Is Removing Asbestos Siding Dangerous
Cutting asbestos siding is the only danger which is minimized with use of specialized tools that shear rather than cut the shingles.
Is removing asbestos siding dangerous. Even though most government health and environmental agencies strongly urge homeowners to hire a contractor to remove asbestos it is possible to remove it yourself. Extra precautions are vital to ensure that the process is done safely and that the dust and debris does not enter your home creating an ongoing danger for you and your family. Just as taking samples of asbestos is dangerous these other methods are even more so. The general steps included in removing asbestos siding are.
Heat water weathering or simple aging also makes the material more fragile at which point it can become dangerous to work with. Asbestos siding is composed of asbestos fibers mixed with portland cement. Using sheeting around the house in order to make sure debris falls onto it and can easily be removed. As long as the siding remains intact it can stay.
Asbestos siding removal pros and cons one common misconception is that asbestos must be removed and that removing it is very expensive and dangerous. In fact you may be able to install new siding on top of the asbestos siding no removal necessary. Asbestos siding poses absolutely no health risk of the siding is intact and in place. It is very brittle and has a tendency to crack and break when nailed which can release asbestos fibers into both the air and ground.
If left alone asbestos cement siding and other building products containing asbestos can be fairly benign. Scraping or brushing off old paint from asbestos siding is necessary before repainting but dangerous because it can release small asbestos fibres the approach of removing the old shingles and replacing them with new siding is an option that many homeowners have pursued though probably not as safely as they should. The real safety issue with asbestos is when large amounts of it are removed indoors and proper protocol and equipment is not used to capture and collect all asbestos fibers released. Asbestos siding never needs to be removed simply because it is asbestos.
Removing asbestos siding is a tricky issue as it often poses no real health threat if left intact. The process of removing asbestos shingles from your roof or siding will disturb the materials and create a hazardous environment. However if you want to remove you have two options. Safely removing asbestos siding if you do decide to remove asbestos siding from your home the answer to is asbestos siding dangerous isn t necessarily yes.
The high cost of asbestos removal alone may keep some people from hiring a contractor.