Asbestos Ceiling Tiles
Up until the 1970s asbestos was commonly used in the manufacturing of many products found in homes, office buildings, and schools including asbestos ceiling tiles, floor tiles, spray-on ceiling and wall materials, insulation, and other items. Its usage has been drastically reduced since that time due to government warnings and restrictions of its use, but still exists in many homes and buildings.
Asbestos Ceiling Tiles Are Normally Suspended from the Roof
Asbestos ceiling tiles were most commonly used in acoustic ceilings, meaning the ceilings were suspended or dropped from the roof. In other words, the asbestos ceiling tiles were suspended from the roof, many times by wires, to create a space between the tiles and the roof. These spaces typically contained heating and air conditioning ducts which could easily cause the asbestos fibers to become airborne throughout the building. These types of ceilings were commonly used in schools and office buildings because they decreased the amount of noise. The best way to learn how to identify asbestos ceiling tiles is through asbestos awareness training.
Were You Exposed to Asbestos Ceiling Tiles?
Due to the usage of asbestos ceiling tiles many people were exposed to asbestos, a hazardous material that can be deeply inhaled into the lungs and lead to cancer and other related diseases. Ceiling tile installers frequently worked with these toxic materials without the use of masks or other protective gear. Additionally, any office worker or student that spent time in a building containing asbestos ceiling tiles may have been exposed.
Some people that are exposed to asbestos, from asbestos ceiling tiles or other types of asbestos products, do not show symptoms of asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma for 20 to 40 years or more. Due to the extended latency period these diseases are often in their later stages of development once they are discovered.
If you are trying to determine if your home or workplace has asbestos ceiling tiles there are a couple of things you should know. Many manufacturers made identification easy by clearly marking the asbestos ceiling tiles. A close inspection of the tile will let you know if asbestos is one of the manufacturing materials. Other manufacturers were not so kind, making them hard to spot.
Visually inspecting ceiling tiles is pretty much the only way a homeowner has of determining whether or not they contain asbestos, but this method is not foolproof. When tiles are not clearly marked you should presume they contain asbestos. If the tiles are made from either cellulose or fiberglass they are most likely free from asbestos fibers, but it is not a guarantee. You cannot simply look at ceiling tiles and determine whether they contain asbestos.
To make it easy to identify asbestos-containing material OSHA has ruled that, by law, certain materials are presumed to contain asbestos if they were manufactured before 1981. These materials include sprayed-on or troweled-on surfacing materials, insulation of thermal systems, resilient flooring, and others.
Surfacing material is normally used for fireproofing and is sprayed on steel beams and decking located above ceiling tiles. It is also applied to ceilings as a fibrous and fluffy decorative-looking soundproofing material and as acoustical plaster. Other types of ceiling or wall plaster such as drywall, sheetrock, wallboard, or gypsum board are not presumed to contain asbestos although the tape and joint compound used in connection with these products may contain asbestos.
If you are planning on removing any ceiling tiles or other materials from your home these materials should be presumed to contain asbestos. And whether or not they contain this toxic substance they should be removed as if they did. Normally, the best approach is to hire asbestos removal companies with at least several years of experience and not try to remove dangerous substances, such as asbestos ceiling tiles, yourself. However, it is possible to do the job yourself instead of hiring asbestos abatement contractors.
