Old Mother Hubbard

As we step lightly into the future of remodeling pre-1978 homes in a post-3M lead test swab era, we find ourselves hoarding swabs and stretching the most out of them. If we could make them last, then we can avoid the inevitable disappointment of the Old Mother Hubbard scenario when the cupboard runs dry. I have been in the XRF testing business and have been a remodeler for years who also used the swabs. The heartbreak of the EPA’s announcement on November 2nd, 2013 that 3M was out of the swab business as of October took some time to digest.

My first reaction is that the cost of remodeling Pre-’78 homes is going to go through the roof. My next thought was that contractors would go underground. The final thought came to me as I flashed back on something my father told me years ago. “Find Capital In Adversity” was the beginning of my quest to solve the problem of Lead Testing for Contractors.

Surely Someone Will Solve It.

Surely the EPA will come up with a suitable substitute. D-lead which I have used is difficult to use and the results you get even if you are a junior chemist are not clear. The reactant expires in 4 months and it is anyone’s guess if yours is exhausted. Is there anything on the horizon that will help contractors test for lead and prove negative with confidence or identify positive? Sadly, that is all that is out there right now with grandfathered EPA recognition.

Is Help On The Horizon?

As of this article’s publication. Lead Locators a homegrown Idaho company is working with Lumetallix and several companies to make a product that is EPA-recognized for use by professionals to cure the problem once and for all. The challenges are large and the hoops are big to hop through. These things take time, money, and good science to prove their effectiveness. I find it impressive how rigorous the testing is and refreshing that there are so many checks and balances to make sure that the public is protected.

So What Is The Solution?

The solution turns out to be a newly discovered chemical reaction that was discovered somewhat by accident in a lab that was working on solar panels. There was a bunch of lead that was turning up accidentally that needed to be removed from the process. Scientists in the Netherlands discovered that with this reaction they could make any kind of lead light up bright green under UV light. This Perovskite reaction (Named after the Russian fellow)  would take place with lead and no other metal. This -Lumetallix-  instant lead test has proven itself in extensive field applications and is already available. We will keep you posted on our progress on EPA recognition. (At this point D-Lead is the only EPA-recognized field test other than XRF, or sending chip samples to an NLLAP lab for testing)

Who Wants To Help?

Lead Locators is looking for at least 12 contractors from around the country who want to participate in beta testing our App for professionals. The dream is that we can make Lead Testing for Professionals, easy, and fun, plus it will produce professional reports. 1 for compliance and 1 for the folks that do the work. The App will do more in the long run but this is just to get things off the ground.

Your comments are welcome. To ask questions or get more information about remodeling, click here to email me directly, or call 208-947-7261

If you or someone you know is considering remodeling or just wants to speak to a trustworthy remodeling contractor, please contact me. You’ll be glad you did.