If you are planning on buying an old house or building, you need to consider doing a test for asbestos. In many areas, testing for asbestos in the home or building structure is required by law for sellers. The records of asbestos tests that have been conducted on these buildings are also made available for the possible buyers in these areas.
A test for asbestos is also necessary if you are planning on doing some remodeling or refurnishing for an old house. This is true for any major or minor construction project that will involve the disturbance of walls or roofs, as well as any refurbishing that will replace tiles or pipes. A house for example, where flooring or insulation is damaged, flayed, and/or exposed is of particular danger also of releasing asbestos particles and should therefore also be tested.
Asking for a professional opinion from plumbers and electricians who are familiar with asbestos can get you a quick answer, but it may not be accurate. For most of these professional, dealing with asbestos is a part of day to day work. They therefore may be able to give you advice when they visit your home or site and tell you which materials probably contains asbestos due to their knowledge and experience with dealing with the brands and materials that contain them. However, without sending samples to an asbestos testing lab, one can never be 100% sure. This is because asbestos cannot be positively ID’d by the five senses only. It has to be examined through a polarized light microscope using a documented analytical method by an accredited laboratory. Also, without a licensed asbestos test professional, you cannot have a legal document proclaiming that your building is either free of the substance or is contaminated by it.
Another way of how to test for asbestos is to do it yourself, however these test kits are not always accurate and there is always the potential that you can expose yourself or contaminate your house with asbestos if you do this on your own. Therefore, we do not recommend using a do-it-yourself test kit. However if you still choose to do it yourself, much caution should be observed especially when trying to retrieve a sample by yourself. Disturbing material that contains asbestos can release asbestos dust into the air. If the material is not disturbed and is in good condition, there is no health risk. Airborne asbestos is what one actually wants to avoid. And again, no supporting legal documents will be supplied for this kind of test.
If and when a test comes back as from the asbestos testing lab as positive, then you should have the material removed. There are special contractors that are certified for asbestos removal so you should get a hold of one as soon as you can.
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