Asbestos Ceiling and removal?

Question

We just bought a house and our ceiling has the cottage cheese texture to it and it is cracked and broken in many placed so my husband wants to just take it off. I have told him that it may contain asbestos but he thinks he can do it on his own. So we are going to get it tested and if it does he just wants to remove it himself. My question is, is this a job anyone can do?

Answer 1

The 'cottage cheese' look is usually a combination of joint compound and cellulose (recycled newspaper), I have seen a few older textures that had some fiberglass in them too.... you can do this yourself.

If the test actually shows it to contain asbestos... then you are going to have to hire a haz/mat removal crew to remove the product and dispose of it. This is state law in most areas. You cannot do it yourself, and you cannot just toss it into trash bags to go to your local dump. (IF IT actually is asbestos...it might be less costly to install new drywall right over it - check your prices - or... to pull the drywall down intact, rather than scraping it off... be quicker for the haz/mat crew to do that)

Asbestos is found in some really old 'drop in' ceiling tile panels, like you would find in public buildings, but most often, it would be found more commonly in pipe insulating wrap, some other forms of really old insulation, and in exterior tile siding. In cases like the insulating wrap, and tile siding... it is easier to go over the asbestos, than to remove it. As long as the asbestos is 'encased' in something, it is safe. It becomes a hazard when it becomes airborne as dust particles.

Removing any ceiling texture is a dirty job... it creates a lot of dust in the air, and is a mess to clean up. My first suggestion is to remove the furniture, and cover everything with plastic. Put plastic over the doors and windows....even over the walls... it makes the clean up, so much easier. Many of the building supply stores carry disposable jumpsuits (or pants and jackets) for painting, etc... buy a few.. they really help... and don't forget a good quality dust mask, or respirator, and safety glasses (if you dont get a full face respirator) I use a half face (2 cartridge) respirator myself for jobs like this.

I like to use a floor scraper to scrape the texture.... looks kinda like a garden hoe, with the blade straight out from the handle, instead of bent 90 degrees like the garden hoe. This lets me reach the ceiling without a ladder. If you spray the texture just a bit, (water) it will help keep the dust down, and the texture scrapes off a bit easier when dampened.

Once the old texture is off, then you can repair the surface as needed. (Perhaps fill in any spots with joint compound if needed, or do some sanding) Then you are ready to either spray on a new texture, or prime and paint. If you are going to spray on a texture, prime it afterwards.

By the way.... you mention cracks in the old texture... if the spray texture mixture is too wet, it will develop a lot of tiny cracks in it as it dries.... if you meant to say that you have some long cracks, these are caused by the drywall joint shifting. You might need to shoot a few drywall screws into the ceiling to secure the panels, before mudding. If your drywall was installed with nails, and you have nails backing out... I would recommend that you shoot some screws into the stud, and then go ahead and pull the nail, so you wont have a problem with it backing out again in a year or so. Also, with long cracks, you may need to use a little 'drywall tape'... for ceiling repairs, I like to use a 'mesh' tape. It is a little sticky on one side, which makes it easy to use on ceilings, and you apply the new joint compound (aka mud) right over it.

Have Fun

Answer 2

If it is asbestos it is hazardous material and should be removed by a company that is trained to remove that type of ceiling. Otherwise, you're could be putting yourselves at risk if you don't take the proper precautions.

Answer 3

As sparkles said asbestos is a hazardous materials.. wow if hubby wants to do it himself best of british luck.
To start with he is going to need complete head mask and breathing gear filters and full overalls ,, no part of body to be exposed, the material has to be dampered as its pulled out and completely wrapped in plastic and taped up and buried with minimum cover of 6ft. Wash all clothes and then burn 'em
You think I joke!! I kid you not.. asbestous dust can linger and if breathed in collects on the lungs then BINGO ..Asbestosis CANCER WITH A BIGGG "C". Take it from someone who has it & i guarantee u dont want it.. So sit down with a glass of wine or beer , think about it and get the experts in you only have one life and the experts have the liscence to do it & get rid of it. Take the old man for a second honeymoon and leave it to them..... that's the best advice you can get for free. ciao.. but the fine if you get caught in Aussie land would NOTcompensate for the experts...

Answer 4

He wants to what???
Id get his head read, this stuff is extremely dangerous material. It may take 20 yrs to develop cancer, But its a bit late then to say Gee I wish I had done it properley

If it is asbestos Its better to pay the experts to do a proper job, maybe expensive but I think is prefferable to an early funeral, maybe yours!!!!!

Answer 5

Don't make any plans until you have it tested by a lab. any asbestos removal company can refer you to one.

Asbestos is heavily regulated, you can't just do whatever you want with it.

Answer 6

if you want cancer?, do it yourself. if you want to get fined by the government?, do it yourself. If you want alot of asbestos infested ceiling (I'm assuming tiles) that you can't do anything with?, do it yourself. otherwise, it's gonna require you to seal off the entire house while this is being done and positive ventation using hepa filters for the negative ventalation and of course proper Personal Protective Equipment.....yeah....if the test comes out positive for asbestos, it's gonna be expensive and you're not gonna just be able to dispose of the stuff wherever you please. IF it does turn out to be asbestos....I'd fault the home inspector for it......not that I am for suing people, but this is expensive stuff we're talking about.....

Answer 7

if you do find it is asbestos you are better off to leave it unless you can afford to hire a certified asbestos contractor to remove it for you. the best thing to do is to encapsulate it (seal it) there us a special paint that you can use for that check out this link: http://www.hytechsales.com/prod1100.html

if you do anything with it weather it has asbestos in it or not wear a respirator and i do not mean a mask like your dentist wears . i mean something like this : http://www.coopersafety.com/item/100540/3M-7500-Series-Half-Mask-Respirator.aspx

Answer 8

If it is bonded asbestos that is in hard sheets you can do it with care . Just wear dust masks and disposable overalls.

Answer 9

You must leave this job to the professionals, regardless of the cost, they will have all the necessary equipment & knowledge to deal with this hazardous material, do not let him remove it , it is not worth it...