Lead Paint Removal in San Carlos

Title 17 sets the order of work for lead in San Carlos: certified inspection first, then removal, sealing or lead-safe repair. Redwood City Lead Paint Removal offers lead paint removal, abatement, testing, inspection and encapsulation for houses and small buildings from before 1978.

San Carlos is the older of our two neighbors. The 2020-2024 ACS has 76.2% of homes built before 1980, 47.3% before 1960 and 26.5% before 1950, with about 71% single-family houses and 32% renters, so owners are the ones deciding what happens to the paint.

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Close-up of an eave, fascia and window trim on an older wood-sided house with layers of white paint peeling and cracking

An example project

Twin wood window in a stucco wall, its white paint peeling to bare wood on the frame and center post

Peeling twin wood window stripped and kept in a 1940s stucco house

Example project

Home: 1940s stucco house in San Carlos
Original request: Keep the wood windows and get the peeling paint off the twin window
Testing: Lead paint on both sashes, the frame and the center post
Work: Both sashes taken out and stripped, the frame and post stripped in place, glass puttied and everything repainted
Stucco: Left uncut; the opening keeps its size
Estimated cost: $1,500

In this example, the owners of a 1940s stucco house in San Carlos like their wood windows and want to keep them. The twin window is the worst, with white paint peeling to bare wood on the sashes, the frame and the center post. A test shows lead paint on all of them.

See the full example and more projects

Lead paint services

Owner-occupied older houses

In a house from the 1920s to the 1970s, the first question is what is under the paint you plan to scrape or sand. Wood siding, window casings, garage doors and porch trim can all hold older coats. A test before the work starts shows which parts need precautions, and it is a better basis for a repaint bid than a guess about the house’s age. See lead paint inspection and testing for what the report covers.

Planning a remodel or addition

Kitchen updates, second-story additions and wall openings disturb paint wherever the saw goes. In California the EPA renovation rule covers paid work in pre-1978 homes, with CDPH’s own renovation rules still pending. Ask the San Carlos Building Division what an addition or window change needs. Our page on lead-safe renovation explains the lead side.

Inspection and testing

Testing in San Carlos goes through a CDPH-certified Inspector/Assessor, whose Form 8552 report reaches CDPH within 30 days. Buying a house built before 1978? The federal rules give the buyer 10 days to have it tested.

Removal and abatement

Certified Supervisors and Workers carry out abatement. Form 8551 goes to CDPH five days or more beforehand and is posted on site. Where houses sit close together, plan for the written notice to adjacent dwellings. Exterior lead paint removal explains the methods for siding and trim.

Sealing and interim controls

Stripping is not the only answer for sound paint inside a house. A coating or covering can seal it, though California classes a fix meant to last 20 years or more as abatement and a shorter one as an interim control with containment still required. Interior lead paint removal lays out the choices.

Older housing in San Carlos

The 2024 survey figures above come from the American Community Survey. Lead paint was sold for use in homes until the federal ban of 1978, so a house from the 1960s is not safely outside the rules just because it feels newer.

Preservation and permits

If your house is old and you plan exterior changes, ask the San Carlos Planning Division whether any historic preservation rules apply to the property.

County resources

San Carlos is in San Mateo County, whose Public Health department runs a childhood lead poisoning prevention program. In 2023 the county also announced a settlement-funded lead paint remediation program with Rebuilding Together Peninsula. Ask the county whether it currently takes applications and who qualifies.

Census Reporter: San Carlos housing (ACS 2020-2024)CDPH directory of county lead programs San Mateo County news release on lead paint remediation, 2023

Older porch with peeling painted railings and columns

Frequently asked questions

Does San Carlos have its own lead paint rules?

The state’s Title 17 rules, State Housing Law and the federal EPA rules apply, as they do across California, and San Mateo County Public Health runs a children’s lead program.

Do I need a permit to replace windows in San Carlos?

Ask the San Carlos Building Division before ordering windows. In a house built before 1978 the swap is EPA renovation work whatever the permit answer.

Who can test a San Carlos home for lead?

Who can test a San Carlos house? Only a CDPH-certified Inspector/Assessor produces a certified report, and a Project Monitor may do clearance alone. CDPH lists those certified, so you can check a name before hiring.

Next door, our Menlo Park page covers rental-heavy housing and landmark sites.

Request a free lead paint removal quote

Which surfaces are peeling or about to be disturbed? Send the address, build year and any recent repainting. We'll get back to you soon with an estimate or any questions we have. Estimates are free and there's no obligation.

Call (650) 649-4986