I believe that the wallpaper was coloured green with Arsenic or something else equally toxic.

Stripping the gloss off the woodwork on the stairs and there are faint traced of green paint. I have been using a knife to peel most of the paint off, but i will have to sand what is left.

Does anyone know if the paint also used arsenic and if so when paint used slightly less toxic chemicals? rather not breath in arsenic… even with a face mask some will get in the air is my reasoning.

Would i be right in guessing even if the paint isn’t arsenic it probably has lead in it?

Probably lead, yes. Arsenic possibly. If you’re sanding you should be wearing a dust-mask (preferably the type with a filter cartridge) and eye protection.

I thought this thread was going to about an old fashioned type of weed….. 😳

http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2010/03/05/emerald-green-or-paris-green-the-deadly-regency-paint/
http://www.popularscience.co.uk/?p=509

you can get testing kits for lead paint (lead was still used in the uk into the 70s I think) not so sure about tests for arsenic, but if theres no lead in there then unlikely to be anything else nasty- the lead was the white pigment so anything pale would have it in if the paint is old enough.

If theres reason for concern don’t sand it at all, use a chemical stripper or a heat gun. Unless you’re spending more than £20 on one then dust masks are mostly decorative, and i doubt you intend on wearing one every time you hoover after you’ve filled the house with dust.

Get wife to do it, 2 birds with one stone and all that…

Get wife to do it

She’ll do it in a minute, once she’s finished drinking cat food through a hose.

There’s golf balls in that; it’s a kind of training device…

Get wife to do it, 2 birds with one stone and all that…

Wife! i’d have to get married first. Only been living together for 12 years….

On Topic, wouldn’t using a heat gun on lead paints be stupid?

maccruiskeen – Member
If theres reason for concern don’t sand it at all, use a chemical stripper or a heat gun.

Chemical stripper maybe. If you use a heat gun, you should have a mask specified to protect against lead. Vapour from heated paint containing lead will have lead in it. If you sand, most sanders can accommodate a vacuum attachment and this will help reduce dust. A decent vacuum will have hepa filter that will trap lead particles. Also a damp cloth on surfaces afterwards to remove any dust which escapes the vacuum is advisable. Make sure you practice good hygiene as most lead poisoning nowadays is due to ingestion. For example. Not washing hands properly after handling lead or lead products before eating or smoking.
Edit. Don’t be concerned about absorbing lead through the skin. Lead molecules are to big. This is why hygiene is so important when handling lead.

Used to eat pounds of the stuff when fishing as a kid.
chewing on a lead weight calmed the nerves..

On Topic, wouldn’t using a heat gun on lead paints be stupid?

Lead is very toxic to babies and children and a lot less so for Adults. I stripped all the lead paint in my Victorian house with a hot air gun and no mask and survived pretty much unscathed….

footflaps – Member
On Topic, wouldn’t using a heat gun on lead paints be stupid?
Lead is very toxic to babies and children and a lot less so for Adults. I stripped all the lead paint in my Victorian house with a hot air gun and no mask and survived pretty much unscathed….

That makes you stupid, and perhaps fortunate. Although in truth, you may not have lead in your system. It is possible that you had/have increased levels in your blood and do not realise. It is true lead is much more harmful to children but as Wikipedia will tell you.
Quote: No safe threshold for lead exposure has been discovered—that is, there is no known amount of lead that is too small to cause the body harm.
Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not there. Mind you, it’s good to know that to some degree, natural selection is still working, in spite of all our advancement.

Washing things down with a solution of dishwasher detergent is also recommended. It contains high levels of phosphates, which somehow neutralises the lead.

I give up!

What gives GS? Along with not generating the dust in the first place, dust management is recommended by many international government bodies.

“What gives?” Who the heck says that?
Nothing gives! Certainly lead being neutralised by phosphates. That doesn’t give. Regarding dust management. Isn’t that what I’ve been talking about.

Didn’t Napoleon die of arsenic poisoning that came from the wallpaper on his walls in St Helena? sure i remember that from school…!

I was not aware Napoleon was a habitual wall paper licker. Interesting. 🙂