Asbestos In Your Home

asbestos in home

Although some asbestos has been removed from our homes over the past years, there are many thousands of tons of asbestos still present in Massachusetts homes today. There still remains extensive repair and removal work, which will definitely continue for the foreseeable future. The main source of asbestos in our indoor air is located in our insulation products throughout our homes. Buildings that were built in the last 50 years were built with a variety of materials composed of asbestos mixed with other fibers like paper, fiberglass, or synthetic fibers and a binder, usually lime or gypsum mortar. Manufacturers utilized asbestos for strengthening cement and plastics as well as for insulation, fireproofing, and sound absorption. Today, the most common domestic materials (in your home) that may contain asbestos are...

Furnace and Boiler insulation covering

Hot water pipe insulation

Tape at old furnace supply duct connections

Stove and transite flue pipes

Some exterior stucco

Attic insulation (usually vermiculite)

Artificial ashes and embers for use in gas-fired Fireplaces

Roofing mastic and asphalt composition roofing shingles and house siding material

Adhesive mastics for flooring, vinyl floor tiles ( usually the 9" x 9" tiles), asphalt floor tiles, and sheet vinyl flooring

Interior plaster and drywall joint patching compounds

Textured paints

Parts of some pre-1979 appliances (e.g. toasters, clothes dryers, hair dryers)

Asbestos was also used as a component of spray applied to textured ceilings. For many years, acoustic-ceiling (textured cottage cheese) was a standard feature in many homes, and until the late 1970's, asbestos was a common component of that ceiling material. Fortunately, this type of asbestos is not regarded as a significant health hazard unless it is disturbed (falling apart).

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Hi Dave,

I just wanted to write and thank you very much for doing our inspection today. You really took an awful lot of extra time to explain things to us. It was a huge help and by far my favorite part of this whole home-buying process. In addition to drawing our attention to the major projects that need to be undertaken right away or in the near future, I was glad that you were also so thorough as to point out smaller things and provide suggestions for fixes that we'd be able to do ourselves. Thanks again for all your effort. I'm finding your "Know Your Home" book a great source of information along with your report. I'll no doubt have some questions for you at some point and really appreciate your willingness to answer them. Have a great rest of your weekend!

Take care,

Sean