Identifying Asbestos Siding
Homeowners are always wary of potentially hazardous material in their residences. One of these dangerous substances is asbestos. This is due to their carcinogenic and toxic features, especially when airborne. In most old houses, there is the likelihood of asbestos occurrence on the roof. They also harbour asbestos in their tiles and insulation. In some instances, asbestos occurs on the exterior siding. If you discover such an occurrence in your home, you should never worry. Let me give you strategies for discovering asbestos invasion in your home, and how best to deal with it.
Examination
The first step involves examining your home’s siding. Most siding types on houses built after the 1980s hardly contain asbestos. This is because of its undesirable effects on human health. This is not the same case with homes built earlier on. Such buildings are likely to have asbestos in their siding. However, there are also new homes constructed after the 1980s that still harbour asbestos. It is therefore essential that you find out the composition of your siding. For more information about siding services give us a call today.
Since asbestos sidings are not identical, this will be a complex process. Most asbestos is manufactured to resemble various colours and textures. To easily go about this dilemma, you have to ensure that your siding is tested. Get a professional to collect samples of your siding. Professionals can come up with a way of protecting you during this time since asbestos’ fibers have to be airborne to affect you. Next, send the sample to a laboratory for a test to determine the presence of asbestos.
What to do in case asbestos is present
If the test results indicate that there is indeed asbestos on your exterior siding, then there are strategies you can use to save the situation. If your home’s siding is in good shape, then you will not have to do anything. With intact siding, you are safe. Asbestos hardly impacts your health and the environment if the wall siding is intact.
However, you may be caught up in a situation where your wall is not intact but has asbestos siding. Many homeowners have successfully covered their siding containing asbestos using vinyl siding sheets. Other homeowners have deviated from this strategy of using vinyl siding sheets. They instead use different materials to protect their homes and loved ones lest the asbestos cause diseases.
Using vinyl to cover the siding might become problematic at some point for some reason. The first problem is that siding is a tricky material. The use of vinyl is likely to cost you your home’s aesthetics. You will have to cover a large section of your home’s exterior, sometimes with very unappealing results. The multiple layers of siding do not solve the problem. You will only be covering the asbestos, but it is still on your wall and can affect your health. The covering of the wall loses impact when the wall, for whatever reason, begins to fall off. When this happens, the asbestos will most become airborne.
How then, should you approach the problem of asbestos?
There is only one lasting solution for eliminating the risks associated with asbestos siding. You will have to engage an expert to help you carefully and altogether remove the asbestos. Note that this process can only be carried out by a professional due to the level of risk involved. If you can’t find any professional, you can get assistance from the health department in your locality. You will be assisted in finding an expert to help you address this. The professional will make your siding asbestos-free.
During this process, you should take to account all the health and safety precautions. The professionals involved, and any other person offering assistance to the expert have to wear safety clothing like safety masks and gloves. This procedure also needs a HEPA filtered vacuum. This will help in eliminating airborne toxins. Engage the professional to conduct an air test to determine whether there is still asbestos around. Always keep away children and pets from the site during this time. You should also take similar precautions if you are present during the process. The idea here is to ensure that there is no exposure of any kind because asbestos is very harmful to your health. For more information about siding services give us a call today.