5 ms·
Our 1948 house has asbestos cement shingle siding, which I imagine was the vinyl siding of its day back when. We just leave it the hell alone and don't touch i
by pugworthy 4y ago
Our 1948 house has asbestos cement shingle siding, which I imagine was the vinyl siding of its day back when.
We just leave it the hell alone and don't touch it unless we absolutely have to, and are happy with having a "mint green" house for now until eternity.
Admittedly it's done a good job of protecting the underlying wood siding, which would become its own expensive, ongoing, and laborious maintenance task.
- andix 4y agoI don’t really know it, but I think most asbestos applications in buildings are not very dangerous as long as you don’t to construction work.
- bityard 4y agoHandyman here. You're largely correct. The siding is absolutely no big deal because it doesn't release fibers unless it breaks. Because it's solid and brittle, when it _does_ break, hardly any goes into the air. Plus you'd be outside, likely protected by at least a gentle breeze. Asbestos was used in floor tiles (generally on top of concrete), these are perfectly safe if kept waxed or with a clearcoat applied on top. But you'd want to wear a respirator if removing them. There was asbestos insulation in attics and often between walls, or wrapped around pipes. That's the worst stuff and you should use a respirator just being around it. (I'd wear a respirator in any attic, to be honest.)
- actionfromafar 4y agoHaha, it was actually sold under the trade name "Eternit". Pretty apt.
- zip1234 4y agoMy understanding is this is one of the least problematic forms of asbestos. Seems like you are doing the right thing with it although I think it is paintable. If you have asbestos pipe insulation though--that stuff is really bad.