Can asbestos in your home hurt you?

Question

Can the asbestos on wiring, on heating ducts in the basement, and other items in an old home cause a normally healthy person to experience health problems?

Answer 1

Asbestos is only a danger if it becomes airborne and the particles are inhaled. Only a lab can determine if an insulation is asbestos or fiberglass. A microscope with a polarized light is used to examine the sample. This is not usually done in the field. So if you are concerned you can have a sample analized to verify if it is asbestos. You may have fiberglass insulation which is far cheaper to remove and replace.

Improper removal of asbestos can create asbestos dust and spread contamination over a wide area.

It has been common practice to leave asbestos in place if the material is in good condition. An alternative to removal has been encapsulation to seal asbestos inplace and protect it from getting damaged an air borne

Asbestos inhalation causes a lung cancer (Mesothelioma) which usually takes years to develope.


Although you may have asbestos on the outside of the air duct, the insides of the air duct may need to be cleaned. Dust, mold and other alergens will accumulate in the dict work and need to be periodically cleaned out. There are companies which will do this cleaning quite effectively using special tools and equipment.

Frequent changine of your furnace air filters will help. Also check and see if you have a humidifier installed in your duct. These can become breeding grounds for mold and they easily collect contamination.

Answer 2

As long as asbestos is left alone it does not cause a problem.
Asbestos can become airborne if it is broken, if you are worried about it, call in an expert to remove it.
In most states you can do the removal of your own asbestos, but you will need to keep the asbestos wet while doing this (NOT ADVISED TO DO THIS).
Call an expert to handle this situation or at least get some professional advice on this.
Most of the earth has asbestos contained in it, see the wikipedia article on this.

Answer 3

No, you do no longer would desire to undertaking approximately your well-being or that of your toddler. the main threat of Asbestos is the people who artwork with it every day for a complete occupation!!!!! out of your description, you have possibly no longer been uncovered in any respect. And if uncovered, it became negligible. After the 9/11 disaster in massive apple city, the 1000's, or 1000's, of human beings residing and working around floor 0 began to develop hell with the cleanup operations and jumped the city, the county, the state, AND the EPA for permitting the cleanup with out each and all the pink tape controls EPA have been spouting for thirty some years. To do the cleanup in accordance to the longstanding EPA standards would have fee BILLIONS UPON BILLIONS, and would have been impossible to do. subsequently, the EPA PUBLICLY ADMITTED that they had, FOR YEARS, OVERSTATED the unfavourable components linked with Asbestos, and that the prospect concerns purely utilized to Asbestos workers!!!!!

Answer 4

LONG --- BUT well worth the reading.

Make the connection.
http://www.mcs-america.org/

I am a nurse with over 25 years experience in this area and I have seen a lot of people with various illnesses caused from chemicals and fragranced products as well as VOC’s in their homes, schools and workplace. This problem is growing as more and more chemicals are being introduced and used on a daily basis.

We are now seeing more and more children with Asthma, Allergies, Hives, Eczema and many respiratory illnesses. I can not emphasize how important it is to educate yourself about MCS and the harm you may be doing to your health by using chemicals and fragranced products.

If you or a loved one suffers from Asthma, Allergies, Autism, chronic headaches, reproductive problems, Migraines, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, you need to read further and learn about the signs and symptoms of MCS - Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

Most doctors will not inform you about this because patients as a whole like to walk out of a doctors office with a prescription for some magical medicine and they do not want to be told that their expensive new perfume or newly installed carpet may be the culprit. So, the doctor will give you medications and many of these meds either do not work or cause other health problems.

Chemicals and fragranced products are often the root of all evil when it comes to your health. Many of the below mentioned items are common triggers to sinus, asthma, itching, headaches, Migraines and allergy problems amongst other health issues. Get rid of them and your lungs will thank you and you will breathe easier.

And, it is not only personal body or cleaning products causing havoc on your health….many people become ill after wearing brand new clothing, dry-cleaned clothes, installing new carpet, painting, buying a new mattress or after home renovations because of the Flame Retardants, Benzenes, Formaldehydes, etc. used in these products. So the answer is NO, you are not imagining that 2 weeks after your home, office or classroom got renovated you started to become ill, get dizzy or have headaches. This is happening more and more these days and adults as well as children are becoming sicker and sicker.

Unfortunately, too many doctors compound the problem by prescribing chemical medications to try to alleviate the symptoms of an already chemical overloaded body and they rarely tell the patient to eliminate the chemical offenders. How many times have I seen people in the grocery store with Bounce, Glade Plug-Ins and Febreeze in their shopping cart along with a bottle of Benadryl , Migraine Excedrin and a box of Allergy Tablets ? Why don’t they make the connection?

Here is a Brain Spect Scan Before and after a whiff of perfume:
http://www.ourlittleplace.com/spect.html

BIG NO-NO’s
No Bounce or dryer sheets
No Febreeze
No Glade Plug-ins
No scented candles
No Fragranced Products on Body, Hair or Clothing
No Smoke
No Dander
No Sprays

And remember, it is NOT the smell it is the Chemicals that make up the smell. So, even if something is "Fragrance Free" these products often mask the smell with another chemical !

More and more offices and schools are creating “Fragrance Free Zones”… why do you think this is?

Feel free to contact me on this subject.

http://www.ourlittleplace.com/mcs.html

Answer 5

Yes, I would have it removed, but get professional help. It is dangereous to breathe in, so I would get it out. If you choose to do it yourself, at least talk to a professional to get advice on how to remove it properly, and what kind of protective wear you need to cover your face and body.

Answer 6

yes