Asbestos removal is difficult and dangerous – but sometimes you have to do it to prevent “asbestos cancer.” Let Oceanaircare take care of it for you
Asbestos is a number of artificial minerals created in mass quantities for purposes such as temporary insulation, chemical and thermal heating cushions for household uses.
Asbestos was commonly used as an insulator for air conditioning vents, and many other insulating materials, before people came to realize it could permanently damage the respiratory system . Many products are in use today that contain asbestos.
If your house was built before 1990, there is an 86 percent chance that your air-conditioning vents are asbestos-based. Asbestos is known to create severe breathing problems.
When asbestos is heated, it stretches out into a layer of dust and dissolves into the air of the vent. The dissolved asbestos is a light-weight, flammable material. These conditions allow asbestos to be a very dangerous material, but it was still used by many construction companies because it was a relatively cheap option for insulation. Asbestos-based vents have been known to cause acute asthma and even mesothelioma, a form of cancer that is almost always caused by previous exposure to asbestos.
A growing number of doctors and researchers are concerned about the long-term effects of low-level exposure. As a rule, asbestos fibers tend to attach themselves permanently to lung tissue; long-term, residual accumulation might catch up with you. The prudent assumption, voiced by Lee Thomas, former Administrator of the EPA , is that there is “no safe level of exposure” to airborne asbestos To date, most research has centered around asbestos workers and their families, with whom it has been proven chronic breathing of asbestos fibers causes permanent scarring of the lungs (asbestosis), lung cancer and mesothelioma (the “asbestos cancer”). Problems may show up 30 to 40 years after exposure.
Asbestos is a hazardous material when it becomes friable — meaning that asbestos is easily crumbled and reduced to powder by hand pressure, such as when it is disturbed or damaged. When asbestos is damaged or disturbed it releases fibers into the air. Airborne asbestos fibers are microscopic, odorless, and tasteless. Because asbestos fibers are small and light, they can be suspended in the air for long periods. People who live or work near asbestos related operations have a high chance of inhaling asbestos fibers that have been released into the air by work activities.
Once inhaled, the small, inert asbestos fibers can easily penetrate the body's defenses. They are deposited and retained in the airways and tissues of the lungs. In the alveoli, the location of gas exchange, asbestos causes the development of scar tissue — asbestosis. This thickening of the alveoli wall reduces the amount of oxygen available to the body leading to shortness of breath and chest pains. Asbestos is a known to cause cancer, including lung and gastrointestinal cancers. This is why it is critical to have any asbestos in your home removed by a professional asbestos removal expert.
Here's where to look for to determine if you need an asbestos removal contractor:
Heating ductwork.
Some ducts, particularly in Southern California, are made largely of asbestos; other metal ducts are wrapped with a cellulose-asbestos, air-cell insulation. Both look a bit like off-white corrugated cardboard; asbestos-sheeting insulation has a similar appearance but is not corrugated. In addition, registers may have asbestos taping inside.
Ductwork made of asbestos is a major concern because when it begins to deteriorate, fibers are blown into the house. Talk with an asbestos abatement contractor about removal. Replacement is additional.
Wrapped ducts should be removed if wrapping is friable. A stop-gap measure for duct wrapping that's sound is to have it encapsulated.
The furnace may have an asbestos lining at the base or sit on an asbestos pad. A special asbestos cloth may join furnace or boiler to ductwork. If any of these are exposed to damage, they should be encapsulated or removed.