Pollutants by construction year: what is in which building

Every building era has its typical pollutants. Anyone who knows when a building was erected can estimate quite well what might be inside it, and have it checked in a targeted way instead of analysing everything on suspicion. One exception is radon: it depends on the geology of the subsurface, not on the construction year, and must therefore be considered in every era. The rest follows time. The year boundaries are rough guides; the eras blend at the transitions, and long-used materials such as old mineral wool or wood preservatives span several decades. Here is the overview, from the Gründerzeit to the new build.

Before 1945: Gründerzeit, Art Nouveau, interwar period

• Lead: lead white, red lead and lead chromate in paints on windows, doors, radiators and window sills, often in several layers on top of one another. (→ Lead in old buildings)
• Tar products (PAH): tar-containing seals in basements and on foundations. (→ PAH in old buildings)
• Wood preservatives: some earlier-generation products, especially with visible half-timbering. (→ Wood preservatives)

Typical: high lead levels, many paint layers. Asbestos still rare.

1945 to 1960: reconstruction

• Asbestos: appears as a building material, for example as Eternit sheets on the roof and the first pipe lagging. (→ Recognising asbestos)
• PAH adhesive: black, tar-like parquet adhesive, a classic of these years. (→ PAH in old buildings)
• Lead pipes: still installed as drinking-water pipes. (→ Lead in old buildings)

Typical: simple, fast construction, asbestos roof, but still less pollutant variety than afterwards.

1960 to 1980: the peak phase

In this era pollutants stack up. In a building of the early 1970s, several at once are not uncommon.

• Asbestos: used in many forms, on roof (Eternit) and facade, in floor coverings, pipe insulation and night-storage heaters. (→ Recognising asbestos)
• PAH: black parquet adhesive, roofing felt, seals. (→ PAH in old buildings)
• PCB: flexible joint sealants in concrete and panel buildings. (→ PCB in sealants)
• Lead: last generation of lead pipes, installed into the early 1970s. (→ Lead in old buildings)
• Wood preservatives: PCP and lindane in roof structures, coated over the surface or dipped. (→ Wood preservatives)
• MMF: older, biopersistent mineral wool in roof and facade insulation. (→ MMF)

Typical: several pollutants at once. Anyone renovating here should establish systematically beforehand what is present.

1980 to 1995: transition

The bans take hold step by step. In 1990 Austria bans the manufacture of asbestos; the prohibition on placing asbestos-cement products on the market follows in 1994.

• Asbestos: late products, rarer but present, especially in roof sheets, facades and pipes. (→ Recognising asbestos)
• MMF: old, biopersistent mineral wool until about 2000, after which it was replaced by biosoluble fibres. (→ MMF)
• Wood preservatives: last PCP and lindane applications before the PCP ban in 1991 and the end of lindane approval in the early 1990s. (→ Wood preservatives)

Typical: often only one or two pollutants, but old MMF in almost all insulation.

After 1995: new build

The classic old-building pollutants have largely disappeared. Instead, other themes appear.

• VOC and formaldehyde: volatile compounds from paints, adhesives, floor coverings and furniture, especially in the first weeks and months after renovation or moving in. (→ VOC after renovation)
• Radon: relevant in new builds too, depending on the subsurface. In designated radon precaution areas, protective measures are required for new buildings, but they only work if properly carried out. (→ Radon in Austria)

Typical: fewer legacies, but VOC themes with unfavourable material choice or poor ventilation.

What this means in practice

The construction year is not a finding, but a good compass: it says what is worth looking for. Certainty comes only from examining the actual material, because whether an Eternit roof contains asbestos or a parquet adhesive contains PAH can only be guessed from the age, not proven. The older a building, the more potential pollutants, but also the better researched the risks. Buildings of the 1960s to 1980s deserve special attention, since they accumulate the most. Before a renovation or a purchase it is therefore worth taking a targeted look at the likely pollutants of the respective construction era, before anything is opened up.

Sources

• The substance- and era-specific details are documented in the linked individual guides (asbestos, PAH, PCB, lead, MMF, wood preservatives, VOC, radon).
• Key dates: Asbestos Ordinance 1990 (BGBl. No. 324/1990), ban on placing asbestos cement on the market from 1994; PCP banned in Austria since 1991 (BGBl. No. 58/1991); PCB banned since 1993 (BGBl. No. 210/1993).