Asbestos In Your Home
Where are the areas where asbestos can hide in your home? The home is where we spend 90% of our time, so we would want our homes to be as free from hazards as possible. As mentioned in asbestos hazards, there are many instances where asbestos can be in your household in the building materials of the house. This is especially the case in old houses (pre 1970s) where asbestos was used quite extensively.
Where you can find asbestos in your home :
- if your house was built between 1930 and 1950, it could have asbestos in the insulation
- coal furnaces and door gaskets could also have asbestos insulation
- the hot water piping in older houses may have asbestos material as a coating surface.
- the walls and floors around your woodburning stoves could be lined with asbestos sheets.
- paints pre 1977 on walls and ceilings commonly had asbestos in them
Local authorities (eg EPA) all recommend that you shouldn't panic if you find asbestos materials in your home but to just leave the material that is in good condition alone. It's only when the materials are sanded or scrapped to release the asbestos fibers which can be inhaled that it's a danger to your health. Home improvements done by do-it-yourself handymen are often the biggest risk in contracting any of the asbestos related diseases.
If you are concerned at all, your best source of information and testing resource is your state or local health department.
Read more about
Asbestos in your home
