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November 14, 2007
Pyrobar-what's in it?
Recently noticed that the blocks around my basement stairs are stamped "pyrobar". I thought this was concrete, but it appears to be some sort of gypsum (sp?) material. Will it kill me (i.e. is it absestos based?)
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It may have asbestos, but may not. The only way to know for sure is to have it tested. From what I've heard the mortar is more likely to have asbestos than the gypsum material itself.
Will it kill you? Hard to say. If there are fibers, are they friable (e.g.falling apart)? If you're not sure, be careful not to disturb it. I was told by an asbestos inspector that an acceptable method in NYC of covering it is with two coats of latex paint.
Posted by: Heatherie at November 15, 2007 9:12 AM
I demolished some of that myself last year. It comes apart very easily. I never thought about the asbestos danger..... I didn't even wear a dust mask. Good luck.
Posted by: guest at November 15, 2007 10:03 AM
it was some sort of fire-proof material used
way back when... probably contains asbestos... proceed with caution.
Posted by: bren at November 15, 2007 10:36 AM
Pyrobar is some sort of gypsum compound specially formulated for heat resistance. It does not contain asbestos.
I previously owned a house built in 1928. When I sold it a few years ago, the buyer's engineer performed an asbestos inspection. He found some asbestos in the pipe cladding, but did not make any comments about the pyrobar.
Posted by: guest at November 15, 2007 3:44 PM
A quick Google search turned up a few contradictory posts. Proceed with caution:
http://www.usgclaims.com/history.asp
I used to do some research for a former asbestos manufacturer and was really horrified about the terrible effects of even a little asbestos exposure. If that were in my basement and I wanted to remove it, I would call an asbestos abatement firm.
Posted by: guest at November 15, 2007 4:34 PM
I have that in my basement and had it tested for asbestos in the summer and it came back negative. I would test it but i think you are ok with this stuff. get back to us with your findings.
Posted by: guest at November 15, 2007 7:30 PM
Pyrobar was typically used by those seeking to reduce noise through walls. In the 1920's it was commonly used to line the interior walls of speak-easies in NYC, that sought to keep the noises of drunken revelry in-house.
Posted by: guest at November 15, 2007 11:00 PM
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