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Citizen Science Project: Is
Magnetite a Lead-Safety Solution to
Leadlighting?
By Grandma Lead, aka Elizabeth O’Brien, BSc, Grad Dip
Health Edn; Lead Scientist and Lead Advisor, The LEAD
Group Inc, Australia, June 2024
In 2020 when the mother of a child with an
elevated blood lead level purchased a LEAD
Group Kit and collected a surface dust wipe
sample from the floor below the front leadlight
door (pictured), the result was astronomical so
the father immediately replaced the front door
and the child’s blood lead level began to fall.
It was only after that case that I discovered Magnetite (pictured at right, in place over each of the
leadlight panels) and wondered: Is Magnetite a Lead-Safety Solution to Leadlighting even though it is
designed to solve noise and heat insulation problems?
2020 Volcano Art Prize (VAP) Entry.
Title: Through the looking glass.
Lead-Safety Message: Children are the future and they
may be at risk of lead poisoning from common
household objects and furniture. This beautiful rose
coloured leadlight glass door on the left produces dust
with an extremely high lead content of 27,000 µg/m2.
Through a simple dust wipe it was determined that this
glass door was unsafe. The LEAD Group recommended
to get the lead dust down to 12 µg/m2. I did this by
simply changing my front door to one without leaded
glass. I can rest easy knowing my kids are safer thanks
to The LEAD Group.
https://volcanoartprize.com/portfolio-item/through-
the-looking-glass/
So when a LEAD Group Kit purchaser receives a
very high dust wipe lead result near lead patterned windows or leadlighting, I provide the usual wet-
cleaning advice, but I also highly recommend either replacement of the leaded windows/doors with
non-leaded windows, (which can still be beautiful eg see https://www.axessglassonline.com/ and use
LEAD Action News Volume 22 Number 2 June 2024 60 of 73
the site’s search function to find DesignLam - non-lead / lead-
replacement stained glass, produced and distributed by Axess Glass
Products and their suppliers throughout Australia), or, if keeping the
leadlighting and it is child-or pet-accessible exteriorly, add a layer of glass
on the outside. If they are fixed windows (non-opening) I recommend
adding another layer of glass on the inside but if they are opening
windows (for which triple glazing would be too heavy), I now recommend
Magnetite clear acrylic on the inside. You can obtain free quotes for
supply and installation of Magnetite at
https://www.magnetite.com.au/request-a-quote.html or by phoning
1300738763 [1300 RETROFIT] in Australia. The product can even be
installed on circular windows!
More recently, I’ve realised that LEAD Group Kit purchasers who have
high dust wipe lead results in child-inaccessible areas underneath
leadlighting – is the perfect situation for some Citizen Science!
Anyone who has a very high LEAD Group Kit dust wipe lead result under
leadlighting in a situation where there is no chance of child or pet access
to the dust is eligible to participate in this new Citizen Science Project: Is
Magnetite a Lead-Safety Solution to Leadlighting? The LEAD Group is
prepared to post Magnetite Citizen Science Project participants 5 free
Ghost Wipes per location with the instructions for collecting dust wipe
samples under the leadlighting and to pay for the lead analysis of those
samples IF you decide to go ahead with having Magnetite clear acrylic
installed on the child-facing side/s of your leadlight window / door and
follow the steps below to demonstrate whether that is a sufficient
(potentially fabulous!) lead-exposure mitigation solution:
1. Take a photo of the dust wipe collection area and add that to the Chain of Custody form we’ll
also provide, along with a record of your best recollection of the time between the most recent
clean of the windowsill and the collection of the sample which resulted in these two
astronomical lead dust wipe near leadlighting results, and a description of whether or for how
many hours a day the leadlighting is partially or completely in sunshine.
2. Before the Magnetite is installed, do a thorough wet-clean of the nearby windowsill/s, floor/s
and surrounding surfaces then use the first free Ghost Wipe to collect the “baseline” windowsill
and/or floor dust wipe sample. Complete the Chain of Custody form we will provide with a
description of the frequency of opening and closing of the window. Post the sample to SAL for
analysis and my comments on the result.
LEAD Action News Volume 22 Number 2 June 2024 61 of 73
3. After the Magnetite is installed, don’t clean the windowsill or nearby floor for one month, then
use the second free Ghost Wipe to collect the “one-month without cleaning after Magnetite
installed” sample. Complete the Chain of Custody (CofC) form we will provide, with:
● a note that this is the one-month without cleaning after Magnetite installed sample
● a description of frequency of opening and closing of the window / door and
● the fact the windowsill / floor was not cleaned since the date the Magnetite was installed,
plus
● a description of whether or for how many hours a day the leadlighting is partially or
completely in sunshine.
● Post the sample to SAL for analysis and my comments on the result.
4. Repeat Step 3 at the appropriate dates for the:
● “3-months without cleaning after Magnetite installed” sample
● “6-months without cleaning after Magnetite installed” sample
● “12-months without cleaning after Magnetite installed” sample
Note, if you find that you can’t not-clean, please collect the 3-, 6- and 12-month samples
immediately prior to your I-must-clean moment, and describe that situation on the CofC.
Thank you for considering being a part of this vital Citizen Science Project: Is Magnetite a Lead-Safety
Solution to Leadlighting? If you decide not to participate yourself, please consider asking your family,
friends, work and social media contacts who have leadlighting if they’d be prepared to pay for the
LEAD Group Kit to obtain the initial dust wipe result, to determine if their lead result warrants that they
be advised to overcome this largely unknown leadlighting lead dust hazard before it leads to lead
exposure of more young children or pets!
An example of how little-known leadlighting is as a cause of indoor lead dust contamination, is that the
28 March 2024 Sowers et al analysis United States house dust Pb concentrations are influenced by soil,
paint, and house age: insights from a national survey at https://www.nature.com/articles/s41370-024-
00655-0.pdf re: vacuum dust lead concentrations in 346 homes participating in the American Health
Homes Survey II (AHHS II), a US survey (2018-2019), did not even mention leadlighting as a source of
interior house dust lead.
