The Traditional Paint Forum

ISSUE 16

SIXTEENTH ISSUE

DECEMBER 2008

EXTERIOR PAINTS: THE ‘END’ OF LEAD PAINT PRODUCTION?

“The last remaining European manufacturer of white lead pigment has announced that they are ceasing production from December 2008.”

Behind this simple announcement lies an appalling implication. The commercial decision to stop white lead manufacture was almost certainly taken in the light of the latest chemical safety regulations to come out of the Brussels known as the REACH regulations. This stands for the
Regulation, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals regulations and in simple terms they require any manufacturer or importer of a substance to firstly register it with the EU authorities and then to carry out an assessment of its health and environmental implications. These are then submitted to the EU who decides what additional precautions or restrictions should be applied.

As you can imagine this is not a cheap exercise and particularly in this financial climate, many manufacturers, are reluctant to commit themselves to large research expenditure when there is no guarantee that at the end of this long-winded and expensive process, the substance will still be allowed to be used or sold. White Lead has what might charitably be called a chequered history as far as health and the environment is concerned and would be an obvious target for increased restrictions on its use.

Well if the last European supplier has decided to stop, why not import it from China? Alas the same regulations apply for importation of chemicals and paint manufacturers would not be able to seek supplies elsewhere without going through the same hoops and expense as the manufacturer

So when the present stocks of white lead pigment run out in a year or eighteen months time, lead paints will become a part of history.

This sudden development raises a number of issues and questions for those bodies that have the responsibility for managing and maintaining our built heritage as there is no obvious replacement for lead paints.

White lead mixed in linseed oil was the paint of choice for many hundreds of years despite all the problems and drawbacks of white lead – its toxicity for starters. This was because when ground in raw or refined linseed oil, white lead dried to a flexible and elastic coating that had superb adhesion and moved with wood to give a paint of outstanding durability and protection. It was for this very practical reason as well as lead’s unique appearance and texture that attempts by the EU to ban its use in the 1990s were strongly resisted by all the UK conservation bodies and led to the granting of the present derogation by the UK Government (Another side effect of this campaign was the founding of the TPF). Now it seems that an attack from a different avenue has achieved what failed before.

With the disappearance of lead paints, the specifier is left with some unenviable choices. He could use conventional exterior paints (many of which are themselves likely to disappear in their present form in 2010 under the new VOC regulations) or perhaps linseed oil paints – but without white lead as a pigment, they do not have the same performance, reliability and track record in the UK. He could even launch out into the brave unknown and use the modern high performance acrylic emulsion coatings. None of these are a very enviable choice and we haven’t even started to consider the compatibility of these alternatives over existing lead paint surfaces.

There is no doubt to my mind that with the potential disappearance of lead paints from the market in a matter of months, the users and specifiers of traditional paints are faced with one of the most significant events in our lifetimes. We at the TPF will be working hard to try to find a way around this severe loss to our repertoire of solutions to protecting and decorating our heritage and working with other bodies to look at and evaluate alternative materials.

The news of white lead came hard on the heels of another attempt by the EU to make our lives more difficult. Following what has been described by some as a very shoddy and suspect piece of “research” there was a European Commission proposal to ban the use of DCM in paint removers. DCM or Methylene Chloride is the active (and very effective) ingredient of 90% of all paint removers sold in the UK, including such brand names as Nitromors.

Attempts to slip this through provoked a concerted reaction from all sectors of the painting and conservation industries not help by bland assurances that alternative eco-friendly materials were used in many other European countries and were “just as effective”. Whilst DCM paint strippers need to be handled with care and suitable precautions, I do not believe that there has been any serious incident involving them for many years.

Following vigorous representations by all sectors to MPs and MEPs, it is hoped that the UK Government will seek a derogation for the continued use of DCM-containing paint removers under proper H&S and Environmental controls, but there is considerable pressure from other EU counties. If you haven’t registered your concerns with your local MEPs please do so now.

New Members and Members who have not yet renewed their subscription for this year may do so by Standing Order. This will ensure that you retain your membership and the saving of time to the committee will be greatly appreciated. You can find the Standing Order form and instructions at http://www.traditionalpaintforum.org.uk/pages/3contact/mship.html

The latest copy of Traditional Paint News, Volume 2 No 3, has been published and is now available. Members who paid their 2007 subscription should have received their complimentary copies by now. Copies of this and all the earlier journals are available and details are given on the website. If you want to purchase more than one copy let us know and perhaps we can do a deal!

Conference 2009
Following our sell-out Conference at Sir John Soane’s Museum in April, we plan to arrange the next Conference in autumn 2009 on the theme of “Painting Metal”. As well as looking at the various materials and techniques that are needed to coat the many different types of metal, we also hope to have practical displays of gilding, bronzing and other faux-metal effects.

4th International APR Conference.
The UK is hosting the next International Architectural Paint Research at Lincoln in 2010. More information from Dr Rachel Faulding at rfaulding@lincoln.ac.uk

Les Brooke Annual Lecture: The Forensics of Art
University of Bath, 18th February 2009. An ongoing collaborative multi-disciplinary programme to develop and catalogue quality data on historical pigments and the technology to provide the definitive picture of the field. The project combines the science of colourants with the preservation and authentication of works of art. For further details please contact : -
Dr J Patrick N Haxel, Tel 01761 232 2080
Email: jpatrickn.h4xell@virgin.net

“I recently bought a nice 1825 flat in the Edinburgh New Town and when the walls were stripped we found a strange pattern and a black layer on the wall. As can be seen from the photograph, the pattern seems at first to be a very large ashlar effect, but what interests me is the black deposit. It seems to be a pitch / tar deposit as it softened with heat (a wallpaper stripper) and has a faint tarry smell. Another strange thing is that this pattern and material only occurs on walls with a fireplace and even then only on some of them – out of four rooms with fireplaces only three have this pattern?

Have any of you seen this before? Is it a paint effect or was it some “patent” wallcovering that had strange but useful properties?”

“This was a proprietary tar-backed paper that was frequently applied to chimneybreasts to overcome the staining that is often encountered. When rain comes down the chimney it often leads to tar-like deposits bleeding through to the plaster. A tar-backed paper acted in a similar fashion to an aluminium paint/primer in preventing the bleed-through” (PB)

“It looks like pitch paper to me, this was often applied to damp walls or walls where water stains were coming through.
It came in pieces 36" x 18" or thereabouts and these were often stuck up with a strong casein based paste prior to the hanging of wallpaper or lining paper which would then be painted.
Chimney walls were often problematic as they suffered from condensation and water ingress from above and the sooty deposits often migrated to the plaster and were very difficult to get rid of hence the pitch paper” (PH)

And that is just what it was. After thorough washing down, the wall was sealed with a stain blocker and the papered and painted with no adverse results to date.

If any reader has come across a curious problem or material, please let us know so we can pass on this knowledge

And finally - an apology for any lapses in communication between the TPF and our members and friends. We are still alive and kicking and trying hard to provide interesting and informative events and publications. Please contact us with any comments, questions or suggestions.

Please note: Each issue of SMUDGE is written, in turn, by a member of the Traditional Paint Forum, subject to the control of the Committee. The information is provided in good faith. It is not necessarily the view of other members of the Forum; it is offered only as a contribution to the ongoing debate.