Heads up on asbestos in your home, still used into the 1980's!

[b5blue]

  I've done some research on asbestos after a heads up from el dub in my topic on home flooring. It can possibly be present in many forms of flooring, including vinyl sheet, even the paper backing and glue or mastic up into the 1980's products. I'd assumed wrongly it had been phased out much earlier and found it's even been used in wallpaper, joint compound, putty, and many other products.   
  Be careful, do research before attempting demo of anything older than 1990's.    My research info is from the Mesothelioma Foundation. 

[Chad L. Magee]

When it comes to asbestos, you have to look at the particles to see if they are friable or not.  Friable asbestos will be easy to particulate in the air, which means that you can then breath it into your lungs.  Once in your lungs, it starts a biological chain reaction that leads to many health problems, from cancer to blockages in the lungs, that can lead to eventual death.  Asbestos that is non-friable (like flooring tiles) is usually not a problem until it is disturbed enough to make it into a friable form.  If you do find friable asbestos, it is better left to the professionals for proper disposal and cleanup.  An OSHA rated breathing apparatus is critical for safety reasons when working with it.

I have had experience dealing with both friable and non-friable asbestos in a laboratory setting...

[b5blue]

  Exactly, the "paper backing" for vinyl sheet flooring may contain asbestos and that would be friable when ripping up the sheeting. I'll be overlaying all vinyl flooring with Hardy Board, a cement sheeting product to seal in old layers. 

[polywideblock]

beware james hardie products   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Hardie 

[b5blue]

  Here is what I use...no asbestos! 
http://www.homedepot.com/p/James-Hardie-HardieBacker-1-4-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-Cement-Backerboard-220006/100157596?cm_sp=BazVoice-_-CAT-_-3c932eb6-0231-41e6-a126-748e88fb87ae-_-x
  I've used it like drywall to replace paneling also, a bit tricky setting screw heads just enough but tape and mud like sheet rock and and your good to go. (They make screws to use with it that sink into the hard surface.) 

[stripedelete]

The hard asbestos "shake" type shingles used on the sides of houses make great heat shields when you working with a torch in a tight area.   

[ws23rt]

Asbestos is one of those things that came to our attention after years of knowing nothing about it. Sorta like xrays.
Workers used to work in clouds of asbestos dust day in and day out.--- My mother was an xray tec. for the army in the 40s. She had high doses for years until they learned how to get what they wanted from xrays with very little. She passed at 84 from unrelated issues.--

In the seventies I sometimes fabricated large quilts for engine insulation out of asbestos fabric. Sewing these things on a class 5 singer machine created a little cloud of dust right in front of me.

We now know how the sharp angular fibers (friable) can attach to the lung tissues (mechanical clingons) and it makes sense to minimize that. The evolution of concern about a new found hazard tends to tell us to stay away from any contact.

I'm reminded of a news story about a couple interested in an apartment. The previous owners were smokers and the new buyers required the apartment to be stripped to the studs and rebuilt to get rid of the "toxic" residue left by the smokers.

Is it possible that the stress of living in a contaminated world might be worse than the dirt?

[MoParJW]

Don't mean to scare anyone and most of you probably already know, but also watch out for asbestos in our cars.
Brakes, undercoating and I believe wire insulation contain asbestos.
I learned this ofcourse AFTER grinding away undercoating 

An oldtimer co-worker told me they used to blow brake drums clean with compressed air back in the day  .

[b5blue]

  I checked on "California proposition 65 hazardous material warning" seen quite often for construction supplies. Seems anything containing "wood or wood fiber" will qualify for a mandatory warning. 
  Finding that asbestos was or could be present in popcorn ceilings, joint compounds, mastic/thin set/glue and caulking, plumbers putty and so on was an eye opener. We all know about lead paint but why is this hazardous potential not more widely known? There are bunches of video on flooring replacement and other DIY help online and I saw none aware of the potential?
  Instead of what I "was going to do" I carefully trimmed the loose flooring at the transition area, gently placed the scrap and carefully swept up. I final vacuumed with a triple filter HEPA vacuum and placed a throw rug over the exposed area. It will cost a couple hundred bucks extra to cover with cement board but will actually be much less labor and give the floor a layer of zero burn rating while being really flat and ready for new flooring. (I'll float uneven areas and transitions with a suitable thin set before putting down the cement boards.)       

[Chad L. Magee]

Asbestos is one of those things that came to our attention after years of knowing nothing about it. Sorta like x-rays.
Workers used to work in clouds of asbestos dust day in and day out.--- My mother was an x-ray tec. for the army in the 40s. She had high doses for years until they learned how to get what they wanted from x-rays with very little. She passed at 84 from unrelated issues.--

While it will not save those who have been exposed to medical x-ray scattering in the past, there is something that is being developed that may prevent it in the future.  A scientific paper published in a peer-reviewed journal a few years ago had a novel way of generating site specific x-rays using an array of 1000 small lasers (similar to the common laser pointers) and a single ruby crystal that was doped with a specific metal compound.  Basically, the crystal absorbed the laser light (visible energy range) and it became excited (built up energy) until it emitted in the x-ray range at a very specific point.  What that means is that it combined many forms of visible light to make a high energy one (a form of non-linear optical properties).  The nice thing about it is that the x-ray beam is very concentrated with not much scattering effect.  The article mentioned about this being a possible way to build a much cheaper (to use and build) and safer x-ray instrument for developing countries.  It will take probably a decade before all of the bugs are worked out in a usable instrument, but I think it is worth doing.

Radiation can be a strange thing.  What kills one person may not greatly affect another quite the same way.  It depends greatly upon the type of radiation, energy level of the radiation, length of exposure, body location and even the genetic makeup of the person's DNA.  In the past, we even considered strong exposure to radiation a healthy way to boost the body.  (google: radium water products)  Unfortunately, we were wrong...

[BSB67]

Is it possible that the stress of living in a contaminated world might be worse than the dirt?

It is one more thing blown completely out of proportion.