Asbestos Sheet Flooring

It also was installed over tongue and groove wood floors particleboard and plywood.

Asbestos sheet flooring.

This happens when improper removal takes place during aggressive demolition causing the tiles to break apart into small pieces. The asbestos floor tile identification articles in this series illustrate that with the combination of design appearance and an idea of floor tile age many asbestos containing floor tiles or sheet flooring products can be reliably identified even before confirmation by a test by a certified asbestos testing laboratory. Please be advised that there are federal and in many states also state and local regulations which you must consult to determine the procedures required to be followed when removing in place asbestos containing materials. This article describes sheet flooring products known to contain significant levels of asbestos.

However you re not completely in the clear because asbestos was a common ingredient in the mastic used to hold these flooring materials to the subfloor. Unlike many asbestos containing materials vinyl asbestos flooring is generally safe to be around. Vinyl is a type of plastic that has long been a popular material for floor tiles and sheets. Asbestos backed sheet vinyl flooring was commonly installed in many ways including over hardwood softwood and concrete floors.

The floor tiles are only harmful when the asbestos particles are made into airborne dust. Like floor tiles vinyl sheet flooring is a long lasting and economical material and it also offers more aesthetic options to suit a homeowner s taste. This is why we often find vinyl asbestos tile underneath other kinds of floor coverings like carpet or even sheet vinyl. Asbestos containing sheet flooring or resilient flooring product identification.

But that changes as soon as you decide to remove it. While asbestos is useful as a binding agent in the manufacture of vinyl and rubber floor coverings it isn t needed to make linoleum tiles or sheet flooring. Stain proof fireproof stylish and affordable vinyl products strengthened through the inclusion asbestos in their manufacture were a very popular choice in many new zealand houses. Unfortunately vinyl sheet flooring manufactured with an asbestos backing poses a serious exposure risk when it is disturbed.

Asbestos was used in vinyl wallpaper from the 1920s and in the vinyl floor tiles and sheet flooring that rose to prominence in the 1950s. We describe sources of asbestos in older forms of sheet flooring including felt backed flooring rubber backed flooring and vinyl cushion backed resilient flooring products. As with any asbestos containing material acm the first step to finding asbestos in linoleum sheet flooring and vinyl tiles is.