XRF Testing

#LeadedMugs: The Volunteer
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#LeadedMugs: The Volunteer

Souvenir Mug: 101 ppm lead & 434 ppm chromium. Most souvenir or promotional mugs are very high lead!  If you have an interest in learning more about these posts (likely because you are new to my site!) please check out this post and this post for a start!  Thanks for visiting! For lead-free mug choices click…

Green (Recycled?) Glass Mug: 431 ppm Lead. [For context: 100 ppm Lead is considered unsafe in toys.]
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Green (Recycled?) Glass Mug: 431 ppm Lead. [For context: 100 ppm Lead is considered unsafe in toys.]

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When tested with an XRF instrument this clear glass mug (with green tint, probably recycled glass) had the following readings: Lead (Pb): 431 ppm Mercury (Hg): Negative/Non-Detect (ND) Cadmium (Cd): Negative/Non-Detect (ND) Glassware with a tint often has at least some level of Lead. Recycled glassware also often has at least some level of Lead.  If…

Calypso “Carefree” saucer by Syracuse: > 100,000 ppm (10%) Lead. All Syracuse china seems to be high Lead.
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Calypso “Carefree” saucer by Syracuse: > 100,000 ppm (10%) Lead. All Syracuse china seems to be high Lead.

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In my travels I often visit with people (either in their homes or they come to me) and test their things for lead.  I love the opportunity to meet with families in person and to give them tools to make their homes safer. If I find leaded dishes in their homes, I offer advice to…

#AskTamara: What do you use to test for Lead? Can I do this myself at home? How much does it cost?
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#AskTamara: What do you use to test for Lead? Can I do this myself at home? How much does it cost?

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Originally written on December 19, 2016 Updated, December 11, 2019 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,…

“S’Nope!” – The post I wrote in December of 2016 when Snopes first attempted to discredit my work.
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“S’Nope!” – The post I wrote in December of 2016 when Snopes first attempted to discredit my work.

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Originally published: 12/3/2016, 7:15 a.m. This blog-post is in response to a piece by a contributing writer to Snopes. In this piece the author questions the FACT that there is an unsafe level of lead in vintage Pyrex items – and asserts that potential harm that could be caused by these leaded items is “unproven”…