Scitus Know Understand - 90 Count Lead Test Kit for Paint, Ceramics and More - Fast, Accurate Results - Make Your Home Lead Safe - Home Lead Test Kit - Activate with Household Vinegar

Refinishing kitchen cabinets on my own and I was reasonable confident that there's no lead, but my house is old, and I can't be sure. (I think the kitchen rebuilt in the 90s, and there's not a lot of paint layers, but i really don't know.) 16$ seemed like a reasonable price for some extra piece of mind. I've read the home kits aren't always accurate, and the only downside would be what to do with a potential false positive, or difficult to interpret color change. The test is easy to use, dip the Q-tip like swab in vinegar, and rub it on the surface for 30 seconds. Then compare to the color chart. (It fades from yellow to a dark pink red) I tested several areas, and the swab stayed an unambiguous yellow. So far so good. My negative control was the clean floor. Next - I tested some solder wire with lead, and it turned a definitive pinkish red. I only gave 4 stars for accuracy, because i don't know for sure. Overall, if you are looking for a cheap, quick, and easy confirmation that your project is probably safe, this is a great kit. I'd probably go with a professional for a major renovation if you had serious concerns that there was lead.

Tested this kit on multiple surfaces, including some I suspected had traces of lead, and it worked as advertised. Results showed within 30 seconds, and I could easily confirm the presence of lead. The instructions were clear, and with 30 swabs included, I had more than enough to test all the areas I was concerned about. This kit is a "must-have" for anyone looking to identify lead hazards quickly and accurately. Note that lead is NOT only on walls and paint.. A lot of products coming from overseas are testing positive for traces of lead, and inside homes, there may be lead on plumbing, paint, ceramic tiles and glazes in some homes or pottery especially with decorative glazes may contain lead... Plastics/Rubber/Silicone/Electronics etc.. Furniture and antique toys, and get this > Bathtubs, it turns out that older porcelain-coated bathtubs can have lead in the glaze and leak lead over time... In addition: Electronics and Cables: Some older electronics and cables (like power cords) contain lead in their coatings. If in doubt, CHECK IT.. This kit will do that... Good luck.

I bought these to test multiple painted surfaces in my pre-1978 home, including old basement cabinetry left by a previous owner. The "SCITUS Know" swabs alerted me to the presence of lead in dark green paint on a wooden cabinet, but could not be used on badly weathered outdoors paint on a metal shed that was a similar hue (they only lifted the green paint color from the surface). Not being able to use these on weathered paint on a metal shed (ferrous metal) prompted me to buy a different, more expensive EPA and Wisconsin Department of Human Services approved test that uses paint chips. The more expensive EPA approved test confirmed the presence of lead in the paint on the wooden cabinet, was able to successfully test chips of the weathered exterior paint on the metal shed (negative) that the "SCITUS Know" test merely transferred large amounts of pigment from, and it further detected lead in a white painted cabinet and set of wooden shelves in my basement that the SCITUS product did *not* identify as leaded. Thus, I believe the product may lack adequate sensitivity to lead, and that seems like a problem if your goal is to ensure safety in your home. The bottom line--do not use the results of these tests as an assurance of safety before DIY remodeling/repainting or bringing old painted furniture or toys into spaces with your kids. You and your family may not actually be lead safe based on a negative SCITUS test if they lack sensitivity. However, it seems like a positive test (in my experience) is most likely accurate. Edit 5/7/2024: I am pleased to report an apparent improvement in performance (details below). With my newest batch of test swabs I *DID* get a concordant positive result on the white painted cabinet and basement shelf. Previously these items registered as negative on the SCITUS test (used according to manufacturer directions) while the more expensive and risky EPA approved paint chip test was positive. Edit 5/9/2024: I've updated my rating to 4 stars given the apparent improvement in performance. I may update further if the manufacturer chooses to offer more detailed instructions regarding swab saturation. I note that the instructions for the SCITUS test do not indicate precisely how much vinegar one should use to wet the swab or a recommended technique. I encourage the manufacturer to make these directions more explicit to standardize the testing procedure. With my repeated testing--which yielded results that matched the EPA paint chip test--I held and twirled the swab in about 1.5 inches of white vinegar in a clean, transparent plastic cup for 5 - 8 seconds. This was a longer saturation time than before--previously I merely dipped the swab for 1 - 2 seconds until it turned yellow. Perhaps it makes a difference if the swab is well saturated. This kit is a very good value, and I highly recommend it to quickly and affordably screen painted surfaces--but not to make potentially life and health altering decisions affecting young children. In my case, I have been able to use positives to find items to discard ASAP (e.g. old furniture and wood with mystery paint left by previous owner), or to handle with care and encapsulate or replace ASAP (garage window frames, underside portions of a staircase). It would not be safe to make remodeling/repainting decisions affecting young children based on the negatives, but the swabs are still very useful for finding some problem areas.

These lead test swabs are very simple to use and made it easy to quickly check different areas of my house for possible lead. The color change was easy enough to interpret, which helped me determine whether lead appeared to be present without making the process confusing. One thing to know before using them is that you need white vinegar to activate the swab, so make sure you have some on hand beforehand. Overall, they were quick, convenient, and useful for checking older surfaces around the house.

Tried the other brand that you only get a couple in the package for nearly $20, and have to break glass tubes inside the cardboard etc etc. Half came dried up, and hurt my hands breaking glass tubes, and the only way to get your money worth was squeezing liquid into a bowl and using your own qtips to get multi uses out of one tube. This other product..... Love them!!!! Come with the dried solution on them bundled in like a pair twisted...... Similar to Snap Pops on the fourth of July. Do in tiny bit of vinegar and rub on your item. I used multiple sides on different items to get even more out of them when no lead was present on the first item. Great price, less mess, less hassle and easy to use!!! It is not easy sometimes to determine the colors difference, but can tell you from experience, when it finds lead, it gets dark. Definitely know when you find lead. Will buy these from now on!!! Highly recommend!!

When it comes to ensuring the safety of your home environment, lead testing becomes a top priority. As a registered nurse, I work with many children who have high blood lead levels and thought these would be a great option to recommend to parents to test their home environments and commonly- sourced lead items such as pottery and painted ceramic. These at-home lead tests offer a simple and straightforward testing process. By wetting the provided swab with vinegar and rubbing it against the surface in question, you can determine if lead is present. A color change to pink indicates the presence of lead, while the swab retaining its original color signifies its absence. This straightforward method makes it easy for anyone to perform a quick lead test without requiring specialized knowledge or equipment. The Limitation: Does NOT Work on Ceramic Surfaces!!! One significant drawback worth mentioning is that these lead tests do not work effectively on ceramic surfaces. If your intention is to test ceramic mugs, pottery, or other ceramic items, these tests may not provide accurate results. It's essential to note that the tests are primarily designed for non-ceramic surfaces, such as testing for lead paint on walls or other non-porous materials. Recommendation: Ideal for Non-Ceramic Surfaces While these lead tests may not be suitable for ceramic items, they are still highly recommended for testing non-ceramic surfaces, especially when checking for lead paint or other potential lead-containing materials. The ease of use and relatively accurate results make them a valuable tool for homeowners concerned about lead exposure.

Let me just start off by saying this product is a life saver. My 3 year old had to have his lead/hgb test for preschool. Well, his came back high! Me being the over reacting parent i got online and ordered this product, before his retesting, and I’m so glad I did. I tested every wall/window seal in our house. All came back negative so, at first I though maybe I was doing it wrong, bc something has to be causing it in our home bc he never stays anywhere else. Well shortly after going over all the surfaces In my house it hit me, I didn’t check the back porch. Low and behold I swabbed an old cabinet that was chipping and IMMEDIATELY it turned bright pink. MY HEART SANK. But I was soo relieved to have found the cause of the potentially dangerous outcome if I hadn’t. Anyways, out of all the other kits this one was buy far the absolute best value, you can test many surfaces and get immediate results, and super easy to use. I’m beyond thankful I found this kit and we’ll be buying it again to retest everything after we get the porch taken care of.

These are great! I've used them a few times now to test everything from dishes, glasses, cups etc. They do really work. I've had to throw out some things that I got at garage sales. Now I know why they were being sold at garage sales. Lol. Basically, pour a little bit of white vinegar into a small cup or glass. Then dip the tip into the white vinegar. When the tip of the test strip turns orange color, then you can begin wiping whatever surface you're trying to test. It works best on smooth surfaces like glass, crystal, porcelain, ceramic pottery, etc. It does not work too good on rough or coarse surfaces since those will act like sandpaper, and obliterate the delicate tip of the test strip. I wouldn't even call it a test strip, it's more like a tester stick that resembles a q-tip. There's a cottony type material on the end. That's the business part, where you will touch the surfaces of whatever you are trying to test. Anyways, it does work, and you'll know when the tip of the tester turns a red color, or purple. If you really want to know yours, and the one that you receive is working, sacrifice one of them out of the pack, and use it on some fishing weights that you know are lead.

I bought these because a slightly less expensive brand gave me false positives. These swabs appear to be significantly more reliable and less likely to generate false positives. I tried a head-to-head test with city water, suburban water, and distilled water that I made myself with a home distiller. With the other swabs that are activated by water, I received a positive result from both city and suburban water. This occurred just by dipping the swabs in the water prior to testing for lead. Both city and suburban waters turned strongly pink and the distilled water remained yellow. The residue in the distiller was also strongly positive for lead with a strong magenta result. With these swabs, which are activated by white vinegar, all three waters remained yellow and there was no indication of lead. I also tested various non-ferrous metals with known compositions such as brass, bronze, and copper. All were negative, as they should be, with these swabs. With the other, water activated, swabs, several samples of these metals were falsely positive. Both types of swabs were strongly positive with known samples of lead. These swabs are accurate, according to my testing.

Lo compré para ver si unas sillas metálicas pintadas llevaban plomo. Probé primero con algo que sí llevaba plomo y lo detecta perfectamente.

Good value for a reliable lead tester.

Deze gekocht omdat we veel verf moesten verwijderen in ons huis. We vermoede dat er lood in zat dus geprobeerd met deze wattenstaafjes te testen. Heel duidelijk was het resultaat niet waardoor je eigenlijk alleen maar meer onzeker bent. Hetgeen wat je juist wel wilt.

I got these to test my brass as common alloys can have high lead contents. They work as expected. On alloys I expected to contain lead (360 brass alloy), they turn distinctly purple. On other types of brass they only turned orange, so I don't think lead was detected. Tip: if you're looking for a positive control, solder is a good source of lead and turns the test purple almost instantly. The yellow/orange colour seems to fade after a few minutes, leaving the purple more obvious.