Test Vinyl Adhesive Asbestos

When you remove that floor covering to make way for new flooring you may encounter the mastic and wonder whether it is safe to remove the main concern surrounding this question is that black mastic often contains asbestos.

Test vinyl adhesive asbestos.

In the 1990s for example two engineers filed lawsuits against north american refractory company narco. For 100 protection you need to use n100 or p100 dust masks. Possible signs of asbestos mastic include discoloration and an oily texture. You can visually identify vinyl flooring materials that contain asbestos by reviewing the vinyl asbestos floor tiles and sheet flooring identification photo guide see resources.

This method is easy and is not time consuming. When you take a sample presume the worst and protect yourself from asbestos. You can assume this floor tile contains asbestos. Thousands of workers harmed by asbestos exposure have filed lawsuits against asbestos adhesive manufacturers to seek compensation for their medical costs and suffering.

How to recognize roof or floor adhesive mastic or sealant that may contain asbestos. While an expert test by a certified asbestos testing lab is required for sure identification of the asbestos content of most materials. Asbestos mastic will also always be black in color. Cork pattern vinyl asbestos floor tiles were produced in at least three hues by armstrong as well as montgomery ward and sears and possibly kentile and other companies.

This article provides dates of manufacture of asbestos containing adhesives mastics sealants and includes photographs and text describing the appearance of such products. Above we show a 9 x 9 cork patterned vinyl asbestos floor tile found in a 1960 s ranch style home in new york. Pre paid postage envelope was included in the kit. A tool is used to cut into the substance to be tested to get a sample of fibers.

If your building was built before 1980 mastic mixed with asbestos may have been used to seal your tiles to the floor. Simply place a one inch by one inch piece of the building material you wish to test for example ceiling tile floor tile roofing etc. The area to be tested will be sprayed with water to keep loose fibers from getting in the air. Common in homes built in the 20th century black mastic was used as an adhesive for ceramic tile linoleum and other flooring materials.

Testing of vinyl flooring for asbestos. A small sample of the material which might be or contain asbestos is placed in a sealable container to be sent to a lab for testing.