Asbestos Removal: Protecting Your Health

Learning that your home or building is infested with asbestos is a hard pill to swallow. The costs associated to its removal are unknown, making it difficult to deal with. It also encourages homeowners to omit informing future buyers of its presence when they put their home up for sale. They don’t want to pay for the removal but don’t want to lose a sale if their home is on the market.

Given how important it is to get asbestos removed as soon as possible if you find out your home is infested, here are some questions you might want to be answered in order to be better prepared:

1. How to plan for asbestos removal

Demolition work must be carried out according to governmental standards once you get confirmation of asbestos’s presence. Depending on the severity, different precautions must be taken. For instance, removing less than 1 cubic foot of contaminated plaster requires very little protective measures, while removing more than 10 cubic feet of debris represents high risk – involving stricter measures. In the case of heavy duty work, the site may require a temporary shower and debris will need to be double-bagged and identified clearly.

Demolishing a medium-sized room requires over 100 bags of debris that are all rinsed and vacuum sealed one by one.

You should plan for air quality tests as well: one during the demolition work and one after.

2. What does asbestos removal cost?

On average, it’s estimated that the presence of asbestos will increase the cost of demolition by 5 to 10 times its original cost. For instance, demolishing a living room – which is initially valued at $2,000 – could easily end up costing $20,000. When faced with this kind of cost increase, it might be better to modify the initial project you thought you’d have to go through. You can, for instance, remove and rebuild only the infected portion of the all as opposed to tearing the whole thing down.

3. What happens if you don’t comply with regulatory standards regarding asbestos removal?

Because of the high costs associated with this type of work, a number of contractors and homeowners choose to ignore legislation and good practice. This exposes workers and the building’s inhabitants to potential health issues. They can also end up having to pay incredibly high fines of tens of thousands of dollars. Governmental institutions perform periodic construction site audits, which makes it easy for someone to get caught.

4. What is a DSS report and why do I need one?

A Designated Substance Survey report is needed for any demolition or construction project. The homeowner/building owner is responsible for disclosing the Designated Substance found in the building. Contractors can, therefore, be better prepared for the project at hand.

This report not only saves you from getting into any trouble (as mentioned above), but it’s also mandatory for Occupational Health and Safety, as well as Workplace Safety. Workers will take precautionary methods and their health will remain in good standing.

Get asbestos removed by qualified contractors

It’s now time to get to work and contact the right contractors to get the asbestos removed. At RenoAssistance, our Renovation Advisors are glad to help. We have a database full of hundreds of Verified Contractors for various renovation projects. Call us or fill out our form today to get in touch with the best contractors for your asbestos removal.