Jeanne in MN Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Before we buy a 100 year old house we are looking at, I'm concerned about lead paint. I'm also wondering about asbestos. Can you tell me how to go about testing? And if there is lead paint, is it costly to take care of? Should we have it tested for asbestos too? Anything else we should be aware of? Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Are you working with a realtor? They should have all the information; even a RE office secretary should be able to steer you in the right direction. I'd do an energy audit to see how well it will heat and cool. The yellow pages should list home inspectors; they will also have the information. I just love old houses. (The local electric and gas company often allow you to see the heating and cooling bill for the past year.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pax Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Definitely get lead paint testing, inside and out. It is expensive to have lead paint abatement done as there are very specific rules about it. We ended up walking away from a house in October due to the lead paint issue. I know nothing about asbestos. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Before we buy a 100 year old house we are looking at, I'm concerned about lead paint. I'm also wondering about asbestos. Can you tell me how to go about testing? And if there is lead paint, is it costly to take care of? Should we have it tested for asbestos too? Anything else we should be aware of? Thanks!! Unless it's been abated, you might very likely find lead in varnish, paint, and pipes. Look under "Lead Removal and Abatement" and "Asbestos Abatement" in the Yellow Pages to find a reputable place that will come out and test for you. Kits are not always accurate. Asbestos was used in all kinds of stuff -- insulation, floor and ceiling tiles, etc. It can be abated, but isn't cheap. Of course, it depends on where it's found, how much there is, if it's better to encapsulate, etc. Do a little online research first and then definitely get it tested, or you could find yourself in an awful predicament! For old houses, I'd want everything checked: plumbing, electrical, foundation, roof. They can be real money pits. Just warnin' ya because I have BTDT! :tongue_smilie: Good luck. Maybe the previous owners took care of everything already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 Please do get the testing. I didn't, and discovered after we'd lived ten years in our 110yo house that we had asbestos. It was the worst possible situation--it was crumbly, dusty, and airborne. Asbestos testing is easy. You just collect samples and the lab analyzes them, usually for $25 per sample or so. You can pay more and have an asbestos expert come collect samples for you. It's well worth the money--lead abatement and asbestos abatement cost a fortune and are quite intrusive to your life. The health risks are significant. I will NEVER buy another house without making sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted April 26, 2011 Share Posted April 26, 2011 We live in a house that was built in 1880, and over the past 16 years we have done quite a bit of renovations. Our main concern was encapsulating the lead paint- keeping the lead paint covered with new paint, and being very careful not to ignore any peeling paint. We also do not open our windows that are painted with lead paint- the opening and closing creates lead dust. We do have some replacement windows that we open, but we live in northern Illinois- it's either too hot or too cold to have open windows. We have asbestos floor tiles in an upstairs bathroom- when we needed new flooring we put the new over the old because removing asbestos was going to be costly AND more dangerous than leaving it It wasn't deteriorating, and stable asbestos isn't the issue. During these years, we raised our four kids. We had the younger two tested for lead frequently when they were little, to be sure we were providing a safe place to live. Our youngest was a finger sucker and we especially worried about him Only once did he come back with an elevated level, and we discovered they tested with a finger prick and used the scale for a blood draw. They retested immediately and he was fine. Never had any other test that even slightly concerned our doc. We're happy in our old home! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim in Appalachia Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Our house is over 100 years old. If the house is old it will have lead paint. It has not been a problem for us. The floors are mostly covered with carpet, but even when we did redo the dining room floor, it did not add to the cost because of the lead in the varnish. Our walls are covered with tons of wallpaper. I would almost prefer the lead paint :tongue_smilie:, because in between each layer of wallpaper is coal dust and mold. We don't have asbestos, there was nothing in our walls at all, except hurricane baffling which prevents us from blowing in insulation. We replaced the windows, so that is not an issue either. The outside of our house is almost completely covered in vinyl siding. This is important. We recently did our porch, and it is now cheaper to cover with siding than to paint because of the lead paint laws. If you have paint inside, don't scrape it. You can either paint over it, cover it with paint-able wallpaper, or cover it with wall paper. I have had 2 babies here, and we had them tested for lead. We have not had an issue. All that being said, I would not buy an old house again, but not because of the lead. For what we spend on the house each year fixing it up (redoing things like window, electric, plumbing, etc...) and what we pay in increased heating costs, we could have bought a house worth $150,000 more. The heating costs are the worst. We can never really insulate, so we will never be able to fix that issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Check the pipes to be sure they don't have lead in them. We have a house that is nearly 200 years old. It has its good points (very solid construction, some original windows), and it has some downsides (floorplan's been messed with, some renovations were done badly, not well insulated). Just be careful. Oh, and fwiw, even though our house does not have central air, we've done very well with window units. It's nicer than we expected, and I do like that we can cool just the areas we want to cool and not have to pay for cooling the rest. We probably only cool about half the house most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 If you like to open windows, consider the cost of replacing the windows. Like a PP said, friction at the windows could release lead dust if the windows are original to the house. (Mostly, I just loved having new windows in our former 100 y.o. house :). Had 3 babies in that house, all were tested for lead, no problems.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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