Asbestos

[EdwardEAA]

can anyone tell me if asbestos, is still being used or when was it last used, and for what, my problem is a client thinks that her ceiling has it, the home is 1972...Help.

[Les]

if it is a popcorn ceiling then likely it does in your area. Remember the drywall finish compound also contained asbestos until early 70's. If she thinks there is asbestos, then have it checked; cehap, quick and easy lab test.

The other answers: still is used in hundreds of products.

[hausdok]

Hi,

It was banned by the EPA from about 1978 to 1982 but then the manufacturers' lobby got the ban lifted; by then, many companies that had been using it in their products had found substitutes. However, not all companies stopped using it and as far as I know it's still being mined up in Canada.

She could have it in the ceiling, in wallboard, in floor coverings, in mastic holding tiles to floors, in floor tile and coverings - even in the hair dryer that she uses to blow-dry her hair. When it's used for ceiling coverings it's usually encapsulated with paint or gypsum anyway. Tell her to get it tested if it's got her spooked but not to go off the deep end about it. To get exposed to asbestos from a ceiling covering, you'd have to scrape the stuff off the ceiling, grind it up enough in a mortar and pestle to free up the encased fibers, and then literally snort it. Then you'd have to sit around and wait about a quarter of a century before you'd know if one of those fibers was able to embed itself in your lungs and gave you cancer or mesothelioma. In terms of scary stuff, asbestos is near the bottom of my worry list.

Worrying about getting sick from casual exposure to asbestos when you don't work around it and aren't exposed to it in an industrial setting is, to me anyway, kind of like sitting around and dwelling about the odds of you're getting killed in a head-on on the freeway. It's always a remote possibility, but the odds are pretty steep against it happening if you stay alert and there's really nothing you can do about it anyway.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[randynavarro]

I had a local scientist dude who does on-site inspection work say there's an 80% chance the popcorn ceilings contain asbestos if built before 1980.

That's probably a more local condition.

[Tom Raymond]

MSN just did a story on the odds of all sorts of wierd ways to die, shark attack, hit on the head by a falling coconut...Your client is likely going to increase her exposure by trying to find all the asbestos in her house than if she just ignored it. Advise her that it is probably present, that the exposure risk is minimal, and that if she can't live with it to have the popcorn ceiling removed prior to moving in. If she is really terrified of the stuff don't tell her it might be in her hair drier. Shame on you Mike O, alarming the alarmist.

Tom

[gmathew]

Asbestos is the name given to a number of naturally occurring fibrous silicates and is also a risk to our health. It may be in your home. It was banned by EPA from since1978. Asbestos is not always an immediate hazard, in fact asbestos can be maintained in good conditions. So, please inform your client not to worry about it. However there is a possibility that she is right as it was used to maintain temperature in the house just like it was used in refrigerators long back.

.................................

Greg Mathew

Alaska Drug Treatment

[hausdok]

Originally posted by gmathew

It was banned by EPA from since1978. .................................

Greg Mathew

Alaska Drug Treatment

Perhaps you should check your references on that. If memory serves - it doesn't always so I could be wrong -the Canadian lobby got its way and the ban was lifted 4 years later and asbestos is still being used in everything from hair dryers to tile. Heck, it was still in brake linings until just a few years ago.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Les]

Be very careful with asbestos and blanket statements. It is still used in thousands of products. Bottom of my worry list usually. Popcorn ceilings and steam pipe wrapping still cause me concern in the home inspection business.

[Neil Lubell]

believe it or not asbestos is still used in certain industrial controlled settings, however for the most part it was ceased from being produced domestically in 1982. I have people ask me all the time if something is asbestos, and I always tell them if they absolutely must know for sure, I will gladly take a sample to the lab and have it checked (for which I am paid), the problem is that just because asbestos is present does not mean it is definitely a danger. In actuality if I take a sample from an undisturbed intact area of unknown material if it is indeed asbestos it absolutely has to be removed, but if I was to not touch it in reality it could remain in place for an indefinite period without causing a health risk. However, I feel from a liability standpoint and considering I am not the one paying for the removal it makes sense for me to find out for the buyer I represent the actual identity of potential asbestos. I have angered quite a few sellers however, because when it is asbestos, they are left holding the bag, because they have to get it removed or risk getting in trouble if they do not and fail to disclose its presence.