Most individuals know the risk of asbestos in older homes, what many do not realize is that asbestos was also used in home siding. In fact in the 19th and 20th centuries it was pretty much common practice. in the 1980's the asbestos link to cancer was made and the practice was stopped. That still leaves a lot of homes with asbestos siding.
Should you suspect that your home siding is asbestos based, here are some helpful tips to identify it.
The deed to your house can provide valuable details on when the house was built. If the house was constructed before 1978 then asbestos was likely utilized in at least some areas of the house. If the siding is intact you should leave it in place and contact an expert to come and analyze it.
Look at the siding for any printed manufacturing information, if it does have the manufactures info printed on it then it's unlikely to be made of asbestos. It wasn't until after 1980 when manufactures began coding their home siding and asbestos was already removed from the manufacturing process. However, if there are several layers of paint on your siding, you ought to bring in a specialist to take a look.
Siding that looks like roof shingles had been widespread before 1980, and asbestos was frequently employed in the manufacturing. Take a look at the back of the shingles for something that looks like tar paper, also look for a grainy textured appearance on the front. Both are good indications that asbestos could be present.
Several manufacturers also manufactured a fake cedar wood grain siding. These were normally about 12X24 inches in size and had a wavy pattern at the base. These were extremely common but there are lots of other patters produced also.
If after you've done an inspection you suspect the existence of asbestos or you're not 100% sure, it is time to get in touch with a professional. A lot of asbestos siding was in fact manufactured to look like non asbestos siding so might be hard to distinguish.
The best method to tell if asbestos is present is to send a small sample to a reputable lab for testing. Even if you believe your siding is ok you ought to have a sample tested if your house was built before 1980 to ensure your family's health and well-being. We can never be too careful with our families health, and asbestos causes mesothelioma cancer.
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