A lead-safe renovation means testing suspect paint first, sealing off the work area, keeping dust down with wet methods and HEPA tools, and cleaning up without a dry broom. If your Ottawa home was built before 1990, treat any painted surface you plan to sand, scrape, cut or demolish as a possible source of lead until a test says otherwise. Below we explain how to plan the job, what Ontario’s work classifications mean, and when to hand the work to a certified crew.
TL;DR
- Homes built before 1960 probably contain lead paint, and homes from 1960 to 1990 may. Test before you disturb paint.
- Never dry sand, scrape or burn leaded paint. Contain the area, use wet methods and HEPA dust collection.
- Clean with HEPA vacuums and wet wiping. Dry sweeping and compressed air spread fine dust.
- Ontario sorts lead work into Type 1, 2 and 3. The higher the type, the stricter the controls.
- Children and pregnant women should stay out of the home or work zone until the area is clean.
Table of Contents
- Why older Ottawa homes need lead-safe practices
- Test before you touch the paint
- Lead-safe work practices, step by step
- How Ontario classifies lead work: Type 1, 2 and 3
- Leave it, cover it or remove it
- Cleaning up lead dust and checking the result
- What lead-related work costs in Ottawa
- Our perspective
- Plan your lead-safe project with HMJ Contracting
- FAQ
- Sources
Why older Ottawa homes need lead-safe practices
Health Canada says homes built before 1960 probably contain lead-based paint, while homes built from 1960 to 1990 may contain it, particularly on exteriors. Homes built after 1990 should not, because consumer paints were virtually lead-free by then. Much of Ottawa’s housing stock, from older Centretown and Glebe homes to postwar neighbourhoods, falls inside those dates.
The risk comes from disturbing the paint, not from living beside intact paint. Sanding, scraping, heat stripping, cutting into walls and demolition all turn paint into fine dust that settles on floors, vents and furniture. Health Canada notes that lead exposure can cause health effects including anemia and brain and nervous-system damage. Children face the greatest risk, unborn children are also at risk, and no safe level of exposure is known.
Children also absorb a much larger share of the lead they ingest than adults do, according to Health Canada’s lead information package. That is why renovation dust matters most in homes with young kids, and why a household with a pregnancy on the way should plan the work carefully.
The 90 mg/kg figure you may have seen applies to new paint. The federal Surface Coating Materials Regulations limit total lead in surface-coating materials to 90 mg/kg, with listed exceptions. It says nothing about the old coats already on your walls, which is why we cover the topic in our guide on what the 90 mg/kg rule means for Ottawa homes.
Test before you touch the paint
Guessing is the most common mistake. Health Canada recommends testing paint you suspect contains lead before renovating. A certified inspector can measure the lead level, or you can mail paint chips to a laboratory.
A few practical points:
- Test every surface the work will disturb: walls, trim, doors, window frames, porch and exterior siding. Different coats and rooms can differ.
- Take samples from the layers you will actually cut, sand or demolish, not only the top coat.
- Test before you finalize the schedule. A positive result changes the method, the crew, the containment and the budget.
- Ask about other hazards at the same visit. Older homes often combine lead with asbestos in flooring, plaster or insulation. Our overview of hidden renovation hazards in older Canadian homes lists what to look for.
Our testing and lab analysis service is listed at $300 to $600 CAD, depending on the number of samples and the scope. Commercial owners can use our commercial building lead inspection checklist to plan the same step across a larger property.
Lead-safe work practices, step by step
Health Canada’s guidance and Ontario’s Ministry of Labour guideline describe the same core ideas. Here is how they look on a real job.
- Keep people out. Keep children and pregnant women away from the work area. Remove furniture or seal it under plastic.
- Isolate the space. Cover doorways and vents with plastic and tape, and lay drop sheets. Health Canada advises ventilating outward rather than into the rest of the house.
- Restrict access. Ontario’s guideline calls for drop sheets, restricted access and task-appropriate protective equipment. Only people who are protected and trained should enter.
- Use wet methods. Misting surfaces keeps dust from becoming airborne. The same guideline recommends wet methods, local ventilation at the dust source and HEPA dust collection.
- Wear the right protection. Goggles, gloves, disposable coveralls and suitable respiratory protection. A paper dust mask is not a respirator.
- Clean as you go. Clean up after each operation, not only at the end of the project.
- Leave the site clean. Wash up, bag work clothes and change shoes before you go back into living areas.
One method stands out as a no-go. Health Canada says do not sand, scrape or burn leaded paint because it can release harmful dust, and recommends considering professional removal.
Ventilation and dust collection
When the work area is enclosed, Ontario’s guidance says it should have mechanical ventilation, and the exhaust should pass through a dust collector suited to the particle size and air volume. Local ventilation at the dust source is recommended, and discharged air should pass through HEPA filtration. Opening a window and running a box fan does not do this. It pulls dust through the house and pushes it outdoors where neighbours and gardens are.
The hierarchy of controls
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety frames lead control as an order of priority: eliminate or substitute where possible, then use engineering controls such as wet methods and local exhaust, then hygiene and administrative controls, and finally protective clothing and equipment. Put simply, redesigning the job to avoid creating dust comes first, and a respirator is the last line of defence, not the first.
How Ontario classifies lead work: Type 1, 2 and 3
Ontario’s lead-on-construction guidance sorts work into Type 1, Type 2 or Type 3. Controls get stricter as the presumed airborne lead concentration rises, covering respirators, containment and procedures.
The province lists brush or roller application, chemical-gel removal with a fibrous cloth, and power-tool removal with effective HEPA dust collection as Type 1 operations. Heavier methods and larger-scale demolition move into Type 2 and Type 3. For Type 3 operations, Ontario’s guideline says there should be a decontamination facility for workers.
| Work type | What it generally means | What changes on site |
|---|---|---|
| Type 1 | Lower-dust tasks, such as chemical-gel removal or HEPA-collected power-tool work | Basic containment, wet methods, respirator and cleanup |
| Type 2 | Tasks that presume higher airborne lead | More stringent respirator and containment requirements |
| Type 3 | Highest presumed airborne lead | Strictest controls, including a decontamination facility |
Check the province’s classification page for the exact tasks in each type, because the lists are specific. Our abatement team prices small Type 1 or 2 jobs at $1,500 to $3,500 CAD, and whole-home or Type 3 work is quoted after assessment since it has no published price.
As for the rules, Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act requires reasonable precautions to protect workers. Construction rules address competent-person hazard detection, PPE and training, washing facilities, ventilation or suitable respiratory protection and dust control. Lead is a designated substance under O. Reg. 490/09, though its exposure limit does not apply to employers on construction projects, and other duties still apply. If you hire a contractor, their duties to their workers are theirs. Yours is to hire people who follow them.
Leave it, cover it or remove it
Removal is not always the answer. Health Canada says intact lead paint may be safer left in place or covered than removed, as long as it is not chipping and children cannot get at it. Wallpaper, wallboard or panelling can serve as a protective covering.
A simple way to decide:
- Intact, low-contact surfaces: leave in place or cover, and plan the renovation around them.
- Peeling, chipping or friction surfaces such as windows and doors: stabilize or remove through a certified crew.
- Walls you are opening for a new kitchen, bathroom or basement: remove or encapsulate the affected layers before general demolition begins.
We go deeper on these choices in lead abatement versus renovation and in our homeowner’s guide to safe lead paint encapsulation. For paint on siding, soffits and trim, see exterior lead paint removal in Ottawa.
Cleaning up lead dust and checking the result
Cleanup is where many renovations fail. Ontario’s guidance calls for cleanup after each operation using HEPA vacuuming, wet sweeping or wet shovelling. It says lead waste should go in dust-tight, identified containers, and the work area should be inspected at least daily. Dry sweeping and compressed air should not be used.
For homeowners, Health Canada recommends wet-cleaning hard floors and surfaces, using a HEPA vacuum where possible, changing the furnace filter after particularly dusty work, and cleaning brushes, work clothes and shoes immediately after renovation. Housekeeping principles apply on every work site, and tips on safe construction site sweeping show why choosing the right method matters. For a room-by-room routine, read our guide to lead dust cleanup in your home.
Disposing of paint chips
Health Canada says to put paint scrapings and chips in a sealed container marked “Hazardous Waste” and to follow local municipal disposal instructions. Check the City of Ottawa’s current instructions for household hazardous waste before you drop anything off. Do not put lead debris in regular garbage or recycling.
If you are worried about exposure
A simple blood test ordered through your family doctor is the most useful screening test for determining a person’s lead exposure, per Health Canada. Public Health Ontario identifies blood lead concentration as the appropriate biomarker and says hair testing is not valid for this purpose. If a child or pregnant person was in the home during dusty work, speak with your doctor.
What lead-related work costs in Ottawa
These are the ranges we publish. Every project is quoted line by line after a visit, so your figure depends on the size, access and condition of the home.
| Service | Published range (CAD) |
|---|---|
| Testing and lab analysis | $300 to $600 |
| Small Type 1 or 2 abatement jobs | $1,500 to $3,500 |
| Vermiculite attic removal | $5,000 to $15,000 |
| Whole-home or Type 3 work | Quoted after assessment |
| Single-room strip-out | $1,000 to $4,000 |
| Full interior strip-out | $4,000 to $15,000 |
| Bathroom renovation | $15,000 to $35,000 |
| Kitchen renovation | $25,000 to $75,000 |
| Basement finishing | $35,000 to $75,000 |
Plan the order of work. If lead paint is present, abatement or containment comes before the new kitchen, bathroom or basement, not after it. Doing it in sequence avoids tearing out finished work and keeps dust out of new surfaces. Our piece on how renovation increases safety in older homes and our strategies to reduce renovation disruption help with scheduling.
Our perspective
Most lead problems we see in Ottawa homes are not caused by the paint. They are caused by a renovation that started before anyone asked what was under the paint.
The best protection is a sequence. Test first. Decide what stays, what is covered and what is removed. Contain the area, keep dust wet, collect it with HEPA filtration and clean up every day. That is how we approach it, with a certified and licensed abatement team working alongside our renovation crew, so the lead work and the rebuild are planned together rather than handed off between companies.
We put the full scope in writing with a line-by-line quote, so you can see what testing, containment, removal, hauling and documentation cost before you sign. After more than 25 years working in the Ottawa area, we have learned that the homeowners who feel best about their project are the ones who knew the plan from day one.
Jason
Plan your lead-safe project with HMJ Contracting
If your home was built before 1990 and you are planning a renovation, we can test, abate and rebuild under one roof. We offer licensed and insured abatement, interior and structural demolition, renovations and debris hauling across Ottawa and the surrounding area, with estimates within 24 hours.
Start with our abatement services page for testing and removal options, or look at our renovation services if you are ready to plan the rebuild.
FAQ
Do I need a lead-safe contractor to renovate my own home?
Ontario’s rules for construction projects are aimed at employers and workers, so a contractor you hire must follow them. As an owner, Health Canada advises against sanding, scraping or burning leaded paint and recommends considering professional removal. If testing confirms lead and the job disturbs painted surfaces, hiring a certified crew is the safer route.
Is lead paint dangerous if it is just sitting on my walls?
Intact paint is much less of a concern than disturbed paint. Health Canada says it can be left in place or covered if it is not chipping and children cannot reach it. Watch for peeling and for wear on windows, doors and trim, and plan any renovation around testing first.
Can I use a regular vacuum to clean up renovation dust?
No. Health Canada recommends wet-cleaning hard surfaces and using a HEPA vacuum where possible. Ontario’s guidance says dry sweeping and compressed air should not be used. A standard vacuum can blow fine dust back into the room.
How do I know if my home has lead paint?
Age is the first clue: before 1960 is probably leaded, and 1960 to 1990 is possible. The only way to know is testing. A certified inspector can measure paint lead levels, or you can send paint chips to a laboratory.
Where do I dispose of lead paint chips?
Seal scrapings and chips in a container marked “Hazardous Waste” and follow your municipality’s instructions. In Ottawa, check the City’s current household hazardous waste guidance before you go to a drop-off site.
Sources
- Lead-based paint, Health Canada
- Chemical safety for Do-It-Yourself projects, Health Canada
- Lead Information Package, Health Canada
- Measures and Procedures for Working with Lead, Ontario Ministry of Labour
- Classification of work, Lead on construction projects, Ontario
- Legal requirements, Lead on construction projects, Ontario
- Lead on Construction Projects, CCOHS
- Surface Coating Materials Regulations, Justice Laws
- Clinical Evaluation for Lead Exposure, Public Health Ontario
- Tips on safe construction site sweeping