About This Guide
It all begins with an idea.
This Historic Window Lead Paint Remediation Guide was developed to provide stakeholders in the maintenance of historic buildings resources regarding the parts, function and lead paint remediation methods of historic wood window units.
The Rhode Island Lead Hazard Mitigation Act of 2002 established tenant protections and property owner obligations towards the remediation of lead paint in rental properties. The law requires pre-1978 rental properties to receive a Lead-Safe Certificate of Lead Conformance, where the property owner must mitigate lead hazards including friction and impact surfaces. A dust wipe test must be conducted by a licensed lead inspector to assesses the amount of lead dust on surfaces like floors and window sills. A 2023 law expanded enforcement and financial penalties for rental properties to comply with the 2002 Act, including a new state-wide rental property registry.
Wood window units function through friction and impact, where units with parts containing lead cannot comply with the law without proper mitigation. This Historic Window Lead Paint Remediation Guide acts as an educational tool identifying historical Rhode Island window types, their parts and the risks they pose in making a historic window unit operate lead safe. This Guide provides sensitive window adaptation options and resources for property owners in the historic district.
This Guide was completed in collaboration with The Newport Restoration Foundation and The City of Newport, Rhode Island. The Project was funded through The National Park Service Certified Local Government Program administered through the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission.
This Guide was financed in part with federal funds from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service administered by the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission. The contents and opinions contained herein do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Department of the Interior or the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission.
This program received Federal funds from the National Park Service. The U.S. Department of the Interior Regulations strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination in departmental Federally assisted programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, or handicap. Any person who believes he or she has been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility operated by a recipient of Federal assistance should write to: Director, Equal Opportunity Program, U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, P.O. 37127, Washington, D.C. 20013-7127.
HISTORIC WINDOW LEAD PAINT REMEDIATION GUIDE
LEAD HAZARD MITIGATION STANDARDS
It all begins with an idea.
Types of Hazards on Window Units
Deteriorated paint- any interior or exterior paint or other coating that is cracking, chipping, peeling, or chalking; or any paint or coating that is otherwise damaged or separated from the surface to which it was applied. Any chewable lead-based painted surface on which there is evidence of teeth marks.
Friction surface – Surface that is subject to abrasion or friction as it operates and lead dust is likely to occur around such surfaces. Treatment of friction surfaces is required only if there is evidence that the paint surface is subject to abrasion; and lead dust levels on the nearest horizontal surface underneath the friction surface are equal to or greater than the standards specified.
Impact Surface- Impact surface is damaged, abraded, rubbed, impacted or otherwise deteriorated. Paint on an impact surface that is damaged, abraded, rubbed, impacted or otherwise deteriorated requires remediation.
Lead Hazard Remediation Strategies
All lead-based paint, including pre-1978 painted surfaces required to be assumed positive, must be intact with no paint or coating on a damaged or deteriorated component; no surface which has loose, delaminating, flaking, peeling, chipping, chalking, or blistering paint; no paint that is otherwise becoming separated from the substrate; no paint which is abraded by friction or impact, shows evidence of teeth marks, or is damaged by water.
Historic windows units are comprised of parts with different functions, where the remediation plan is specific to their condition and use. Non-functioning units or parts without friction or impact can be mitigated through encapsulation and stabilization to eliminate chipping, peeling, flaking and/or chalking.
Lead Hazard Remediation Strategies include the following methods:
Enclosure- Lead-painted surface is covered with metal, plastic, or other approved material to prevent lead paint debris from being released.
Paint Removal & Refinishing- Removing lead-based paint to bare wood and coating with paint.
Replacement- Part is reproduced in-kind and refit into unit.
HISTORIC WINDOW LEAD PAINT REMEDIATION GUIDE
LEAD HAZARD MITIGATION STANDARDS
It all begins with an idea.
Rhode Island Lead Hazard Mitigation Standards
Standards adopted by the Housing Resources Commission for a dwelling unit and associated common areas that provide for:
Continuing and ongoing responsibility for lead hazard control
Repair of deteriorated paint Correction of dust-generating conditions, such as friction or impact areas Provision of cleanable surfaces to eliminate harmful dust loading Correction of soil lead hazards Safe work practices;
Unit turnover
The provision of information on lead hazards and their avoidance and control to tenants Documentation of lead hazard mitigation compliance An explicit process for notification by tenants to property owners of instances of deterioration in conditions effecting lead hazards; and
Maintenance of “lead hazard control”
“Lead hazard control” means those portions of the lead hazard mitigation standard pertaining to repair of deteriorating paint; correction of dust-generating conditions; provision of cleanable surfaces; and correction of soil lead hazards that can be identified by visual inspection
Verification of Lead-Based Paint
Paint or other surface coatings that contain lead equal to or exceeding 1.0 milligram per square centimeter or 0.5 percent by weight or 5,000 parts per million (ppm) by weight. Testing of specific surfaces, by XRF (x-ray fluorescence) or lab analysis, to determine the lead content of these surfaces, performed by a certified lead-based paint inspector or risk assessor.
Risk Assessment- A comprehensive evaluation for lead-based paint hazards that includes paint testing, dust and soil sampling, and a visual evaluation. The risk assessment report identifies lead hazards and appropriate lead hazard reduction methods. There are no certifications for a risk assessor in Rhode Island.
Visual Inspection- Means a visual inspection by an owner or designated person to determine that the lead mitigation standards were maintained when the term of tenancy is two (2) years or more. A notarized Affidavit of Completion of Visual Inspection must be submitted to the Department every two (2) years until tenant turnover.
Visual assessment- Means the visual examination of a residential dwelling or a child care facility following a lead hazard control (LHC) project or lead hazard reduction (LHR) project to determine whether the project has been successfully completed; or, the visual examination of a residential dwelling or a child care facility to determine the existence of deteriorated paint or other potential sources of environmental lead exposure as part of a Risk Assessment.
Lead Inspection Report- Means a written report, on forms provided or approved by the Department, which documents the results of a lead inspection, conducted pursuant to this Part, and includes the visual assessment, field testing, sample analysis results, summary of findings, and, for regulated facilities and target housing, lead hazard reduction or lead hazard control requirements and site-specific recommendations, as applicable
HISTORIC WINDOW LEAD PAINT REMEDIATION GUIDE
