For those new to the Lead Safe Mama website:
Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her four sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005).
- Tamara owns and runs Lead Safe Mama, LLC — a unique community collaborative woman-owned small business for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety.
- Since July of 2022, the work of Lead Safe Mama, LLC has been responsible for five product recalls (FDA and CPSC).
- All test results reported on this website are science-based, accurate, and replicable.
- Please check out our press page to see some amazing coverage of our work so far this year!
When tested with an XRF instrument, the tile pictured here had the following readings (metals not listed were not detected, and tests were conducted for a minimum of 60-seconds each):
- Lead (Pb): 40 +/- 15 ppm
- Barium (Ba): 2,527 +/- 114 ppm
- Chromium (Cr): 278 +/- 134 ppm
- Zinc (Zn): 11,900 +/- 400 ppm
- Copper (Cu): 101 +/- 41 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 2,243 +/- 236 ppm
- Vanadium (V): 5,711 +/- 247 ppm
- Titanium (Ti): 11,800 +/- 500 ppm
- Zirconium (Zr): 3,939 +/- 116 ppm
- Cobalt (Co): 251 +/- 96 ppm
- Manganese (Mn): 859 +/- 293 ppm
Test results are only accurate and true for the EXACT specific tile pictured that I tested. Please realize that — with glazed ceramics especially — glazing and base ceramic formulations can change from time-to-time, which means a later or earlier version of this same tile could possible have different test results for the presence (or absence) of toxicants. That said, IF the tile is generally the same (similar year of manufacture, same pattern, serial number, and brand, for example) it is a reasonable educated guess to conclude the XRF test results for that product could likely be expectedly similar to what Lead Safe Mama reports here.
For the ceramic tiles I have tested, the readings above are for the glazed/ decorated surface of the tile (not the back/base ceramic of the tile). If not otherwise noted, I also tested the back side of the ceramic tile (the unglazed base ceramic) and found Lead levels to be either “ND” (non-detect) or far below the surface level of Lead on the tile — an indicator that the Lead is definitely in the glaze/ decorative design elements.
Please note that new, modern tile is currently NOT REGULATED for total Lead content (nor for other toxicants), and you can not make assumptions like “it’s new, so it should be Lead-free.” That said, manufacturers are getting smart, using less Lead, and making their manufacturing processes more transparent — so it is always possible to make an inquiry with the manufacturer about the presence or absence of toxicants like Lead, Mercury, Cadmium, and Arsenic (depending on the manufacture or vendor, they may or may not know but it’s worth a call).
Please note: In my experience, man-made items — manufactured glass and ceramic tiles — are likely to have at least some Lead. Natural materials (stone, marble, slate), on the other hand, are unlikely to test positive for any heavy metals.
The main concern with finding toxicants in any tile is the concern for dust created during demolition or remodeling, and breakage or damage — whether from run-of-the-mill accidents (or disasters, such as fire, fallen trees, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc). It also raises a concern over the need to observe responsible/ strict manufacturing practices to avoid potential worker exposure to toxicants during the fabrication process.
As always, thank you for reading and sharing our work.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
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