Asbestos Claim

Naturally occurring silicate minerals in a set of six which for their desirable physical qualities are exploited commercially is known as Asbestos. Its meaning in Greek is ‘inextinguishable’ or ‘unquenchable’. Long thin (1:20) thin fibrous crystals are present in them in their Asbestiform habit. Asbestosis which is a type of Pneumoconiosis and Mesothelioma, a rare cancer are associated with asbestos exposure, as are malignant lung cancer and other serious illnesses caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibers.

Extraction and use of asbestos, processing and manufacture of its products have been banned by the European Union since January 1, 2005. For positive identification techniques like electron microscopy, and as of today PCM/PLM and gravimetric techniques are being used. It is difficult to identify asbestos because the most hazardous and smallest fibers are limited to PM10 particulate size evaluation. Ultrafine particles are completely ignored in this evaluation.

Health hazards:

Its resistance to chemical and electrical damage and resistance to heat, average tensile strength, and sound absorption, made Asbestos increasingly popular in the 19th century amongst builders and manufacturers. Its fibers are often woven into mats or fabrics when it is used for resistance to heat and fire. In the past, it was used on hotplate wiring and the electric oven for its electrical insulation at elevated temperature. For its resistance to chemicals, flexibility, tensile strength, insulating and flame retardant properties it was also used in buildings.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency defines around six minerals as ‘Asbestos, including those belonging to the amphibole class actinolite, anthophyllite, tremolite, crocidolite and amosite as well as the serpentine class chrysotile.  Between amphibole and serpentine asbestos there is an important distinction to be made, in the degree of potency. This is a health hazard when inhaled and in the chemical composition. It is important to identify asbestos in homes today. As it is a versatile material, it is very useful in the construction of residential and commercial properties. Fibers of asbestos get lodged in the lining of lungs when inhaled and are invisible to the naked eye. Such a condition leads to a cancer called Mesothelioma.

Hire a professional:

It can be a tricky task trying to identify asbestos and products containing asbestos because the fibers cannot be identified by normal sight. A professional is the right person to discover if there is asbestos in a product, as the fibers are hundred times thinner than the human hair. Avoid identifying it at home, as this can cause more danger to your family and you.  A better option is to leave the product undisturbed if an asbestos containing material is discovered. A certified asbestos removal professional is the best person to get it replaced or removed.

There are good chances that some of the materials in your home may contain asbestos in some form or the other. Before the late 1970s and till the 1980s asbestos has been widely used in homes. To identify asbestos content you will have to check ingredients in a number of products. Window glazes and exterior caulking, asbestos tape or coatings around steam tubing or hot water pipes, around wood burning stoves, cement sheets or asbestos paper, door gaskets, insulation for furnaces, ceiling tiles, artificial ashes for gas fired fireplaces, vinyl sheet flooring, vinyl floor tiles, roofing and siding shingles, etc. Handling the disposal of asbestos means you are at a greater risk from airborne asbestos fibers.

Older buildings are more likely to contain asbestos in the form of corrugated or flat sheets. These have been used in roofing, ceilings, walls, and even sprayed in pipes. Many other products like roof coatings, clutch facings, asbestos cement corrugated sheets, flooring felts, disc brake pads, roll boards, industrial and commercial asbestos friction products, non roofing coatings, drum brake linings, pipeline wrap, automatic transmission components, asbestos cement shingles, mill boards, brake blocks etc. are some other products that contain asbestos.

Detailed attention required while identifying:

Detailed attention is required if you want to identify asbestos. When verifying, health risk is a factor which needs to be considered. The safest way to ensure everyone’s safety is to seek the aid of an asbestos consultant. It is best to seek aid from experts as they have the license to carry out the task, with lesser implications on health due to legal implications associated with exposure to possible asbestos containing properties. Determine if the asbestos containing materials are intact and whether the fibers are airborne once a property shows positive signs of asbestos contamination.

Check whether the property has to be encapsulated or sealed and secured or whether it has to be scrapped from the entire property. Once you identify asbestos , it is advisable to get rid of material containing asbestos at the earliest. It is important identifying asbestos in homes as exposure to its fibers is a proven and serious health risk.

Exposure to asbestos over longer period of time can have a damaging effect on health and in certain cases this can prove fatal. An asbestos related disease surfaces 15 to 54 years after initial exposure. For its properties of resistance to chemicals and heat, strength and flexibility, this naturally occurring mineral was widely used in many commercial products before. There are two main groups of asbestos, amphibole and serpentine. Under the amphibole group are tremolite, crocidolite, amosite, anthophylite, and actinolite. Chrysotile comes under the serpentine group.

It is from asbestos inhalation that many people are affected with asbestos related disease. Right from the 1940s to the 1980s, asbestos was widely used. Only from the mid 1970s, regulations regarding its use came into effect. In the 1990s regulations on use of asbestos became more stringent. When the fibers of asbestos are dry they disperse in the air easily. Serious health effects are caused on inhalation of these fibers, but the effects on health don’t show immediately. Symptoms are seen anywhere from 15 years onwards. Exposure to asbestos was very high a few decades ago since regulations never existed then and even if they did in some parts of the world, they were not as stringent as they are today.

Due to high inhalation of asbestos there are a number of people who are at risk. Those involved in renovation of old buildings, electricians, plumbers, construction workers, mine workers, those involved in ship building, construction workers,  auto mechanics, those working in brake and auto clutch manufacturing industry, ship building etc. are at a greater risk. Lung cancer, Mesothelioma, Asbestosis are some of the asbestos related diseases.

Lung cancer:

Constant long term exposure to asbestos can cause cancer of the alveoli, bronchial tubes and cancer of the lungs. At higher risks are also those who smoke and exposed to asbestos, which leads to developing cancer of the lungs. Lung cancer in this case is caused by the combination of cigarette smoke as well as asbestos in the lungs. Infection of the lungs, pain in the chest, increasing sputum production, dry irritating cough and blood mixed with sputum are the common symptoms of lung cancer.

Mesothelioma:

This is a cancer of the lung lining called the pleura. It is mainly due to the inhalation of amosite and crocidolite varieties of asbestos that Mesothelioma is caused. Effects of this asbestos related disease are seen approximately 30 to 40 years later even. It has been seen 80 % of the time that this painful, aggressive and fatal cancer leads to death. The disease is restricted mostly to the lungs, and can also occur in the abdominal cavity, peritoneum. Unexplained loss of weight, sudden pain and swelling in the abdomen, constant pain in the chest and due to lung compression extreme difficulty in breathing, shortness of breath are some of the common symptoms of Mesothelioma.

Asbestosis:

When, over prolonged periods of time, asbestos particles are inhaled this asbestos related disease is caused. It is a restrictive and chronic lung disease. Effects of the disease take approximately 15 to 20 years to show up. Initially the cell membranes in the lungs get damaged by the inhaled asbestos fibers, causing tissues in the lung to harden and finally scars are formed, which is known as fibrosis. As the disease progresses, the lungs get completely affected.

Breathing becomes difficult due to the hardening of lung tissues , thus causing the intake of oxygen to reduce considerably. Because of the inability to replace it with fresh oxygen and the inability of removing carbon dioxide, pressure on the lungs increases. It is for this reason that it is called the restrictive lung disease. Pneumonia and bronchitis develop in those suffering from asbestosis. Excess phlegm, constant dry cough, pulmonary hypertension, shortness of breath, constant pain in the chest and difficulty in breathing are the common symptoms of asbestosis.

Obtaining medical help:

Symptoms and signs of an asbestos related disease could show up anytime if you have been exposed to asbestos at work over the past few decades. Understand that the symptoms do not subside naturally and hence it is important to take medical advice immediately. The affected person may not be able to live a perfect normal life after diagnosis. With prescribed medication you can prolong your life expectancy and have a chance to save your life. It becomes essential for people to be educated about the consequences and risks of exposure to asbestos.

Every year new cases are being diagnosed for an asbestos related disease. It is dangerous to remain exposed to asbestos. Talk to your physician immediately if you suspect that you have been exposed to asbestos. Discuss the level of your exposure as early detection can help in preventing further damage, and chances of not developing deadly forms of cancer are reduced. As awareness amongst workers working in an asbestos environment has increased, many have been adopting measures to prevent exposure to the deadly fiber.

Asbestos popcorn ceiling removal must be done by a professional. An existing ceiling was sprayed with a coating for cover up any blemishes that existed in the building. Popcorn ceilings were not really ceilings. The reason why they were used is that a sound proofing quality to the ceiling was added and it made it less probable for noise from the room to be carried outside. They were not very valuable ceilings if you consider the damages and health hazards asbestos causes, but still they were popularly used.Asbestos popcorn ceilings reduce noise in a room as well as hide imperfections in ceilings and hence in the 1970s all across the country, hundreds of thousands of homes installed asbestos popcorn ceilings.  These ceilings were applied with a silicate material or a polymer type substance. Health problems such as mesothelioma and lung cancer are now associated with the extensive use of asbestos in popcorn ceilings. To avoid health problems it is important to take proper precautions if popcorn ceiling contains asbestos because serious or even fatal problems can surface decades later.

It becomes extremely hazardous to drill anything into the ceiling, even to put up a ceiling fan when the ceiling contains asbestos. Whenever the ceiling is cleaned, the asbestos in the ceiling flakes off and becomes airborne. This is an enormous problem even while cleaning a popcorn ceiling. Asbestos in the popcorn ceiling is very friable. The first thing to consider before asbestos popcorn ceiling removal is to ensure that asbestos truly exists. If the popcorn ceiling has asbestos it is not safe to have them in the home.

Not all of the popcorn ceilings installed contain asbestos. Take a sample of the suspected area to check if there is asbestos really present in it. The existence of the substance in a sample should be sent to the laboratory for confirmation. This is needs to be done by a professional if the ceiling does contain asbestos . To lessen the risk of cancer affecting you and your family it is important to get a professional to get the job done as he can get the asbestos disposed off appropriately.

Professionals are qualified for the job and they ensure that neither the members of the house or the environment get contaminated with the fibers of asbestos after the removal job is completed. As per the existing rules and regulations applicable to asbestos popcorn ceiling removal, the asbestos contain waste should be taken care of well. It can be a costly affair hiring a professional agency to get asbestos removed from the popcorn ceiling. But if you consider the health risks involved in doing the job yourself it is definitely worth it hiring professionals.

1. Room scrutiny and testing:

It is best to stay away from the room if you think that the popcorn ceiling is filled with the asbestos material. A consultant can then be hired who will provide you with a quote of asbestos popcorn ceiling removal, and then lay out options or strategies to begin the work. It is definitely not a good option to cover the asbestos containing material. Homes that were built before 1978 had asbestos popcorn ceilings. You can research on asbestos ceiling testing by going online to rule out any questions about the work. The presence of asbestos can be tested with the help of many procedures adopted in laboratories. If you want to protect the health of your family and want peace of mind it is definitely worth it and secondly it is not as expensive as you may think it to be.

2. Avoid doing it yourself:

An average uninformed person should not be taking on the challenge of the asbestos popcorn ceiling removal job. To remediate and remove the presence of asbestos in asbestos ceilings there are some specific requirements that must be met. Only a qualified asbestos removal professional can accomplish the task successfully. The first thing you need to do is to get in touch with a professional qualified in asbestos removal. Local real estate professionals or building inspectors are also people to talk to if you don’t know where to contact a professional. They are in contact with such professionals on a regular basis and can certainly help you.

3. Avoid scratching or scraping the ceiling:

If you scrape or scratch the ceiling you will be releasing asbestos particles in the air. So try to limit the amount of changes and alterations. After the professional safely scrapes the ceiling he then seals the area with a good coat of paint to create a protective layer on the ceiling. In this way the amount of peeling and flaking can be minimized. It can be hazardous for your health if the process of peeling and flaking releases asbestos particles in the air.