Lead (Pb) testing

[VerbaVolant]

Not long ago I purchased a no-name carbon steel pan mainly for frying eggs and, for some reason, I started to wonder about Pb contamination. Since reading about this (see Thomas Midgley Jr "contribution" to improving quality of life) I became interested in how to test for Pb contamination at the homeowner, amateurish level.
Oh, I know why I was concerned. When I first washed the pan the water became really dark and it took a bit of scrubbing and rinsing before cleared.

I am curious if anyone did a serious test for Pb contamination and, maybe, even suggest better way of testing.

I used the test swabs found on Amazon and none of my pots/pans and glazed pottery show any signs of Pb contamination. I did test on a Lead sinker as control and they work. Not sure how they work when Pb is present in lower levels.

Any experience with this?

Activated swab:

Merely seconds after rubbing on the lead sinker:

Please share your experience with testing for lead contamination.

 

[abies]

When our daughter was born I got pretty concerned about lead in various things she might get her hands on, so started testing with a test kit similar to that one (it was different, a brand recommended somewhere I don't recall). I don't remember many things testing positive except for some brass keys that I had for work, which gave a weak positive reading.

I've had water sent in for lead testing too (negative).

I do wonder about it a lot, and suspect it's more common than people realize. Nowadays you have to worry about other forms of heavy metal contamination as well.

FWIW, carbon steel pans are often sent coated in wax or other material to prevent rusting during storage and shipping.

 

[The Roof Seal]

I would be doubtful that an uncoated carbon steel pan would have lead in it. I have heard about lead contamination being an issue in locally made aluminium cookware made from recycled aluminium in Africa.

 

[kcb5150]

It's worth testing vintage cast iron cookware, especially smaller pans and the muffin trays for lead. I think lead was an ingredient in stove black so all those old pieces with heat rings are probably worth testing for cross contamination.

 

[Tirvine]

If you have most anything more than a couple of decades old and it has paint, especially red paint, it is a good idea to test for lead. Same for crystal even if new.

 

[Multum in parvo]

Not sure if this is an issue in the US but old buildings (>50 years) in Europe still have lead piping to a great extent. Not a big issue if you use tap water daily but a problem with occasional/weekend use and stagnant water in the pipes.