Guides / Decision guide
Plan removal and reinstallation safety: older paint and range brackets
When EPA's lead-safe renovation rule can reach cabinet removal in pre-1978 homes, and why a range anti-tip bracket belongs in the reinstallation scope.
What is not established
- Whether lead-safe rules apply depends on the home's age and the work; no home is assessed here.
- The CPSC report is from 2011.
- This guide is not a safety inspection.
Older painted surfaces
EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting Program requires a certified firm for paid work that disturbs painted surfaces in homes built before 1978. Under the regulation, the minor-repair threshold is six square feet of painted surface per interior room, and renovation includes removal of building components. Cabinets are not named; removal that disturbs more than that area of painted wall is an application of the definition, so ask whether the contractor is a certified firm.
Range anti-tip brackets
A 2011 CPSC staff report says most ranges ship with an anti-tip bracket secured to the floor or an adjacent wall or cabinet at installation, and that unsecured ranges with weight on the open door are the common tipover factor, with children and older adults most affected. Ask who will secure the bracket when the range goes back in.
Original paraphrase of EPA and CPSC material. No current CPSC page on range brackets was found during the research.
Sources: EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting Program; CPSC staff report on range tipovers
Sources
External references are provided for research context. A source link does not indicate enrollment, endorsement, or availability in your area.
- EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting Program, accessed
- CPSC staff report on range tipovers, accessed