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Asbestos and lead are also minimal risk undamaged in-situ. Both are now banned, and for good reason.
by TylerE 3y ago
Asbestos and lead are also minimal risk undamaged in-situ. Both are now banned, and for good reason.
- bobsmooth 3y agoAsbestos was banned but lead is still used in many things.
- TylerE 3y agoIt’s been banned in new residential construction since 1978.
- kingnothing 3y agoLead was banned in a few specific products like paint. You can still find it all over the place in things like cabinet pulls, door handles, and even ceramic tile.
- quickthrower2 3y agoWhat about faucets?
- obrix 3y agoLead is used in brass for corrosion resistance even in handling drinkable water. It does not markedly leach into the water and increases the usability of the plumbing from less than 5 years to more than 30 years. Gas welding the material results in lead fumes. There is a big quarrel about the usage of lead in water pipe connector brass parts going on in the EU.
- jacobolus 3y agoOne difference is that stone countertops are not a danger to homeowners or people doing future basic renovation.
- TylerE 3y agoBut they are - and the article mentions it. Alterations years later will still Produce dust.
- kelnos 3y agoAltering the manufactured stone is a deliberate act, and appropriate safety precautions can be mandated. (If people choose not to take those safety precautions, that's on them.) Asbestos can get into your air through accidental damage to insulation, or in the case of lead, paint chipping or pipes aging can do the trick. This is just something that happens incidentally through the regular lifetime of the material, not because someone decided to do something to it.
- Too 3y agoCountertops are isolated units that can be removed safely without damaging them. Worst alteration I can think of is drilling a hole, another small operation that you can cover with water and vacuum. Opening up a dry wall on the other hand, will inevitably dust up the whole house.
- TylerE 3y agoInstall a new sink, gotta enlarge the opening, make lots of dust...
- kelnos 3y ago"Undamaged" is the key word there; asbestos at least seems very easy to damage. Is the same true for engineered stone? And even if you do damage it, I would expect it would not kick up enough dust to be a problem.