Asbestos tile removal
 

We have a room in our house which we want to change the existing carpet with an engineered wood floor. I found out today that under the carpet are the old 9" asbestos floor tiles. I'm only looking at approx 200 sq. ft. The floor company won't touch it. I've done some searches on line and it looks like the floor itself does not pose a danger since the tiles are not pliable, but in the removal process may release hazardous dust etc... So who do I call, the EPA? And what am I looking at as far as cost to remove?

BTW, this was not disclosed by the seller and a part of me wants to pursue legal action? Do I have a case?
:mad:

You can contact an asbestos abatement contractor. You can remove it yourself. Ive done it on a few jobs. Wet it down, pull it up. Double bag it. Most landfills accept it for a fee. But some only will take it from a licensed removal contrator.

As far as legal action. the seller can plead ignorance. Plus if the home inspector overlooked it in the PPI you probably wont have a leg to stand on.

Lay the wood down over the tile.

You can do two things. Remove or leave it. I'd just leave it and install the wood over it.

Encapsulation/overlayment is always an option, as is removal by an abatement contractor. Shouldn't be too much $$$ for a small job like that - in fact you might have a bit of a hard time scheduling someone for how small the job is.

At least if your floor slab catches fire, you'll be well insulated. Ha ha.

I did approx 600 ft in my kitchen.

I covered all cabinets and counters in plastic sheet and taped off. I also made plastic barrier curtains between the other rooms.

I then wet the tiles down with a combo of water and soap from a pump mist bottle. then I used a floor scraper (Floor Bully from Home Depot http://www.qpitools.com/QPIProductFloor.htm) to get the tiles up and placed them in construction grade hefty bags. I used a flat file often to keep the scraper edge both clean and sharp.

When the entire tile didn't lift in one piece I used a hammer and putty knife to remove the remnants....while wetting with the mist.

The problem arises when the tiles crack and their dust gets into the air.

I wore tyvek coveralls, respirator and nitrile gloves taped at the wrist. When done all plastic was carefully folded and thrown using the hefty bags.

BTW, most 9x9 and 10x10 floor tile sold today contains asbestos...as does Spackle and other joint covering products.

I suggested this but the floor installer doesn't want to do that. I guess there is concern that the glue won't be as effective on the tile vs. directly on the concrete floor?

edit: apparently laying wood directly over the tile voids the warranty for the wood as well as the installation. I have to remove this tile now or now I won't be able to sleep.

I've had my fill of this stuff. Crap x 10.

If it were me, I'd remove it myself and quick. done.

My buddy runs an asbestos abatement co. in Alberta, he told me that drywall dust is far more harmful to your lungs. This is just a pile of crap imo; gov't crap. YES, there was a problem with my grand-dads buddy that worked in an asbestos mine, but this kind of stuff just erks me. I've paid over a million dollars in getting rid of the stuff over the years. :(

Why not switch to a 'floating floor' which does not get glued down?

Leave the floor (which you will now have to disclose when you sell), cover with the proper foam padding and install the floating floor.

+100
Not much chance of airborne contamination with floor tile.
You'll have MUCH less exposure than doing a brake job in the 70's....

Amen, it's 99% BS. Similar to the recent panic over mold, which has made many "Mold Abatement Specialists" very wealthy. I'd remove it without a second thought, disclosing it when you sell could hurt your property value.

At one time I was a licensed asbestos abatement whatever. It is all such a scam. We called ourselves mastorbators because there is such a scare tactic involved. Do a little google on the types of asbestos. Floor tile is the least friable. In other words it doesn't distenegrate and isn't easily ingested. A 1 armed blind monkey can put a floating floor over the tile. Don't pay someone to remove it if you think you must have it removed. Like was stated above do it yourself. Get a mask, big ass chisel, water bottle and get after it.

Well there you go.
ain't life grand.

I spent a million bucks (my clients money) on this BS.

Find some one that will go over it. It is done all the time. I run in to it all the time. Most flooring guys put floating floors on it. It is the least friable of the A materials that you will find in older structures.

I would just pop the old tiles up myself and be done with it. People panic when they hear asbestos floor tiles, but there are other things in your home with asbestos that nobody gives a thought about. Spackle, carpet adhesive, and mirror adhesive a few of the most common things that get overlooked.

If they just pop up then there's no problem at all. However, if they've been down a while they become brittle and that's where the problem begins.

"The problem" is way overblown, as has been expressed by people in the abatement business....

Tile is the least offensive of the Asbestos Containing Materials. Here is my FAQ on Asbestos and the Federal Regulations. Yes...my FAQ....I wrote it...

http://www.sbcapcd.org/biz/asbestos.htm

While I agree that the regs on floor tile are overblown, sheet Linoleum and other friable materials can be VERY hazardous. The incubation period from exposure is 30-40 YEARS in some cases...but hey do what ya want, I'll probably be drooling in my Cream of Wheat at the rest home when it happens to YOU....

I used to be involved in abatement a lot. Still am sometimes. If they're not crumbling, pop them off and double bag them and dump them. The asbestos is encased in the vinyl, and is really not a problem unless you take a belt sander to it. As others said, the pipe insulation and drywall mud is much more dangerous.

IMHO this is not a good DIY job. Yeah some of you did it yourself and got lucky. I'd seal the tiles and cover them with the new floor.