What is Asbestos Abatement in California?
Asbestos abatement testing is testing to determine whether the removal of asbestos from the home or building is necessary in order to ensure the property’s ongoing safety.
What are some common household locations where asbestos is found:
Common household locations where asbestos is found include:
- Roofing shingles,
- Siding,
- Insulation,
- Textured Paint,
- Patching compounds,
- Gas fireplace components,
- Millboard or cement sheets in the walls and floors
- Tape or blankets used to cover hot water or steam pipes
What are Some of the Dangers of Having Asbestos in Your Building?
Some of the biggest health problems associated with asbestos are:
- Asbestosis,
- Mesothelioma,
- Lung Cancer
Asbestos fibers occur in six different mineral types, all of which are harmful to lung tissue. All of these fibers are harmful to lung tissue, get embodied in the lung tissue and cause inflammation, scarring and eventually tumors.
How Do I Know If I’m At Risk for Health Problems Associated with Asbestos?
People who stand the greatest risk for health problems associated with Asbestos oftentimes:
- Work in an asbestos mine, mill or transportation workers,
- Asbestos product workers (shipbuilders, construction workers, pipefitters, auto mechanics)
- Families of asbestos workers (due to fibers brought home on clothes or in hair)
- People who live near asbestos mines or mills
What do you need to know about asbestos abatement?
Asbestos is a dangerous set of six different minerals that often carries a reputation of death and disease, since it s a potentially lethal human carcinogen.
Asbestos was, at one time, an incredibly useful substance. It provided protection against chemical and electrical damage and was resistant to heat, absorbed sound, made for convenient building insulation, and it was cheap.
In the early 1900s, however, doctors began noticing a link between asbestos exposure and adverse health effects, including illnesses of the lungs and premature death. Nevertheless, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) allowed the usage of asbestos in gas fireplaces until the 1970s.
Now aware of the dangers caused by asbestos, many building and home owners have chosen to have asbestos removed, to provide a less-dangerous place for tenants to live and work. If you believe your home or building contains harmful asbestos, these are the steps commonly taken to identify and, ultimately, remove asbestos, from start to finish:
Removing Asbestos from Start-to-Finish
- Asbestos Survey: The abatement process begins with an evaluation, or inspection. Unlike mold, asbestos cannot be seen or smelt. When coming across materials in your home or business that appear suspicious, it is wise not to handle them, since asbestos is more dangerous when it’s disturbed. Home and building owners should consult qualified asbestos abatement testing professionals, like Rarefied Air Environmental, to take samples.
Samples confirming the presence of asbestos, however, do not necessarily require immediate remediation. Asbestos that’s in good condition and will not be “disturbed” (release fibers) may not need to be removed. Nevertheless, it is important to consult a trusted professional to ensure the asbestos does not pose any threat to you, your home, or your building.
If your asbestos survey does reveal the presence of harmful asbestos, here are the four steps you need to takein order to safely remove the asbestos, or ensure that it no longer poses a threat to anyone inhabiting your home or building:
- Encapsulation: involves coating all asbestos-containing materials with an encapsulate to seal the materials and prevent exposure;
- Asbestos repair: “patching up” of newly problematic or damaged – but previously encapsulated – areas of asbestos-containing materials.
- Enclosure: requires an airtight structure to be built around the asbestos-containing material, which also acts as a preventative measure but must be regularly maintained; and
- Removal: often the most expensive option, asbestos removal is the total elimination of asbestos and asbestos-containing material from a property.
If you are concerned about asbestos in your home, it is important to perform a test for asbestos. Rarefied Air’s technicians are California State DOSH-certified Asbestos Consultants & Certified Site Surveillance Technicians. Our surveys comply with any city or state requirement needed and we can perform the survey have results the same day. Contact Rarefied Air today for a free quote!