Is your apartment lead-safe? According to the Rhode Island Department of Health, more than 70% of housing in the state "has potential lead hazards that can poison children."

So, what do you do if that includes your home? 

Here's a renter-focused guide to help you sort it out and stay safe.

If it was built before 1978, chances are it does. The most common sources of exposure in the state are in dust, soil or paint.

First, check your building's age online through your city's tax assessor database, where you can search for your home by your street address.

If it is pre-1978, don't panic. Attempting to eliminate all lead on a property can be costly and risky, particularly if paint is scraped off in a way in which resulting dust is not contained. But that doesn't mean tenants should live with risks. In Rhode Island, rental properties are required to be lead-safe. That means there is no chipped paint and the property is free of dangerous amounts of lead dust.

Renters should know the lead status of their apartments, as law requires owners of pre-1978 dwellings to inform tenants of any possible lead hazards before they rent.

A warning and disclosure document should be included in the lease along with the state's version of an Environmental Protection Agency pamphlet on guarding your family against lead. A digital copy is available here.

Don't know if you have the required documents on hand? Check RIDOH's online database of lead and inspection certificates by clicking here, and navigating to the button that says property certificates.

This tool allows users to search via municipality, street address, certificate type and issuance date. So you can be as specific or as general as you prefer.

At first, the results of your search may look confusing, so refer to this RIDOH cheat sheet to translate your findings.

As the guide states, some "units and properties may be exempt from lead certificate requirements, but they may still be required to be lead safe, and can still obtain a lead certificate if the property owner chooses to do so."

Know that certificates are usually given for units, not the entire property, so you may want to look for your apartment number in your search results.

Lead certificates in Rhode Island, which typically expire after two years, may be either a Certificate of Lead Conformance or Conditional Lead Safe Certificate, though there are many variations, so consult the guide for further details.

To get those certificates, two types of inspections are available: a Lead Hazard Mitigation Inspection (previously known as an Independent Clearance Inspection), and a Comprehensive Environmental Lead Inspection. The former focuses on paint and dust while the latter is broader, including soil and water.

Tyler Romero, the senior program manager for the lead program in Central Falls, which has higher rates of exposure than most other municipalities in the state, said renters have a couple of options.

"I would, if possible, call your local code enforcement [office], see if they will be able to accept a complaint from a tenant, and at the end of the day, you can always ask your property owner," Romero said. 

Contacting your landlord should be your first stop.

According to RI Housing, which offers rental resources among other services, tenants have the right to ask their landlord to remedy hazards and schedule an inspection.

"That is, even in the best of circumstances, not necessarily a fun conversation to have," said Laura Biron, executive director of the Childhood Lead Action Project, or CLAP, a nonprofit working to end child lead exposure in the state. "But it is a really important one, and it is one that can turn out well."

While the landlord's primary interest should be keeping tenants safe and abiding by the law, Biron noted that there are incentives tenants can mention, such as tax credits for lead remediation.

Better yet, your landlord may qualify for a free inspection through RIHousing's LeadSafe Homes Program, which also provides remediation. Municipally administered programs are also available in Providence and Woonsocket.

If your landlord isn't taking action, contact your local code enforcement office, which is responsible for making sure property owners abide by minimum housing standards. Hearing from a city inspector should eventually push your landlord to act.

You can, with an at-home test kit, but you probably shouldn't. Enlisting a certified lead inspector is the best way to know whether your unit is safe. They'll conduct a more thorough and advanced test than a basic kit allows. That may include taking X-rays of walls and collecting samples from surfaces with dust wipes, which are then sent for analysis.

Municipalities may have maps available to show known or suspected locations of lead pipes. Providence Water has an online map at this link, searchable via street address. Woonsocket has a map and a list of lead lines here.

If you find your home may be connected to the water main with lead pipes, Biron recommends using a water filter. Looks for filters labeled NSF/ANSI 53 or higher.

For more information from RIHousing on lead, call (401) 450-1350 or email leadinfo@rihousing.com.

The Childhood Lead Action Project can also provide guidance, including further information on financial assistance for lead remediation. Call (401) 785-1310 or email info@leadsafekids.org.

Lastly, if your landlord is resisting taking action to keep tenants safe, you may be able to received free legal assistance from Rhode Island Legal Services by calling (401) 274-2652, or the Center for Justice by calling (401) 491-1101.

Remember that simply asking for advice doesn't mean you need to take legal action.