Ammunition
• Fishing tackle
• Spices from some sources

Jobs & Hobbies

Certain jobs and hobbies may increase your and your family’s risk of lead exposure. Lead dust or soil can contaminate your skin, hair, clothing and equipment, which can then be transferred to your car or carried home via you and/or any equipment you use creating additional exposure risk for your family. Some hobbies and jobs can also use chemicals that include types of lead that can enter your body through your skin.

Jobs that can put you in contact with lead include:

• Renovation, repair or painting of older homes
• Construction
• Mining
• Smelting
• Battery recycling
• Refinishing old furniture
• Auto repair
• Handling firearms
• Working with leaded gasoline or at hazardous waste sites

Participating in hobbies that can increase your exposure to lead include:

• Fishing with tackle containing lead
• Making stained glass
• Stock car racing
• Shooting and reloading lead ammunition 

Lead is found in especially high levels in ammunition, fishing tackle (like sinkers, lures, and jigs), and wheel balancing weights used on cars. 

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Actions to Make Your Home Lead-Safe

Anything you can do to reduce lead exposures can significantly impact and improve your family’s health outcomes, particularly for young children who are the most vulnerable. If you have young children, it is crucial to determine if they have been exposed to lead and how to prevent and decrease further exposure. If your family has been exposed to lead, the best way to reduce the amount of lead in your blood and body is to limit further exposure. To do this, you need to know where the lead is coming from or what the sources of lead are in your home and life. 

You can reduce your family’s risk from lead exposure by taking simple steps at home. Multiple actions are discussed in this section – the list of suggestions is not intended to be exhaustive or to imply that all actions reduce lead exposure equally. However, understanding the sources of lead in your home can help you determine what steps will be most effective to reduce exposure to your family.

Reduce Exposure to Lead-Based Paint Hazards

Approximately three-quarters of the homes in the United States built before 1978 still contain some lead-based paint. Children can live safely in homes that have lead-based paint as long as paint and surfaces are in good condition and surfaces are kept clean. The key is to keep children from coming into contact with lead, which can be found in obvious places like chipping paint and less obvious placews like dust that settles in the home. 

If You Know or Suspect Your Home Contains Lead-Based Paint 

• Clean your home weekly to minimize dust, which may contain lead.  Wipe down hard surfaces – such as countertops, window sills and door jambs – with a damp sponge, cloth or paper towel. Do not use steel wool, scouring pads or abrasive cleaners, like solvent cleaners that may dissolve paint. Do not excessively rub spots to remove spots or stains. 
• Wet mop floors and hard surfaces to reduce lead dust. Do not mop with a scrubber strip attached, power buff or use polishing machines or vacuums with beater bars, as they may wear away painted surfaces. 
• Clean carpets and rugs to reduce lead dust and debris from chipping or flaking paint. If there is no visible dust or debris from chipping or flaking paint, use a standard vacuum cleaner. If there is visible dust or debris from chipping or flaking paint, only use vacuums with High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, and do not dry sweep. Do not shake or beat carpets and rugs. Wet scrub or use steam-cleaning methods to remove stains. 
• Inspect and maintain all painted surfaces to guard against chipping, peeling or deteriorating paint. Be sure to check all painted areas that rub together or get lots of wear — like windows, doors and stairways — for any signs of damage. If you notice any peeling, chipping, chalking or cracking paint, clean the area immediately with a wet cloth, wipe, or sponge. Remove paint chips and dust carefully with a damp paper towel and put them into the trash, then wipe the surface with a clean wet paper towel. 
• Fix small areas (under 6 square feet) of damaged paint as soon as possible without sanding.  If you must sand, wet the area first, sand the minimum area needed and clean up thoroughly.

If You Are Planning a Renovation, Repair or Painting (RRP) Project in a Home Built Before 1978

• Find out what year your home was built. Homes built before 1978 may have lead-based paint.
• Determine if your home has lead-based paint. Hire a certified lead-based paint inspector or risk assessor to perform an inspection, risk assessment or combination of the two to determine if your home has lead-based paint or assume it has lead-based paint.
• Hire a lead-safe certified contractor trained in lead-safe work practices. Use EPA’s Lead-Based Paint Professional Locator Tool.
• Use EPA's do-it-yourself (DIY) lead-safe work practices for RRP projects on your own home if you decide to do the work yourself. Use Lead-Safe Renovation for DIYers to find information about cost-effective, lead-safe work practices that are necessary to protect your family from exposure to lead dust.
• Avoid DIY removal of lead-based paint (e.g. lead abatement). Do not attempt to remove lead-based paint yourself. Find more information about lead abatement, inspection and risk assessment activities.
• Become lead-safe certified or hire a certified contractor before beginning any work if you rent all of part of your home, operate a childcare center in your home, or buy, renovate, and sell homes for profit (i.e., a house flipper). For assistance, contact your local department of health or department of environmental quality.

If You Are Paid to Perform Work That Disturbs Paint 

If you are paid to perform work that disturbs paint in housing, schools with young children, or childcare facilities built before 1978, you must be certified and trained in lead-safe work practices. Federal law requires that all RRP firms (including sole proprietorships) working in housing or facilities built before 1978 where young children are routinely present must be lead-safe certified. Find a training course and find information for contractors about the RRP Program.

If You Rent a Pre-1978 Home

If you rent a pre-1978 home, your landlord or property management company must comply with the RRP Rule when performing work that disturbs paint. Learn about your rights as a renter. 

Reduce Exposure to Lead in Drinking Water

Below are recommended actions that a person may take – separately or in combination – if they are concerned about lead in drinking water in their home. EPA also recommends contacting your local water system and health department for information about your drinking water.

• Use your water filter properly. Using a filter can reduce lead in drinking water. If you use a filter, make sure you use a filter certified to remove lead. Read the directions to learn how to properly install and use your cartridge as well as when to replace it. Using the cartridge after it has expired can make it less effective at removing lead. Do not run hot water through the filter.
• Clean your aerator. Regularly clean your faucet’s screen (also known as an aerator). Sediment, debris, and lead particles can collect in your aerator. If lead particles are caught in the aerator, lead can get into your water.
• Use cold water. Use only cold water for drinking, cooking and making baby formula. Using warm or hot water can cause more lead to enter the water from pipes and fixtures. Boiling water does not remove lead from water.
• Learn if you have a lead service line. Find out if the pipe that connects your home to the water main (called a service line) is made from lead. Ask your water utility or if your utility doesn't have information, a licensed plumber may be able to assist. Protect Your Tap: A Quick Check for Lead is EPA's step-by-step guide to learn how to find lead pipes in your home. 
• Run your water. The more time water has been sitting in pipes, the more lead it may contain. Before drinking, flush your home’s pipes by running the tap, taking a shower, doing laundry or doing a load of dishes. The amount of time to run the water will depend on whether your home has a lead service line or not, and the length of the lead service line. Residents should contact their water utility for recommendations about flushing times in their community.
• Learn about construction in your neighborhood. If you have a lead service line, you should be aware of any nearby construction or maintenance work that could disturb the line. Ground tremors from construction may suddenly cause more lead to be released from lead service lines in the area. 
• Have your water tested. Contact your water utility to have your water tested and to learn more about the lead levels in your drinking water.

Reduce Exposure to Lead in Soil

Soil can be tested for lead in several ways, the best of which is to send samples to a laboratory that is qualified to determine lead concentrations. This testing can be done through laboratories accredited under EPA’s National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program. There are also home soil testing kits that can be purchased online, where home soil samples are sent to a lab for analyses.

If you have identified lead in soil on your property, there are many actions you can take to prevent exposure.

• Use caution when outdoors. Cover contaminated soil with a thick layer of clean soil, vegetation, mulch or other materials. Consider hiring lead abatement contractors to remove or permanently cover contaminated soil. Prevent children from playing in bare soil and in soil next to older buildings constructed before 1978. Watch children carefully to prevent them from eating soil or putting their hands in their mouths. Wash hands and other exposed skin with clean water or wipes after contact with soil, especially before meals. Eat at a table or on a clean blanket, not directly on the bare ground. Wash toys, pacifiers and bottles with clean water or wipes if they come into contact with soil.
• Don’t track soil into your home. Place doormats outside and inside all entryways and remove your shoes before entering to reduce tracking contaminated soil into your home. Reduce exposure from pets by wiping off their fur and paws after they have been outside, especially if they are dirty or muddy. Leave tools, clothes or other items that become soiled outside, or wash them thoroughly before bringing them indoors. Wash clothes that come into contact with soil or dust separately from other laundry.
• Practice safe gardening and clean your produce. Wash produce thoroughly, peel root crops and discard outer leaves of leafy vegetables. Root vegetables – like carrots and leafy greens – take up more lead from the soil than fruits like tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers. Test soil used for any food crops and take measures to protect crops from contaminated soil. Use raised beds or containers with clean soil to grow food crops in areas with higher lead levels. Avoid growing produce near buildings, roads and driveways (maintain at least 10 feet distance), where lead levels are likely higher. 

Reduce Lead Exposure From Products

Children can be kept safe by identifying products that may contain lead and taking steps to avoid their use.

• Educate yourself about common consumer products that might contain lead. EPA’s Heavy Metals in Cultural Products webpage compiles educational and outreach materials on lead in cultural products and a search tool that filters by cultural product, type of contaminant and language. Learn more from CDC about lead in foods, cosmetics, and medicines and find risk factors impacting refugees and immigrants. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene also provides information about hazardous materials in cosmetics and religious powders. 
• CPSC regulates lead in children's products and furniture and provides information to the public on consumer products that have been recalled. This can include toy jewelry, crayons, chalk, clothing, etc. Search “lead” to see toys that have been recalled due to lead.
• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends maximum levels of lead in cosmetic products. Learn about lead limits in traditional eye cosmetics containing kohl, kajal, al-kahal, surma, tiro, tozali, or kwalli or in  lipstick and other cosmetics. 
• Avoid storing or serving food and liquids in lead crystal or lead-glazed pottery or porcelain. These containers can be especially harmful if chipped or cracked, because lead can leach from these containers and contaminate the food or liquid. Find more information from FDA on lead in food and containers.

Reduce Lead Exposure From Jobs and Hobbies

It is important to make sure that any lead in materials you work with, or that are a part of a hobby, do not accidentally come home with you and contaminate your home or car. 

If you work or participate in hobbies that include lead containing materials, or if you use consumer products that might contain lead, you should take the following actions.

• Keep all work and hobby materials away from living areas - especially places children frequent. It is important to make sure that any lead in materials you work with, or that are a part of a hobby, doesn’t accidentally come home with you and contaminate your home or car, and to be aware of which consumer products are likely to contain lead.
• Change clothes and shoes that might have lead dust on them before leaving your workplace or entering your vehicle or home. Wash your work and hobby clothes separately from the rest of your family's clothes. Leave shoes outside your home if they might contain lead dust. Shower after shooting guns or working on cars and before spending time in your home.
• Avoid handling food or touching your mouth or face while working with lead materials, including those in consumer products. Wash your hands before eating or drinking after activities involving lead. Never put leaded materials (such as fishing sinkers, lead came or solder for stained glass, or leaded pottery clay or glaze) in your mouth.
• Use proper ventilation and protective equipment when melting lead to cast bullets, sinkers, decoys or other metal items.

If you are an owner, operator or employee of an outdoor rifle, pistol, trap, skeet or sporting clay ranges, find out more about best management practices for lead at outdoor shooting ranges.

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Actions You Can Take If You Suspect a Violation

Submit a tip or complaint to EPA if you suspect a violation and to protect people from lead risk! Use EPA’s online form for lead-based paint, Report Lead-Based Paint Complaints, Tips and Violations. Report other environmental violations using EPA's Report Environmental Violations online form. 

Make sure to provide as much information as possible – including copies of documents like your lease or contract and photographs – to help EPA investigate. You may also report violations anonymously. Information that is reported will be referred to EPA’s environmental enforcement staff or to the appropriate government agency that can best address your concerns.