Asbestos Demolition

Asbestos was famous among the builders and contractors in the early 20th century. This is because asbestos is heat resistant and is able to absorb sound. Over time, scientists found that long exposure of asbestos causes lung cancer and also mesothelioma. This, in turn, resulted in strict laws and guidance on the usage and disposing of asbestos.

Disposing of asbestos is tricky. Asbestos naturally exists in the air, however is it only in a small amount. Hence it does not prove to be lethal to us. When a whole building or house that has asbestos ceiling is being demolished, however, then there are certain methods that have to be followed.

Firstly you need to employ a registered asbestos specialist. You will need to comply with the EPD (Environmental Protection Department) requirements, which include:

• Safety outfits for the workers this includes proper clothing and breathing gear.
• Process to take care of the waste
• Air monitoring to be done every day with out fail

When removing tiles that have asbestos, contractors may use the following

• Dry ice – since it is cold, the tiles will detach from the floor and it will not break. This means that you will reduce the exposure of the asbestos in the air.
• Solvents – can be used to loosen the tiles from the floor. Spear the solvent on the tile. Leave it on for sometime. Then using scrappers you can scrap of the tiles.
• Infrared machines – these machines produce heat on the floor. The heat will let the tiles to detach itself from the floor. So now you could just remove the tile.

Asbestos in Cement

Now asbestos in cement products include duct insulation, and pipes. In these cases the asbestos-cement products need to be removed before the house or building is demolished. This is because when house are demolished, a wrecking ball is used. This will result in a lot dust and the asbestos – cement products will be crushed and most probably will be in the air. Therefore the environment around the house will be affected. It has to be removed first before the demolishing is done.

Asbestos in the Roof

If the roof contains asbestos, then the rood has to be removed before the demolition begins. The roofs will be taken out by hand. The workers need to be given appropriate protective gear. This is to keep them save. Contractors can hire an asbestos removal contractor. Now the debris can be disposed of in the landfills specifically for asbestos.

As much as asbestos is a good material for many things, it is very harmful to us. So when demolishing a building we have to follow the necessary methods to reduce the exposure of asbestos. In short a building that contains asbestos material needs to be free from asbestos material before is gets demolished. Contractors have to take all the necessary methods to remove these materials from the house. If man power is used, they have to be given protective gear. All parties need to be taken care of.