How to Recognize Asbestos Floor Tiles, An Expert Guide.
Is that old tile in your home actually asbestos floor tiles? If it is, how do you identify it? Asbestos is nothing to mess around with, so it’s critically important to learn how to recognize Asbestos floor tiles.
Unfortunately, asbestos floor tiles can be very difficult to recognize. Homes built between the 1920s and the 1980s are at a high risk of having asbestos floor tiles. Most asbestos floor tiles during this time were usually made with either vinyl tiles or asphalt tiles. Mesothelioma.com, an educational resource providing the latest medical information on asbestos, reports that vinyl and asphalt tiles could contain up to 70% asbestos by weight.
This is why it is incredibly important to learn how to recognize asbestos floor tiles. Asbestos Project Management has written an educational blog to help determine if you have asbestos in your floor tiles.
What Is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a mineral that contains flexible fibers that are resistant to heat, electricity, and corrosion. The popularity of the product sprung from its low cost, which allowed the material to be used to tile large areas. Asbestos-containing floor tiles were among the most common building materials between 1930 and 1980.
Aside from learning how to recognize asbestos in floor tiles, it’s important to note that you should hire a professional to remove any floor tiles that are suspected to contain asbestos. Asbestos floor tiles are very tricky to identify due to asbestos being within the adhesives used to place the flooring.
Removing old asbestos floor tiles may expose the asbestos backing and release fibers, that are highly toxic. Please keep reading to learn safe ways to recognize asbestos floor tiles in your residential property or commercial building.
What Do Asbestos Floor Tiles Look Like?
Asbestos is most commonly found in vinyl and asphalt tiles but isn’t limited to those materials. Sheet vinyl flooring may contain asbestos, and many adhesives used during the 1920s-1980s contain asbestos.
Asbestos is not visible to the naked eye, and floor tiles containing asbestos can look very different depending on the material and adhesives. Floor tiles containing asbestos become very difficult to identify because adhesives may contain asbestos, but those cannot be seen at the surface of the tile.
Since you can’t just identify asbestos floor tiles with a quick look, here’s 3 easy steps to help you identify asbestos floor tile.
3 Easy Steps to Help Identify Asbestos Floor Tiles
The easiest and safest way to recognize asbestos in floor tiles is to hire an asbestos abatement professional.
Nonetheless, there are visual signs of asbestos in floor tiles that homeowners and building owners can learn to help recognize the possibility of asbestos.
- The first step in recognizing asbestos floor tiles is to confirm that your residential property was constructed between 1920 and 1980. Although products were discontinued between 1970 and 1980, it is still possible that bulk products containing asbestos were still used into the late 1980s.
- The next step to recognizing asbestos in floor tiles is to try and determine your tile’s installation date. This may provide insight into whether the material used was subject to asbestos. You are particularly looking for vinyl floor tiles and asphalt floor tiles.
- The third step you can take to help identify asbestos floor tiles is to be aware of the tile size, color, and current appearance.
Below is information on vinyl floor tiles and asphalt floor tiles that will help homeowners and building owners identify asbestos safely.
Asbestos in Vinyl Floor Tiles
As mentioned above, vinyl tiles were found to contain asbestos. On top of asbestos being incorporated into vinyl products, it was also mixed into adhesive glue to place vinyl products. Vinyl tiles are commonly located in high-traffic areas due to consumers’ wanting a durable material to withstand constant wear and tear.
High-traffic areas that may include vinyl tiles could be the front entry, kitchen, laundry room, storage room, garage entry, and more. When trying to recognize asbestos in vinyl floor tiles, it’s important to take note of the color, size, and shape of the tiles.
Vinyl tiles containing asbestos were commonly found in the following sizes:
- 9×9
- 12×12
- 18×18.
Floor tiles containing asbestos are often square-shaped, and vinyl tiles were usually produced in lighter colors.
Asbestos in Asphalt Floor Tiles
Asphalt floor tiles were commonly placed between the 1920s and the 1960s. These tiles contain asphalt and gilsonite as the main binding agents.
Asphalt floor tiles were usually found in the following sizes:
- 9×9
- 12×12
Asphalt floor tiles with asbestos were commonly found in darker colors such as browns, grays, and blacks. Asphalt tiles may also appear to look oily or dirty.
I Recognize Asbestos in My Floor Tiles, Now What?
The United States Environmental Protection Agency states that you cannot tell if a product contains asbestos just by looking at it. If you recognize that your floor tiles have similarities to those listed above, then it’s time to hire a professional asbestos abatement company, like Asbestos Project Management.
Because floor tile adhesives may contain asbestos, it is incredibly difficult to determine if floor tiles contain asbestos or not. So, if you recognize asbestos in your floor tiles, you should contact Asbestos Project management immediately to safely perform asbestos testing.
Asbestos Project Management will guide you during this process and provide you with answers to all your questions. We understand this can be a challenging time for families and residents, so we have determined to make this process as easy as it can be for our clients.
Asbestos isn’t dangerous unless the asbestos fibers are released into the air and then inhaled, so try not to disturb areas with a potential asbestos problem. Any damage to the structure can cause those fibers to be released, and exposure over time is more likely to cause health issues.
If you are going to do any remodeling in an area that may have asbestos in it, you should first have the contaminated materials removed by a professional asbestos removal service.
Asbestos Floor Tiles Removal in Chicago
Suspect that you need asbestos tile removal in Chicago? Don’t worry, the Asbestos Project Management experts are here to help. Before the removal process even starts Asbestos Project management will test the material to first ensure that it’s hazardous. Then we will provide a transparent quote for the safe removal and disposal of the tile.
Not all the old floor tile we test contains asbestos, and if you’re fortunate enough to be in that position, we will tell you to avoid unnecessary costs.
We don’t recommend any asbestos removal alternatives. This process is dangerous and should only be handled by a professional. Any amount of ingestion of asbestos fibers can have serious long-term health effects. Learn more about Asbestos-Related Health Conditions.
What is the Asbestos Removal Process
If you are curious about what the asbestos removal process looks like when working with us, then check out The Project File: Cook County Tile Removal.
Here you will find information about our asbestos removal team, which was called to a Cook County residence after asbestos was suspected to be in their home. Asbestos Project Management goes into detail about what happens after the collected air samples come back positive, how the floor tiles are removed and includes before and after photos.
Covering Asbestos Floor Tiles
A lot of homeowners ask us the following: “Can I cover my asbestos floor tiles?” The simple answer is yes. To be transparent this is not recommended.
Covering the tiles only delays the inevitable, which is that one day you will likely be forced to remove the asbestos-containing products should you try to sell your home.
If forced to remove the asbestos floor tiles you will end up paying twice as much as you would to just remove it. Asbestos encasement typically costs 75 to 80 percent of the cost of asbestos removal. Deciding to cover asbestos floor tiles means paying the initial cost to cover, the additional cost of having to remove the seal, and then the full cost of asbestos removal.
If you find Asbestos floor tiles, it’s best to hire a Chicago Asbestos removal service like APM instead of spending extra trying to encase, only delaying the inevitable.
Asbestos Floor Tiles Removal Cost
The cost for removal of asbestos floor tiles depends on a number of factors, such as:
- The location of the home or building requiring the removal work: Many municipalities require a project permit (and associated fees) for asbestos projects
- Whether asbestos-containing adhesive (mastic) is present in the work area
- Whether multiple layers of floor tile are present
- Whether carpeting must be removed during the work
Chicago asbestos removal company Asbestos Project Management provides a no-obligation asbestos removal quote. Get your free estimate today.
Chicago Residential Asbestos Removal Near Me
Asbestos Project Management has been testing and removing asbestos tile from homes and commercial buildings across the Chicago area since our founding in 1984.
For nearly three decades, our family-owned company has been serving the counties of Cook, DuPage, Lake, McHenry, Kane, Will, and Kendall.
Our business is highly trusted by the counties in Illinois. Owner Clyde Keller holds the twenty-first asbestos professional license ever issued by the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Hire Asbestos Project Management For Expert Asbestos Floor Tiles Removal
The asbestos abatement company you choose to hire should have trained and licensed technicians who have passed background checks, are trained in state and federal removal guidelines, and have a track record of success.
One Chicago asbestos removal service you can trust is Asbestos Project Management
- We respond 24 hours a day, seven days a week
- We are fully licensed and insured
- Our staff is trained and certified in OSHA, IEPA & IDPH
- Fast, knowledgeable, and reliable service
We have at-home testing kits, and a trusted response team to provide you with the best service possible, and keep your loved ones safe. Throughout the project, after hiring us, we will assist in ensuring that the proper permits are secured and any required inspections take place.
Safety comes first – both for our employees and our clients. We are honest, and upfront, and will never try to sell you a service you don’t need. Contact us to schedule your asbestos removal consultation.
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