Asbestos and Fire

If you are like a lot of people, then you probably are always wanting to know more about the world that you live in. After all, it is always good to be knowledgeable and it can never hurt you to know more information than others. Something that many people like studying is minerals because it is so applicable to daily life. One mineral that is very common to study is asbestos. Most likely, you have probably heard the name asbestos before, but you might not know much about it. Something that you have probably heard about asbestos is that it is somehow related to fire. You probably know this much, but not much more. So, what do asbestos and fire have in common?

Asbestos and Fire: What they have in common

Asbestos and fire have been connected for a long time. The reason that the two are connected is because asbestos is a mineral that is fire resistant. This is not a very common feature, which is why asbestos was so popular in the olden days. For centuries, asbestos was used to make napkins and table cloths. This way, when the napkins and table cloths got dirty, they just had to be thrown in the fire to become clean again. This was very useful, because soap and water was hard to get a hold of back then. People then started making clothes out of asbestos because it was resistant to fire. This made cleaning the clothes a lot easier, since all that had to be done to clean the clothes was throwing them in the fire.

Other uses of asbestos

Starting in the 1800s asbestos started to be used in the house because it made the house fire resistant. Asbestos was used in the cement so that the house could not burn down. Asbestos was also put in bricks and tiles. This made the house completely fire resistant, which everybody loved. Then, scientists discovered that asbestos was bad for the lungs, which is why it is not used in developed countries anymore. Unfortunately, it is still used in developing countries, which is why people who live in developing countries have a much shorter lifespan.

If you only remember one thing about asbestos and fire, then just remember that asbestos is fire resistant. Since asbestos was fire resistant, many people loved this mineral for thousands of years. Asbestos made it extremely easy to clean table cloths and napkins. No water or soap was needed, which really made cleaning a lot easier. All people had to do was throw their napkins and tablecloths in a fire to get them clean.

Asbestos was then used for clothes so that people did not have to worry about them burning in a fire and it made them a lot easier when it came to cleaning them. Unfortunately, even though asbestos is fire resistant, it is not safe to use. Back in the olden days, people did not know it was not healthy to use asbestos. The only thing that you can do know is make sure that you do not have asbestos in your clothes or house.