Can anyone tell me anything about Asbestos in your home? Pictures?
AJS asked:
I need people to show me pictures of Asbestos and i need some info on it as well. because i might possibly have some in my house and i need to know because i have small children living here as well and i’m worried. It’s a while crystal-like substance growing on the wood that was underneith my ceiling that we recently knocked down to remodel. Honest answers Plz! Thanks!
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I need people to show me pictures of Asbestos and i need some info on it as well. because i might possibly have some in my house and i need to know because i have small children living here as well and i’m worried. It’s a while crystal-like substance growing on the wood that was underneith my ceiling that we recently knocked down to remodel. Honest answers Plz! Thanks!
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June 4th, 2010 at 9:02 pm
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Our house was built in 1939 and has at least two places of known asbestos. One is a pipe insulated with asbestos. We sealed it with three layers of white spray paint and a careful application of a duct tape wrap (which is more than we needed to do, but we’re into overkill of problems like this). The second is some tile flooring with asbestos in it in the finished part of our basement, which the previous owners covered over with carpet. It is safe under there and there is no need to remove it. I suspect our old insulation has it as well, but I don’t know for sure.
What you are describing, a crystal-like substance “growing” on the wood doesn’t sound like asbestos to me. If there was asbestos in the ceiling, it would be mixed into the insulation and you wouldn’t see it alone. Plus, asbestos doesn’t “grow” on wood–it is inorganic. I would be more likely to suspect a fungus or mold.
Regardless, don’t disturb it any more yourself. Look in your yellow pages for asbestos removal. I’d wager that most companies would come to your home and test for asbestos for free. Only professionals can safely remove it. If it IS asbestos, they might just tell you to leave it undisturbed and replace the ceiling. If it is fungus or mold it can be killed with a bleach solution. And, if it does turn out to be asbestos, you shouldn’t be overly worried about yourself or your children (as long as the kids don’t mess with it). Only people with REPEATED and PROLONGED exposure to FRIABLE (read “free” or “particles floating around”) asbestos are in danger of health issues later in life. One-time exposure will not doom everyone in the household to lung cancer.
Get it checked out by a professional, but don’t beat yourself up about it. Good luck!
June 6th, 2010 at 6:12 pm
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Asbestos should not be “growing” on anything. Asbestos is hard to identify as it is in many different products. An experienced builder can suspect what is an ACM (asbestos containing material) based on experience of products used and age of a building, but it is hard to look at something and say “that has asbestos”. It was banned in 1978 although was still used in some products until 1989???? I think. how old is your house? Bottom line is if you are concerned have it tested for your own piece of mind.