Hooded figures were poised over the table in white paper "safe suits." Peering through safety goggles at wooden boards coated with multiple layers of paint, 20 men, seasoned construction workers, listened to instructions regarding lead paint removal.

Joan Kelterman, an instructor of the Environmental Management Institute, Indianapolis, reminded her students that the most dangerous thing about lead paint is the dust.

"An amount equal to an artificial sugar packet, spread over an area the size of a football field, is enough to poison a child," she said. "You don't want to carry it home on your skin, clothes or boots."

The boards were coated with acrylic paint for safety purposes. The dust never flew while the fellows took turns using a belt sander with vacuum attachment, drilled through a dollop of shaving cream and used chemical paint removers.

Kelterman conducted a week-long lead paint removal certification class west of Milford for employees of Millwood Roofing & Construction Co. and two fellows associated with the Windows of Opportunity program in Fort Wayne.

Millwood, owned by Merlin Miller, is a regular contractor for Housing Opportunities of Warsaw Inc. The organization rehabilitates older homes, installing new windows, doors, plumbing and electrical systems.

Homes built and occupied prior to 1978 most likely contain lead paint, according to HOW's housing programs manager Pam Kennedy.

"Having a lead abatement contractor in the county is a feather in HOW's cap," Kennedy said. "It's better to be before the wagon than behind it."

Federal law may soon mandate that organizations receiving housing grant monies have a certified lead abatement contractor or supervisor on residential job sites. Such certification is already mandated for commercial work.

Last fall several area contractors attended a lead safety course in Kosciusko County.

Exterior and interior paint could contain up to 1 percent of lead until legislation was enacted to reduce lead exposures in the 1970s. The element helped the paint hold color, increased durability, made it fast-cleaning and fast-drying. And, particularily attractive to manufacturers, lead is cheap.

Breathing lead paint dust and eating paint chips can make children very sick.

"For the most part, latex paint never contained lead," Kelterman said. "Other paints and varnishes have .06 percent of lead or less."

Lead paint abatement is the permanent removal of the chemical. As Kelterman pointed out, there are several steps to follow in its elimination or when working around it.

The booted safe suits are a good start.

Lead paint-coated materials should be bagged, tied and locked in a secure area before transportation to a landfill.

Miller admitted he has sanded down or planed painted boards before without giving lead content any consideration.

"If nothing else," Kelterman advised, "always, always wash your hands before leaving a job site."

Kennedy offered up a white cylinder labeled "Lead-Check." When opened, one brushy end can be rubbed on a surface to detect lead. The tips turn red if there is any lead present. It does not determine whether the levels are safe or not. They sell for $1 each. She said HOW is applying for a grant to purchase the "Lead-Check" devices.

"Small projects around the house, performed by homeowners, can kick up a lot of dust," Kennedy said. "Most people don't give it a second thought."

She said the Indiana Department of Environmental Management is in the process of writing rules of compliance regarding lead inspection. Currently an unlicensed person can take samples in one room only.

"Who would you rather have checking your house for lead paint?" she asked. "Someone who can only check one room or someone who can check them all?"

Because Millwood's employees are Amish, state testers brought written tests to the Milford company. Enough employees passed to certify Millwood Roofing & Construction Co. as the state's second lead abatement company. [[In-content Ad]]