# Wallpaper removal health concerns



## Pete Martin the Painter (Nov 8, 2012)

I am putting in a bid to remove wallpaper from a really old house 1780. Wallpaper seems really old. Someone told me that some of the old stuff can have some nasty stuff in it...arsenic and lead. How concerned should I be about this possibility? Should I be wearing a good mask?

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## Fman (Aug 20, 2011)

Never heard that. I know removing old wallpaper _will drive you nuts_ but I'm unaware of any heath hazards. Maybe wear a dust mask to be safe?


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## Pete Martin the Painter (Nov 8, 2012)

Fman said:


> Never heard that. I know removing old wallpaper _will drive you nuts_ but I'm unaware of any heath hazards. Maybe wear a dust mask to be safe?


I had never heard of it before, but wanted to check to see if there is any truth to it.

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## jennifertemple (Oct 30, 2011)

I would take precautions such as masks and gloves.

Several green, copper-based pigments were being produced in the late 18th and early 19th centuries that came about by the chemical investigation of new elements. The Swedish chemist Scheele manufactured a green pigment of copper arsenite in 1775. This pigment was named Scheele's green and was discovered during investigations into arsenic. Details of the discovery were not published until 1778 by the Stockholm Academy of Sciences.165 To manufacture the green pigment some potash and arsenic oxide were dissolved in water and heated; then the solution was added slowly to a warm solution of copper sulphate to precipitate copper arsenite. Scheele warned of the toxic nature of the green substance, but it was accepted as an artist's pigment, being patented in Britain in 1812.

Efforts to improve upon Scheele's green produced another highly toxic green pigment known as emerald green. This was copper acetoarsenite and was first manufactured commercially by Russ and Sattler in 1814. Emerald green was made by dissolving the pigment verdigris in warm vinegar, then adding a solution of arsenic oxide slowly to form a green precipitate. The precipitate was then boiled in fresh vinegar to obtain the bright green colour characteristic of emerald green. The pigment was a very popular colour but had only limited use in art due to its tendency to turn black on exposure to heat, and because of its highly toxic nature. Emerald green was widely used in wallpaper printing. A number of fatalities caused the poisonous nature of the pigment to be fully realized, and it then began to double as a highly effective rat poison in the home. On a slightly more sinister note, emerald green was featured in several murder cases, and unbelievably was still in use until the 1960s! 

Cadmiums and Carmin were also used & toxic (Reds & yellows)


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## Pete Martin the Painter (Nov 8, 2012)

jennifertemple said:


> I would take precautions such as masks and gloves.
> 
> Several green, copper-based pigments were being produced in the late 18th and early 19th centuries that came about by the chemical investigation of new elements. The Swedish chemist Scheele manufactured a green pigment of copper arsenite in 1775. This pigment was named Scheele's green and was discovered during investigations into arsenic. Details of the discovery were not published until 1778 by the Stockholm Academy of Sciences.165 To manufacture the green pigment some potash and arsenic oxide were dissolved in water and heated; then the solution was added slowly to a warm solution of copper sulphate to precipitate copper arsenite. Scheele warned of the toxic nature of the green substance, but it was accepted as an artist's pigment, being patented in Britain in 1812.
> 
> ...


So mask and gloves it is!

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## CApainter (Jun 29, 2007)

Jennifer provided a pretty good safety data analysis given there's likely no SDS available for the material you're handling. I've taken many hazardous material training courses. And the common theme is "When in doubt, assume the material you're handling is hazardous". PPE is relatively cheap.


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## stedeerok (4 mo ago)

Pete Martin the Painter said:


> I am putting in a bid to remove wallpaper from a really old house 1780. Wallpaper seems really old. Someone told me that some of the old stuff can have some nasty stuff in it...arsenic and lead. How concerned should I be about this possibility? Should I be wearing a good mask? Sent from my SM-A600U using Tapatalk


 Actually, you should buy a high quality respirator. The kind with changeable cartridges. This my save your life. Arsenic is highly toxic And could kill you if inhaled ingested or absorbed. Therefor wash before you eat and shower thoroughly when through for the day. Bag up the contents and bring them to the local landfill. Inorganic arsenic came from earth, send it back. We've worked with arsenic for years in the coal fired power industry. It's no joke. But illness from it definitely is preventable. Open the windows, exhaust the air and rent a clean air machine used for industrial jobs. You'll be glad you did . Taking the worry out of a job makes the job go much faster. Being alive when it's done makes it worth the time.


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