Such a depressing day

[Homerboy]

Love this part. Once again, the guy trying to follow the rules takes a hit and the fly-by-nights can score big.

Yeap. It blows.
But how can you regulate those you don't even know exists.

 

[uclaLabrat]

It's painful now, but once those places are cleaned up, the costs will fade away, and everything will go back to normal. I guess this is punishment for people who didn't take care of it in the last 25 years, when it would've been much cheaper.

 

[highland145]

Enforcement officers could tour residential areas. At $37K a pop, they'd earn their pay. Or could have the licensed guys report them when they see them.

Or better yet, scrap the whole deal.

 

[lxskllr]

It's painful now, but once those places are cleaned up, the costs will fade away, and everything will go back to normal. I guess this is punishment for people who didn't take care of it in the last 25 years, when it would've been much cheaper.

You couldn't professionally clean an old house so there's no traces of lead. It would be cheaper to wrap the whole thing plastic, raze the house, and build a new one. I've been sanding old paint for the last couple of months. There's certainly a lot a lead in it. The house is ~150 years old.

 

[highland145]

You couldn't professionally clean an old house so there's no traces of lead. It would be cheaper to wrap the whole thing plastic, raze the house, and build a new one. I've been sanding old paint for the last couple of months. There's certainly a lot a lead in it. The house is ~150 years old.

The rooms I've re-done, I've replaced all the trim. Easier than trying to get paint to stick to the old lead paint.

 

[Homerboy]

It's painful now, but once those places are cleaned up, the costs will fade away, and everything will go back to normal. I guess this is punishment for people who didn't take care of it in the last 25 years, when it would've been much cheaper.

I don't understand "cleaned up"
I live in a 65yr old Cap Cod. If I wanted to do a remodel/addition tomorrow, these practices would have to be followed. If I wanted to do a remodel/addition 20 years from now, these practices would still have to be followed.

 

[uclaLabrat]

I don't understand "cleaned up"
I live in a 65yr old Cap Cod. If I wanted to do a remodel/addition tomorrow, these practices would have to be followed. If I wanted to do a remodel/addition 20 years from now, these practices would still have to be followed.

What's not to understand? There are guidelines as to the maximum allowable exposure to basically every commercial chemical...cleaning up refers to removing as much of the lead as possible, at least to below maximum exposure levels.

Now, the law was passed 25 years ago. Sure, if you do it now, or in 20 years, the same procedures have to be used, but someone said earlier that 10 years ago you could cut corners and no one would have cared?

Anyway, I feel your pain, I do...working with some of this shit is nasty, I do it on a daily basis.

 

[SphinxnihpS]

Yep saw this, practically looks like they are removing asbestos.

Asbestos is actually far less deadly. You breath it every day. Even small amounts of ingested of lead can cause problems.

 

[Greenman]

People will try and do the work themselves so then, besides the lead, you could have safety (elec.,structural) issues.

Anyone know if individuals will legally still be able to work on their houses?

My house was built in 1937. I won't be able to afford someone to do work.

None of the new rules apply to the home owner, so yes, you can remodel whatever you want. But, if you put any of that contaminated material in your pickup, you're committing a federal crime as soon as you go on a public street. If you then go to the dump and empty your truck, you've committed yet another federal crime. So while you as the home owner can remove lead without fear of fines, you have to keep it on your property forever, except you would then have a class II dump on your property, that's a federal crime.

It's a neat little package, don't you think?

 

[Greenman]

Fortunately, the chances of getting caught are relatively low.

Don't be so sure. The EPA has hired a bunch of new regulators, and with fines of 37k a pop, they could produce some very serious cash. The way the system is set up, after being written up, you have four day's to show up at the EPA office with your check for $37500. That's what will force compliance, few can afford to get caught even once.

 

[FoBoT]

Albert Jay Nock-

"There is, for example, no human right, natural or Constitutional, that we have not seen nullified by the United States Government. Of all the crimes that are committed for gain or revenge, there is not one that we have not seen it commit – murder, mayhem, arson, robbery, fraud, criminal collusion and connivance."

 

[RPD]

Yes. Those billion dollar construction jobs by multi-conglomerated super contractors for the multi-gajillion dollar medical industry that will milk the system dry for a $10 aspirin compares to some home owner wanting to add a 1/2 bath onto their 1952 bungalo by the local construction guy/crew.

Missed that, but relax on the rage.

 

[highland145]

None of the new rules apply to the home owner, so yes, you can remodel whatever you want. But, if you put any of that contaminated material in your pickup, you're committing a federal crime as soon as you go on a public street. If you then go to the dump and empty your truck, you've committed yet another federal crime. So while you as the home owner can remove lead without fear of fines, you have to keep it on your property forever, except you would then have a class II dump on your property, that's a federal crime.

It's a neat little package, don't you think?

I'm stunned. Not surprised, just stunned.

 

[slag]

per This Old House crew, yes you can. In fact IIRC they specifically addressed this. This law only applies to (licensed) contractors.

It really just applies to the demo too I thinik.
So you could technically, (again I think) do the demo yourself, then hifgher the construction crew after?

Along these same lines, I don't know anyone who pulls a permit to work on their own house. I rebuilt my deck, installed electricity for a hot tub, replaced a hot water heater with a larger unit, replaced some windows, and never pulled a permit. Permits are just a way for the local govt to get more money.

 

[disappoint]

Depressing? You mean you don't consider this to be skidding sideways and your duty as a human before you die? And here we thought you knew what you were doing here on Earth.

 

[Homerboy]

Along these same lines, I don't know anyone who pulls a permit to work on their own house. I rebuilt my deck, installed electricity for a hot tub, replaced a hot water heater with a larger unit, replaced some windows, and never pulled a permit. Permits are just a way for the local govt to get more money.

And if you sell that house, you;re going to be screwed without permits for that electrical work.

Most those other things, you don't need a permit for (winodws, deck etc)

 

[Anubis]

yea its gonna be interesting. we had our house painted this year and the painter told us that if we had waited till next year he would have refused, he said hes simply no longer going to work on old houses

 

[Homerboy]

yea its gonna be interesting. we had our house painted this year and the painter told us that if we had waited till next year he would have refused, he said hes simply no longer going to work on old houses

ohhhhhhhhhhhh shit.
I was going to have ours painted in the spring. I didn't even think of this.
Fraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

 

[Anubis]

Along these same lines, I don't know anyone who pulls a permit to work on their own house. I rebuilt my deck, installed electricity for a hot tub, replaced a hot water heater with a larger unit, replaced some windows, and never pulled a permit. Permits are just a way for the local govt to get more money.

you obviously don't live in an area with a PITA code enforcer. ours came out and told us we had to get new house numbers because the ones on our house were only 2 inches tall and they needed to be 2.5 inches. the numbers had been there for 15 years without issue till she got her job

if she sees any type of construction vehicle at your house she will be knocking on your door

 

[highland145]

ohhhhhhhhhhhh shit.
I was going to have ours painted in the spring. I didn't even think of this.
Fraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Me too. At some point aluminum siding was put on the house. I hate that crap and have been thinking about hardy plank. Maybe not any more.

 

[Homerboy]

wait. I just noticed the coincidence of the OP's name

 

[vi edit]

Sort of unrelated...but I was told by a number of subcontractors that I was lucky I built this year and not next. Next year my county is going to require that all new homes be fitted with automated sprinkler systems in the homes.

I was told it'd probably add an additional $10,000-$12,000 to the cost of building a house like I have. I don't live in an area with high chances of wild fires. I don't live in a high heat/arid climate. Thank you for looking out for me county code producers. I can't wait until these things flake out or a kid does somethign stupid and they go off and flood out a house. Or a fire breaks out and they fail to go off. Or even better yet I hope people finally get fed up with the administrative overhead that goes into building inspections and regulations and just flat out don't build anymore.

I sat around with my thumb up my ass for close to 3 months while the county drug things along for some reason or another.

 

[Greenman]

Sort of unrelated...but I was told by a number of subcontractors that I was lucky I built this year and not next. Next year my county is going to require that all new homes be fitted with automated sprinkler systems in the homes.

I was told it'd probably add an additional $10,000-$12,000 to the cost of building a house like I have. I don't live in an area with high chances of wild fires. I don't live in a high heat/arid climate. Thank you for looking out for me county code producers. I can't wait until these things flake out or a kid does somethign stupid and they go off and flood out a house. Or a fire breaks out and they fail to go off. Or even better yet I hope people finally get fed up with the administrative overhead that goes into building inspections and regulations and just flat out don't build anymore.

I sat around with my thumb up my ass for close to 3 months while the county drug things along for some reason or another.

Not just your county, everywhere. It's in the new code.

 

[Greenman]

It's painful now, but once those places are cleaned up, the costs will fade away, and everything will go back to normal. I guess this is punishment for people who didn't take care of it in the last 25 years, when it would've been much cheaper.

We'll all be dead before all the lead is gone. The issue is that we almost never remove it all. We remove only what is directly related to the work we're doing. No one wants to pay to have all the lead in their house removed if it's not necessary.

Btw. Did you all know that it's illegal to pressure wash a house that has lead based paint? Well, you can pressure wash it, as long as you collect all the water that runs off, filter it to remove all the contaminants, have it tested, and dump the sludge in a class II dump. In other words, it would be cheaper to burn it down.