That's completely crazy. What contractor doesn't do jobs where there is lead paint? You should definitely let someone know before payment that that is your requirement before doing the job - it's a jerk move not to, especially since you have already committed to having him do the job. Of course we didn't pay our contractor anything until after work was done (in 2 or 3 installments I think)..and it's a 1920s house so everyone knew that it had lead paint without checking. Hope there are no more (okay, at least not too many, let's be honest) unpleasant surprises like this!

Whoa, I would be boiling mad, too, to be hit with this after giving money (a deposit?)

When you cool off a bit, may I suggest you look at the written contract you got when you gave the contractor money. It may lock you both in, or it may only lock you in, and still gives him/her the right to back out over lead issues. You won't know until you carefully read the contract.

IF the contract doesn't give specific reasons why the contractor can back out, then he/she has hit you with an after-deposit-locked-in surprise, and I (personally) would experience a trust-crash. For me, it would be a deal killer to know the contractor had taken my money and let the calendar run while keeping a "secret" out in his/her pocket.

These are just MY reactions, and you may feel differently when you and your DH cool down. You may decide to proceed with this contractor anyway, perhaps you have too big a deposit to lose, but if not, I'd take some time to be certain that you can work through all the new issues that will inevitably arise during the project.

If I knew more about how to do searches, I'd try to help you find a number of GW threads over the years where homeowners have posted their deep regrets moving ahead with a contractor when they had red flags waving even before they began. Most of these sad threads are posted to forewarn others to beware.

Maybe more talented GWers than I can suggest some research tips to find those threads.

Best of luck to you!!

The deposit we gave him may have been negligible in comparison to the total cost of the job, but we have already purchased all of the appliances, flooring, cabinets (which will be delivered in two days), etc. If we had decided not to proceed, we most likely could have returned everything else, but I don't think the cabinets would have been returnable.

We were really so impressed with this guy. We met with 3 other contractors and he was so knowledgable and very upfront about other negatives, like the fact that our uneven ceiling would not work well with crown moulding, but he would give us another type of finish at the top of the cabinets that he assured us would look nice (even sent a pic to DH). None of the other contractors noticed the ceiling. And some of the other guys pushed for us to purchase items at specific places (made me think they might be getting a cut of the profit, LOL).

Your profile says you are in California. Your contractor is limited in the amount of money he can accept as a deposit. How much did you give him? If he backs out of the contract, he should be returning your deposit.

Jellytoast, yes, I'm sure he would give me back my deposit. But, as I mentioned above, we've spent lots of money on the supplies for the job. I received an email and saw that you had posted, but couldn't find your post when I came back to the forum and only the first few words showed up in my email, which is what prompted me to post my response.

Might be time for a frank conversation with the guy? Maybe he thought he had already had the lead discussion with you (it's hard to put a positive spin on this!)? If otherwise you like him and he had good references and everything is ready to go, I'd probably just go and keep my fingers crossed.

lharpie, that was another thing. This guy has excellent reviews, unlike one or two of the others. DH is going to see Frank (that really is his name) on Friday when the cabinets arrive and is definitely going to tell him that this was not a nice surprise and hopes there will not be others.

It could be that he wasn't aware of the requirements for working on jobs with lead paint when he signed the contract, or as lharpie says, he may have thought he already had that discussion with you. I may be wrong about this, but I believe there are certification requirements for working on jobs with lead paint and he is likely not certified. Maybe it was a surprise to him to find out about it, too!

Like harpie says, it is probably a good idea to have sit down with him. Without getting emotional I'd let him know that you were surprised by this and that you need a higher level of communication in order to make sure the rest of the project goes smoothly. But as suggested above I'd make sure it wasn't somewhere in the contract that you overlooked before discussing with him.

Also, is this language part of his standard contract or was it unique to yours?

This was not in the contract, but part of a standard letter that his office sends out to new clients before the job starts. Obviously, though, the information regarding lead is only added to letters that go to clients with older homes. DH knows that he told Frank exactly how old the house is, but it's possible that it went in one ear and out the other. It may not have clicked until he pulled the permits and saw that info. At least, that's what I'm hoping. And I'm hoping that he pays more attention to what we say in the future (part of the conversation DH will have with him on Friday).

I would think that he would still be able to do the job if lead paint were present, but he might have to hire a certified company to do the demo, though. I re-read your first post and can see why you are so annoyed. Potential clients that are affected by his lead policy should receive notice of the needed inspection before they sign the contract and commit to the project.

I'm SO glad I don't live in CA! My house was built in 1948 and I'm sure somewhere under many layers of paint, there is lead paint. Stripping all the woodwork in the house would cost a fortune.

Yes, these laws are federal EPA and not California regulations, but California tacks on some hefty fines for violations.

My experience in CA has been most GCs pretend there is no lead-based paint (in my 1915 house!) and have no qualms in creating a lead hazard, so yours seems relatively conscientious.

Not that I blame you for being mad; he should have told you before you started buying supplies.

A couple of years ago when we had our windows, doors and out side trim painted. The contractor told us before quoting that she would need lead tests performed before here guys could start sanding etc. I asked her if she was ok with us doing a DIY test and she responded that that's what she was going to recommend we do. So I bought a home lead testing kit designed for painted surfaces. The kit contained several tests and a control that made sure the tests were working properly, thusly assured, we tested all windows and doors. The doors had several coats of paint, so we chipped some off to reach all paint layers and tested all of them.

Luckily, we didn't find any lead. But all the old paint was white and I believe that lead was more commonly added to dark colors, as lead intensifies their colors.

I don't remember how much I paid for the test kit, but I don't think I paid more than $30.-

I subsequently tested a hand painted vintage advertising sign, the test turned dark purple (positive) in a hurry.

Good luck with your reno!

Yes, he should have discussed that in advance.

it is strange he didn't have you check for asbestos too as it was still in use in the 70s.

But are you certain of the wording- could he have meant that if lead is found he doesn't handle its remediation (which would have to be done before the work you are paying him for begins and usually requires a separate license).

You can thank your federal government for all this lead based paint regulation. The fines for contractors that don't comply are considerable. I've taken the class and got the certificate, but don't do enough paint disturbing work to have to worry about this.

You can thank industry lobby that this is still such a pervasive problem. Due to corporate lobbying, lead in paint, was banned only in 1978, 50+ yeas after it became known (in the20s) that leaded paint causes irreversible brain damage, in high doses from children's paint kits, it used to cause convulsions, acute physical deterioration and death in children.

Lead is a heavy metal and is poisonous to people and animals. There is no safe level, none. Personally, I'm convinced that raised lead levels explains a lot about our society.

I was so mad when I posted this topic that I guess I couldn't see straight. Just had dinner, settled down after a long day at work and re-read the letter. "Owners are required to have lead test, if lead is found, owner to have lead abated by others before start of job by --------- Construction." So, he wasn't saying that he wouldn't do the job, only delaying it until we had the problem fixed. I'm calm now, but still think he should have presented that information right up front.

Uh, yeah, especially since he had you sign a contract before disclosing the lead test and abatement requirement. If you did find lead, you'd be locked into the contract, plus the cost of abatement! So yeah, he should have disclosed that to you before you signed on the dotted line. As it is, he has changed the terms of the contract after the fact. Does he allow you out of the contract if lead is discovered and you can't afford to have it abated?

Looked this up as I live in a neighborhood where ALL the houses were built before 1978 and I've never heard of anyone having to remove all the old lead paint when selling. Apparently, one must just inform the buyer that there may be lead paint in the house and be sure that there is no chipping/flaking paint inside or around the foundation. If there is, it must be washed and painted over. Some states take this law much further but my state does not. Whew!

I think most just require disclosure for selling - there's a standard form in CA for this too that every house I looked at had (and pretty much every place I've rented too). I'm pretty sure my contractors were like the other CA contractors mentioned that just ignored the lead - I'm not sure and it didn't occur to me to ask. With the 1920s there isn't really any point in testing, and certainly none of the contractors I talked to mentioned it! I did test myself for lead after having dust everywhere in our house though as I was worried after the fact...

Still, your GC should have absolutely discussed this prior to a signed contract. At any rate at least you know that he does follow the rules which there is something to be said for that. As long as you liked him and he had good references it seems likely that everything will be fine!

You do not have to remove the old paint. There are required disclosures upon the sale of an older property. Provided that the old paint is properly adhering to the walls and preferably covered with new paint it is not harmful to anyone. The point is when you do a demolition job. Demolition releases dust full of old lead paint into the atmosphere- that is a problem. In order to do the demolition correctly you have to water the debris down as you go so that the wet mess is scooped up and disposed of without releasing dust into the atmosphere to be breathed in by small children.