Sand colored floor tile from Medina, Ohio: 7,547 +/- 89 ppm Lead on the decorative/ glazed surface (primarily a concern with demolition)

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For those new to this 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 sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission) to test consumer goods for toxicants (specifically heavy metals — including Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, Antimony, and Arsenic). Tamara’s work was featured in Consumer Reports Magazine in February of 2023 (March 2023 print edition).

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July 15, 2021 — Thursday

XRF test results for the tile pictured. Tests were repeated multiple times to confirm the results and done for a minimum of 60 seconds each.

#1.) Glazed front of the tile

• Lead (Pb): 6,945 +/- 85 ppm
• Chromium (Cr): 1,021 +/- 144 ppm
• Manganese (Mn): 504 +/- 64 ppm
• Iron (Fe): 1,250 +/- 64 ppm
• Cobalt (Co): 67 +/- 25 ppm
• Copper (Cu): 278 +/- 19 ppm
• Zinc (Zn): 30,900 +/- 300 ppm
• Zirconium (Zr): 22,600 +/- 300 ppm
• Barium (Ba): 4,867 +/- 90 ppm
• no other metals detected
• Second test Lead level: 7,547 +/- 89 ppm

#2.) Reddish unglazed backside (bare clay) of the tile

• Lead (Pb): 232 +/- 9 ppm
• Manganese (Mn): 1,264 +/- 82 ppm
• Iron (Fe): 34,000 +/- 400 ppm
• Copper (Cu): 24 +/- 10 ppm
• Zinc (Zn): 541 +/- 17 ppm
• Zirconium (Zr): 926 +/- 12 ppm
• Barium (Ba): 502 +/- 15 ppm
• Bismuth (Bi): 31 +/- 4 ppm
• No other metals were detected.

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A primary concern with tile like this is demolition.
Here are some additional related articles to read:

• This article covers the demolition concern.
• This article discusses the impact of a potential low-level dust exposure (how little Lead in dust it takes to poison a child / a person).
• Here’s my overview write-up about the testing methodology employed on this site.
• This is a link to all of my articles with the tag “Tile.”
• Here’s another overview written about Lead in ceramics.
• This article shows you how to search the website efficiently — please watch the video.

Thanks for reading. Thank you for sharing my posts. As always, please let me know if you have any questions and I will do my best to answer them personally as soon as I have a moment (which may not be right away — but I will try!)

Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama