Pre-Renovation Lead Paint and Hazard Check Record

Who this is for

Check what the work will disturb before it starts. Each surface or material to be sanded, cut, stripped or removed gets a line for the hazard suspected, who tested it, the result and your decision; a checklist covers the set-up agreed with the contractor.

Owners of older homes planning to strip paint, remove textured ceilings, lift old floor tiles or take out pipe lagging, and anyone who wants a clear record of what was tested before a contractor starts.

What this helps you track

• Every surface or material the work will disturb, room by room
• The hazard suspected and whether it has been tested
• Who tested it, when, the result and the report reference
• Your decision for each: leave it, professional work or an agreed method
• The work-area set-up and clean-up agreed with the contractor

How to use it

1. Write the property, its age and how you know, who will live there during the works, and the contractor and the certification you checked.
2. Walk through the planned work room by room and list every surface or material that will be disturbed.
3. Arrange testing by a qualified person or accredited laboratory where needed, and record who tested, when and the result.
4. Decide with your advisers how each item will be handled and write the decision in the last column.
5. Agree the set-up with the contractor before work begins and tick each item; the browser version saves in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Does my home have lead paint or asbestos?

You cannot tell by looking. The age of the home and its materials are a starting point, but only testing by a qualified person or an accredited laboratory gives an answer. Check the guidance where you are on when testing is advised.

Can I test it myself?

Home test kits exist for some hazards, but how reliable they are varies, and the rules on who may sample materials such as asbestos differ by country. Record who tested and how, and check the rules where you are before disturbing anything.

What do the decisions mean?

Leave means the work is planned around it; professional means a suitably qualified contractor does that part; agreed method means a way of working settled in advance. Which applies is for you and your advisers, not this sheet.

Why record who lives in the home during works?

Health guidance on lead and dust often singles out young children and pregnancy. Writing down who will be living there lets you and the contractor plan around them; questions about health are for a doctor.