Asbestos Testing

I recently had an inspection of a rowhouse in need of renovation. There is asbestos covering several basement pipes (expected) and the inspector identified 5 or 6 additional places where it may be hiding in old floor and ceiling tiles on several floors.  Once I close on the house, I plan to take samples of the possible offenders and send them out to a lab for testing. Anything that comes back positive I plan to address professionally. My question is, for locations where the tests are negative, are the lab results I get on my own enough to confirm the area is asbestos free, as far as the city or contractors are concerned? How is a building deemed asbestos-free? Does it need to be?

fawn

in Inspection 12 years and 8 months ago

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lcrivolitorino | 11 years and 11 months ago

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I could tell you that as a contractor I had to hire asbestos companies and the first initial quote close o 3,000.00 is about right. And as joearchitect said above, it could be other things besides which actually have the asbestos. And also I believe there has to be a certain amount over the square footage in order to actually need the asbestos licensed contractor.

joearchitect | 11 years and 11 months ago

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 If you just take a piece of tile or inulation to a lab you may miss other things that could be asbestos containing.  Is better to have someone come to your building and test everything that may be disturbed by the renovation work.  Sometimes it is not the tile but the mastic adhesive or caulking that contains asbestos.  I would never use a company that does abatement work for the testing. If you are doing a substantial renovation and need to get permits the city requires an asbestos investigation anyway.  The testing company will analyze any materials disturbed by the work.  The fee for this type of work which includes the city ACP-5 form and filing fee is usually $600-800, depending on the number of samples and type of testing needed.

wiley | 11 years and 11 months ago

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I agree with the above – I had a sample tested someplace in the city, sorry I forget, it was under $100\. It turns out that it was not asbestos. Two of the three contractors who came to look said it was asbestos and that they did not need to test, they just knew from experience. – glad I tested the stuff

BrownstoneDuplex | 11 years and 11 months ago

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You can even mail it to a lab.  I think I also used Kam.  Just put each sample in a separate baggie.  You will received a lab report which will give you the percentage of asbestos (if any) in each sample. It was not expensive. (< $50). I also recommend going with a reputable company.  You will be better off in the long run.

riinehart | 11 years and 11 months ago

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I second catboot … as far as testing, definitely best to take it somewhere that is not trying to get your business for the removal. We also took samples to a lab in LIC, I believe it was called Testor Technologies, or something similar. Very cheap, like $50 for the tests if I remember correctly.   However, if it is asbestos and you have to remove it, from all the research I did (and personal experience) it seems best to go with a reputable company. We used Leinster and they were excellent (many recs on these forums) — total pros, but expensive, of course.

catboot | 11 years and 11 months ago

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Had my basement tiles tested at KAM in Long Island City. Just took a tile in and they tested it. They are a lab, not an abatement company.  I can’t remember what the cost was, probably $100 to test both the tile and the glue.