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Hello,

Any idea on how to remove bitumen (possibly paint) from a lead porch canopy.

The covering is flaking and I think a lot will scrape off fairly easily. However, some of it is still well attached. Do I need to take any special HSE precautions when working with the lead, especially if I am scraping... Here's a poor quality picture..

Cheers

can't help with question, but it looks lovely - nice bit of leadwork!!

It would have to stay painted where I live, or it would last 20 minutes before it was stolen!

bg

There's actually quite a lot of leadwork on the street and there have been a few cases of porches going missing.

When we bought the place our surveyor highlighted it might have been painted to seal a leak, but I hadn't considered it might have been done for theft prevention. Is painting actually a good deterrent?

.....but it's still where it's meant to be.........

Not sure what the best product would be in this case...

Parafin, and heating oil will work on bitumen, but would need a fair bit of work, and leave your porch smelling none to pleasant.

In all honesty though, with flaking like that, id guess it was perhaps paint.

If it is paint, i suppose some form of paint stripper would be useful, but have no idea of the effects it may or may not have on lead.

What you don't want to do, is use a blowtorch to soften it.

So, got hold of flaking bit... I think you're right - it's not bitumen. Not sure what it is though either.. any thoughts?

Also, I was planning on trying to remove as much as possible, probably by scraping. If I get it all off, then great. If I can't get everything off, I may look at repainting.

However, are there any issues with working on the lead I need to be conscious of? Don't want to give myself lead poisoning. I assume I just need a mouth & nose mask?

Cheers

Drink plenty of milk then use a patination oil mixed with a paraffin. about 10% paraffin if you have some, otherwise use it neat, and apply with a rag.

http://www.britishlead.co.uk/downloads/ ... n_data.pdf

It looks like some form of paint to me, I'd try a chemical stripper where it won't show or on a scrap piece of lead, scraping it off could lead to unsightly scratches on the lead.

The normal thing process for new lead is to treat it with a patination oil to tone down the bright colour and to prevent water run-off from the lead staining other items.

As far as your personal safety goes, I would say just wash your hands before you eat and drink anything if you've been handling it.

Some safety data here, http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg305.pdf