Testing For Asbestos In Floor Tiles

Asbestos exposure may pose serious health risks.

Testing for asbestos in floor tiles. You can either engage an asbestos remediation expert or obtain a test kit for which you ll remove a flooring sample. Unlike many asbestos containing materials vinyl asbestos flooring is generally safe to be around. The definitive way to find out if tiles contain asbestos is to have them tested. Lab testing of flooring for asbestos content.

For the lab to come to your house and take the sample you can triple the price. To get an entire home tested for asbestos might cost in the hundreds of dollars. Step 1 examine the tiles closely for decay. Vinyl is a type of plastic that has long been a popular material for floor tiles and sheets.

A small sample of the material which might be or contain asbestos is placed in a sealable container to be sent to a lab for testing. But that changes as soon as you decide to remove it. But to test an individual sample of vinyl tile if mailed or dropped off at the facility will cost between 50 and 100. Asbestos is a mineral that occurs naturally in the environment that is made up of long thin fibers that look similar to fiberglass.

You should examine the material closely to determine its condition. If you have time and about 40. While it can be costly to do so the safest course of action is to assume that there is in fact asbestos in your tiles and get it treated especially if your floor was installed in the 1980 s or before the heyday of asbestos tiling. When encased in floor tiles that are in good condition asbestos is not in a friable state and can t become airborne but that isn t true if the tiles are cracked or damaged.

The asbestos floor tile identification articles in this series illustrate that with the combination of design appearance and an idea of floor tile age many asbestos containing floor tiles or sheet flooring products can be reliably identified even before confirmation by a test by a certified asbestos testing laboratory. The area where the sample was taken is patched with plastic sheet drywall or tape to prevent suspected fibers from spreading. If you face a costly dusty messy demolition it may be appropriate to have a sample of the flooring tested. Found in many manufactured products prior to the mid 1980 such as pipe insulation ceiling and floor tiles paints caulking fire resistant clothing and brake pads.