Congratulation to Matt Brasby and his retirement from Brasby Construction!

On Friday, January 9, friends, family, and coworkers gathered for a surprise retirement party for Matt. Kathy, his wife, told him that she was taking him out for dinner, but they had to stop by the church first. Inside waited the party with party guests and supper ready to go.

During the company Christmas Party, Matt shared facts related to his 35 year career for a fun game of trivia.

Matt started Brasby Construction in 1977 and has worked hard to build the company. Since its creation, Matt has installed 5,702,400 grain bin bolts, 129,600 grain bin sheets, for a total grain storage capacity of 29,551,200 bushels.

Brasby Construction will continue under the new management of Nathan Brasby, Matt’s oldest son.

Since 2010 the EPA has required all contractors who may disturb lead-based paint to become certified renovators. This involves taking an 8-hr class and doing some hands-on specialized activities.  One of the activities we did was learning how to test for lead-based paint.

Lead-based paint was only produced until 1978.  If your home was built prior to or around this time the paint in and on your home may contain lead.  Lead based paint is only dangerous when it is disturbed, so if you are planning a painting or remodeling project that can disturb some old paint, you should have it tested.

This is a simple test that even homeowners can do on their own. Lead tests are available just about anywhere you can buy paint. Testing for lead involves exposing all layers of paint or stain by cutting a small v into the material being tested.

Then a chemical compound is applied to the exposed paint and within 30 seconds will change color if lead is present.  There are 2 basic kinds of lead tests.  One uses a tube and swab, the other is a cloth that needs activated by water.  Here are some examples of what the cloth tests look like.

If you are doing a lead test and discover that lead is present, here are some things you should know.  Lead poisoning usually happens through hand-to-mouth activities.  Doing a test does disturb a little bit of the lead-based paint, so use some caution and clean up carefully after the test.  Baby wipes work really well at capturing the dust on windowsills and can just be thrown away to keep the lead contained and keep your family safe.  After doing a lead test, wash your hands especially before eating, drinking or smoking. If you did discover lead, hire a contractor who has been trained on how to contain lead during renovation.