At Cornerstone Home Improvements, because we specialize in siding, window, and door replacement, we constantly deal with home renovations. In our daily work, we discover some hidden dangers that many homeowners are unaware of. One of those dangers is exposure to asbestos. Although asbestos use has been regulated since the 1970s, many homes built before 1980, contain asbestos. The threat of asbestos exposure happens when homeowners do remodeling or upgrade and tear out parts of the home where asbestos products were used.
Dangers of Asbestos
Used mainly as an insulation material, asbestos is usually mixed with other compounds. It is when these compounds are torn apart that the asbestos is released into the air. The biggest danger asbestos poses is if it is inhaled into the lungs. Studies have shown a link between exposure to asbestos and lung cancer and mesothelioma (an aggressive cancer that affects the lining of the lungs and abdomen).
Read more: https://www.mesothelioma.com/asbestos-exposure/jobsites/homes/
Common Places Asbestos Is Found in the Home
Asbestos was used primarily as an insulation material. Because asbestos fibers are flexible and microscopic, it was easy to include in thousands of different products. It is also fire-resistant so this made it even more popular. Asbestos could be used on its own but was usually combined with other materials. Typical places you find asbestos in your home include:
• Home insulation – roll, spray, and loose varieties may all contain asbestos.
• Tiling – floor tiles, ceiling tiles
• Siding & Roofing – practically all varieties of siding and roofing used before 1980 contained asbestos, including roofing shingles, siding shingles, concrete mixtures, and fiberboard.
• Heating, Ventilation, & Air Conditioning – linings around ventilation pipes, furnaces, hot water heaters, and other piping.
Call Asbestos Removal Professionals
Just having asbestos in your home is not immediately dangerous. It’s when that asbestos-containing material is disturbed and humans are exposed to it that it becomes a hazard. That’s why renovations and remodeling can be very dangerous. We recommend calling a certified asbestos removal company. If you are planning a home remodeling project that involves removing any of the aforementioned materials and you’re not sure if your home contains asbestos or not, call a professional asbestos removal company to come and evaluate the area and let you know if there is a danger. After that, call Cornerstone for replacement windows, doors, and siding and we will get to work beautifying your Kansas City home and making it more energy efficient.