bachissimo Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 I hope it is not a bother to bring another issue that came out. I am in the process of buying a house. I am at high risk of Lung cancer, so trying to avoid unnecessary risks. The inspection today showed asbestos tile and mastic in the utility room in the basement, next to HVAC and laundry. Please see attached. Most likely this is non-friable but it can become with friction. Two questions: What is the best course of action? I think removal is risky and very expensive. Leaving it as is, is an uncomfortable things due to risks. So it boils down, i feel, to covering it. WITH WHAT? There must be some tricks to do that neatly and minimal risk. Second question: now I can't sleep well thinking what if there is airborne asbestos in the place. I am thinking of an indoor air quality test to check for asbestos. Is that ok? am I going overboard? Any other tests I should do if I am concerned about health risks? Thank you Click to Enlarge 59.45 KB Click to Enlarge 87.05 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 A good wax has been shown to work fine. That said..... Covering it used to be the recommendation, but some installers are getting tagged in 3rd, 4th, and 5th party lawsuits alleging their installation over the tile created a hazard. While ridiculous, that doesn't mean installers don't have to deal with the hassle. It's a can of worms, unfortunately. Reasonable prudent measures are wilting under the possibility of legal action. Removal is where everyone seems to go, although that's a bad, or silly, idea imho. I don't know how it works in your neighborhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 You might prefer a newly built structure. It won't eliminate the chance of hazards but perhaps reduce them to a more comfortable level for you. Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Raymond Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 My brother is an asbestos abatement guy. After the aircell is out of the building he is most concerned with the remaining lead paint. The rest of the asbestos just isn't that dangerous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 Air cell isn't a problem if it's original and sound and the end caps are sealed. Hardly any of it is unless one beats on it or removes it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Raymond Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 When public housing units are being prepped for demolition all the asbestos gets removed. The aircell is always smashed. The caulk, tile and mastic isn't dangerous until someone tries to remove them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kogel Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 Gently fill the low spots where tiles are missing with leveling compound. Once that hardens, glue vinyl flooring down. That does not create dust. Did your inspector mention drywall plaster? Old plaster may contain asbestos. Just a precaution if you need to repair walls or ceilings. Painted surfaces are perfectly safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 ...in the abatement trade I think they call it "encapsulation", which can be more cost effective than removal... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bachissimo Posted January 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2016 OK I finish with something and something else comes up. So are you telling me that drywalls can have asbestos in them? what can I do in this case? I can't put a nail in the wall? This is crazy. How do people live in old homes. DC is full of old homes where rich people live in. Tomorrow an inspector will come in and give me an estimate for removal. I decided on this since the tiles are broken and any remediation is messy. I just hope they do a clean job since the HVAC is in that utility room. don't want things to get into the HVAC if it is not there already. Anyone would advise for me to do an air quality test (for asbestos) before I finalize the contract, just in case airbone asbestos is too high for my liking? (removal will not help with that). I am not sure why would that be the case... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted January 15, 2016 Report Share Posted January 15, 2016 Asbestos was used in >3000 building products for over a century. It can be in just about anything. USG has been Chapter bankruptcy proceedings for >35 years over asbestos in nearly all of it's products. It can be in old plaster, and often is. I've even found it in paint. Several times. If we're talking reasonable, prudent, and satisfactory, encapsulation with Jif Set and laying vinyl over it is better than removal. Much better. I'm only providing some of the obstacles to what's reasonable and prudent that derive from the nearly trillion dollars worth of asbestos litigation currently being waged. Any asbestos air test can turn up asbestos. The testing done as part of a removal is only to show that conditions were not made worse; it's not to see if it's better. IOW, one usually finds some before and after. I've read that asbestos fibers have been found in small concentrations on the polar ice caps; it's a component of the atmosphere at this point. You're asking good questions without good answers. How bad is it really? There's approximately 187 microfibers alleged to be as bad as asbestos, and what's happening in China now is effecting world air quality levels, and the stuff is bad. I'm not sure how you calibrate this to satisfy your personal concerns. Any reasonable effort at encapsulation should be just fine for you. That said, there's no good definition of what reasonable means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddesiga Posted January 15, 2016 Report Share Posted January 15, 2016 ...in the abatement trade I think they call it "encapsulation", which can be more cost effective than removal... http://www.grainger.com/category/asbestos-encapsulants/asbestos-abatement/safety/ecatalog/N-man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bachissimo Posted January 16, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2016 Final question. I am really bothered by the fact that it turns out that not only the utility room has asbestos but the whole recreation room below the carpet (and office below new tiles, but I don't worry about the latter). Carpet is NOT an appropriate encapsulation especially if the tiles below are chipped. They installed a new carpet and god knows what happened to the tiles 50 years after construction. I have decided to either walk away or ask for price of COMPLETE asbestos removal from under the carpet and the utility room. A space of around 600sqft. Am I guaranteed that after removal/remediation/cleaning I would be able to go down to levels of asbestos in the air between 0.0002 and 0.003 f/cc (which is the level of ambiant air and non contaminated buildings, respectively)... ? Is that something I can ask the removal company to achieve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjr6550 Posted January 16, 2016 Report Share Posted January 16, 2016 I think you are going to worry yourself to death before the non-friable asbestos gets you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted January 16, 2016 Report Share Posted January 16, 2016 ...in the abatement trade I think they call it "encapsulation", which can be more cost effective than removal... http://www.grainger.com/category/asbestos-encapsulants/asbestos-abatement/safety/ecatalog/N-man LOL! I stand corrected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kogel Posted January 16, 2016 Report Share Posted January 16, 2016 That black glue is embedded into the concrete. Buy a house built after 1990, or learn to accept asbestos in our daily lives, such as in road dust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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