Knowing whether or not your home or office building contains asbestos ceiling products is extremely important. While they do not cause an imminent threat while they are being left alone, when disturbed, asbestos products can release toxic fibers that when breathed in can cause a number of health issues like lung cancer, mesothelioma and more. This means before you ever begin remodeling or any kind of renovation in your home or business, you have to ensure there is no asbestos present.
What is asbestos?
Common in ceiling tiles, tile adhesives, dry wall, duct wrap and ceiling textures sprays installed from the 1940s to the early 1990s, asbestos is in far more places than you may imagine. Most commonly asbestos can be found in drop ceilings in kitchens and basements.
Materials containing asbestos were used widely because of their low cost and their trait of being fire-resistant. As a general rule, the older a building is, the more likely it is that there is asbestos present.
What are the dangers of asbestos?
Even when it is inhaled in the tiniest amounts, asbestos can cause major damage to your lungs. As we mentioned before, many fatal illnesses are associated with breathing in asbestos. While these diseases take decades to claim their victims, once the foundation has been laid, there is nothing that can be done to reverse the effects. Because the fibers that come loose are microscopic, they are not visible to the naked eye, which means you would never know you were breathing in these harmful toxins.
Facts about asbestos
While you may not think that asbestos is something to worry about, these facts may change your mind:
- Simply by pushing a thumbtack into a ceiling tile can release as many as 6,000 toxic asbestos fibers.
- The total number of people to die from asbestos exposure in the United States is estimated to be over 500,000.
- Asbestos is the number one cause of on-the-job cancers.
What should you do if you think your ceiling tiles contain asbestos?
If you are worried that the ceiling tiles in your office building contain asbestos, you should start by calling a state agency. Many times, they will maintain lists of locations suspected to have contamination by asbestos. On the other hand, if you think you have asbestos in your home, there is no way to know for sure without hiring a professional to perform an inspection.
As we mentioned before, you may not need to worry about asbestos if your drop ceiling is intact and you are not planning on performing any renovations on it in the future. Conversely, if you notice that any part of your ceiling tile is damaged, you want to call a professional for an inspection and possible removal immediately.
So you have asbestos…
If upon inspection you discover that there is asbestos in your ceiling tiles, we would suggest having your ceiling removed immediately. The good news? You can have a brand new drop ceiling installed by the professional team at LA Ceilings. and never have to worry that it contains asbestos. We use 100 percent safe materials, none of which contains asbestos. Not to mention, your new ceiling will surely impress you and others. Our work is present in home and businesses all across the Los Angeles area. Whatever you do, don’t wait to have your ceiling removed and replaced if you fear there is asbestos present. Your health and the health of your family or employees is far too important to risk. Call us at LA Ceilings today to get a quote on your new drop ceiling.