Photos of
Examples of unusual uses of asbestos in buildings - InspectAPedia® -
Examples of unusual uses of asbestos insulation material in buildings
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This page provides examples of examples of unusual uses of asbestos insulation material in buildings, most likely also
hazards that should be evaluated. This document assists building buyers, owners or inspectors who need to identify asbestos materials (or probable-asbestos) in buildings by simple
visual inspection. We provide photographs and descriptive text of asbestos insulation and other asbestos-containing products
to permit identification of definite, probable, or possible asbestos materials in buildings.
While an expert lab test using polarized light microscopy may be needed to identify the specific type of
asbestos fiber, or to identify the presence of asbestos in air or dust samples, many asbestos-containing building products
not only are obvious and easy to recognize, but since there were not other look-alike products that were not asbestos, a visual identification of this material can be virtually a certainty in many cases.
Also see Asbestos HVAC Ducts a field identification guide to
visual detection of asbestos in and on heating and cooling system ducts and flue vents. Also see Micro-Photographs of Dust from the World Trade Center collapse following the
9/11/01 attack. Links to U.S. government and other authoritative research and advice are included.
ASBESTOS PAPER DUCT INSULATION Asbestos pipe insulation, found under attic floor as house insulation
This unusual "attic insulation," made of corrugated asbestos "paper" laid flat, was in the floor of a 1940s house in New York state.
We speculated that the installer had a source of "free" insulation and that it was installed before the asbestos scare.
Asbestos Gas-Fireplace Materials in Old Houses
This pre-1900 gas fireplace found in a Minnesota home used tufts of asbestos fibers to support the heating flame.
[Photograph courtesy Roger Hankey.]
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7/07: thanks to Roger Hankey & Cheryll Brown, ASHI home inspectors in Minnesota, for the gas fireplace photographs. Mr. Hankey is a past chairman of the ASHI Standards Committee, serves as co-chairmain of ASHI legislative committee, and has served in other ASHI professional and leadership roles.
06/07: thanks for photographs of transite asbestos heating ducts, courtesy of Thomas Hauswirth, Managing Member of Beacon Fine Home Inspections, LLC and (in 2007) Vice President, Connecticut Association of Home Inspectors Ph. 860-526-3355 Fax 860-526-2942 beaconinspections@sbcglobal.net
Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
Fiberglass: Indoor Air Quality Investigations: Health Concerns About Airborne Fiberglass: Fiberglass in Indoor Air from HVAC ducts, and Building Insulation
Enviro-Scare: Electric Power Lines, Electromagnetic Fields, Cancer Risk, & "Enviro-Scare" - The Normal Curve Cycle of Public Fear of Environmental Issues
Dust from the World Trade Center collapse following the 9/11/01 attack: the lower floors of this building contained spray-on fire-proofing asbestos materials.
Asbestos Information Links: Asbestos Detection, Testing, Recognition, Hazards, Field Photos, and Information Sources, including
health-related links such as legal services and information about mesothelioma and other cancers.
Asbestos Identification and Testing References
Asbestos Identification, Walter C.McCrone, McCrone Research Institute, Chicago, IL.1987 ISBN 0-904962-11-3. Dr. McCrone literally "wrote the book" on asbestos identification procedures which formed
the basis for current work by asbestos identification laboratories.
Stanton, .F., et al., National Bureau of Standards Special Publication 506: 143-151
Pott, F., Staub-Reinhalf Luft 38, 486-490 (1978) cited by McCrone
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Environmental Inspection, Testing, & Diagnosis On-Site IAQ, Gas, Air Testing, Mold Investigation, Sick Building Diagnosis, Lab Services, & Remediation Plan Preparation - indoor air quality testing, problem source determination, supporting lab work, written remediation plan addressing removal of environmental and other hazards and prevention of their recurrence.