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Johns Manville sewer pipe advertisement as appearing in Life magazine 20 Oct. 1958 p. 95 edited (C) InspectApedia.com Asbestos Cement Transite Water & Sewer Pipes
Transite Pipe Hazards: Asbestos Ingestion

  • POST a QUESTION or COMMENT about how to recognize cement asbestos transite water pipes, transite sewer piping, & transite pipe hazards

Transite Asbestos Cement Pipes:

This article assists in the recognition of transite pipe used for water pipes, and discusses potential hazards of this material when it is found in buildings.

This article explains the potential health hazards (asbestos exposure by ingestion) as well as practical problems (fragility, collapse, expense of replacement) of cement asbestos transite pipe water piping and we provide citations to authoritative studies of this question. Among topics of discussion here are Vinyl-lined Transite Asbestos Pipe Hazards.

Practical Hazards & Risks of Transite Water Supply Piping Mains & transite asbestos sewer piping. Safety hazards associated with transite pipe cement asbestos materials in buildings. How to recognize asbestos transite pipe materials in building chimneys, air ducts, water pipes.

Transite pipe was used for water mains as well as in some sewer and drain line applications. Similar transite (asbestos cement) pipes were used as exhaust flues or chimneys for gas fired heaters.

Page top: a Johns Manville Transite asbsestos pipe as advertise in Life, 20 Oct. 1958 [edited for clarity].

InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.

Guide to Health Hazards of Transite Pipe Cement-asbestos Water Piping

Johns Manville transite pipe (C) Inspectapedia.comTransite pipe or asbestos-cement pipes were used for water supply systems in some municipalities up into the 1970's in the U.S. and probably in other countries.

In some cities (Ellwood PA for example), the transite water mains were found to be unable to reliably withstand high water pressures (up to 225 psi in Ellwood according to one of our readers) and the pipes were easily broken.

Transite pipe photos here and below: Johns Manville™ transite (cement asbestos) pipe, contributed by an InspectApedia reader in 2017. (We don't know if this Johns Mansville pipe was a transite water line or a sewer line.)

[Click to enlarge any image]

The reader told us:

We recently purchased a house and a transite pipe was in the front yard. Yesterday someone left the road struck a fence and sent the transite pipe flying.

This exposed the pipes composition. I have attached images for your site if you wish to use them. The show exposed crocidolite fibers present in the matrix. - anonymous by private email 2017/10/08

Below: Johns Manville Transite® pipe being laid during installation of the San Diego Aquaduct carrying water to the city of San Diego (Jones 1955).

Johns-Manville Transite asbestos water pipe installation during construction of the San Diego Aquaduct 1955, Jones, J.P., The Reclamation Era, May 1955 cited & discussed at InspectApedia.com

Johns-Manville Transite® asbestos water and sewer pipes included Transite, Blue Brute, Permastran, J-M asbestos-cement or "transite" water and sewer pipes of various sizes and properties, and other piping products, such as

Johns-Manville "Zeroseal" used at lap joints, Johns-Manville "Zerogloss" pipe coating, Johns-Manville "Zerotape" and "Zerotex" felted mieral wool pipe insulation tape. J-M transite epoxy-lined sewer pipe sections were joined using the company's "Ring-Tite" rubber sealing rings and were rated as able to carry 100 gallons/inch/mile/day of wastewater. - (Western City Magazine, 1966, Vol. 42 p. 19)

Asbestos fibers might be ingested from water supplied through transite water piping.

Transite piping deteriorates over time, releasing asbestos fibers from the interior of the pipe into the drinking water flowing through that conduit. The level of health risk from ingested asbestos fibers is uncertain and probably low.

An NIH report prepared by industry experts concluded:

The work group believes that the cancer risk associated with asbestos ingestion should not be perceived as one of the most pressing potential public health hazards facing the nation.

However, the work group does not believe that information was sufficient to assess the level of cancer risk associated with the ingestion and therefore, this potential hazard should not be discounted, and ingestion exposure to asbestos should be eliminated whenever possible.

Photo below: an 8-10" diameter transite asbestos pipe contributed by an InspectApedia reader and described as a "field drain".

Another study by Millette JR et als reported

Transite asbestos water pipe (C) InspectApedia.com reader rickyCancer mortality for the population census tracts of Escambia County, FL, which use asbestos-cement (AC) pipe for public potable water distribution, was compared with cancer mortality data collected from census tracts in the same county where other types of piping materials are used.

An analysis of covariance was run to test for differences in standard mortality ratios for seven cancer sites among three potential asbestos exposure groups based on AC pipe usage.

Twelve variables representing nonexposure-related influences on disease rates were combined in four independent factors and used as covariates in these analyses.

No evidence for an association between the use of AC pipe for carrying drinking water and deaths due to gastrointestinal and related cancers was found. The limitations on the sensitivity of the analysis are discussed.

Also see:

Photograph of  transite asbestos heating flueWhile 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 dust or water 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.

Links to U.S. government and other authoritative research and advice are included.

Vinyl-lined Transite Asbestos Pipe Hazards

A more immediate water quality hazard has been detected in some vinyl-lined transite water pipes - Tetrachloroethylene. A report on the Sandwich water district On Cape Cod in Massachusetts reported that

"PCE was detected in the distribution system at an annual average of 0.8 parts per billion, which is below the limit set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

This substance leaches into the water from vinyl lined transite water pipe. In order to address this problem, in 2002 approximately 8,500 feet of water mains were sealed with an epoxy coating resulting in a dramatic decrease in PCE levels. "

Practical Hazards & Risks of Transite Water Supply Piping Mains

Johns-Manville Transite asbestos water pipe installation during construction of the Happy Canyon Flumes 1955, Jones, J.P., The Reclamation Era, May 1955 cited & discussed at InspectApedia.comPhoto: Johns Manville Transite® water pipe being laid during installation of the Happy Canyon Flumes. (Thompson 1955).

Leaks in transite water supply piping underground can result in substantial water losses in districts where this piping was used.

Locating transite water supply mains: We've been informed that excavators complain that its lack of metal makes locating transite water pipes difficult - one cannot use ordinary metal detectors.

Of course a buried pipe of non-metallic material might be located if it is possible to insert a sending probe inside its length but on a water main this procedure is impractical.

Contractors joke that they find transite pipe by using the metal bucket of a backhoe as a pipe detector.

Replacement costs for transite water supply piping: because of its age, leaks, fragility, and difficulty of finding transite cement asbestos water supply mains and water piping without also damaging it at the same time, owners of properties and communities served by cement asbestos water pipes (transite) can expect to face increasing costs to replace that piping.

Asbestos fiber release hazards during removal of demolition of transite piping are discussed

at TRANSITE PIPE CHIMNEYS & FLUES.

Incorrect spellings of transite piping or transite duct material that we've seen include transit pipe, transit ducts, Transide pipe, transide ducts, tranisite pipe, and transight pipe. "Transite" is the correct spelling.

Asbestos Cement / Transite Pipe Sewer Lines

Sewer system liner - is this asbestos cement Transite pipe? (C) InspectApedia.com CF

Question:

I was wondering if asbestos could have been used in a liner inside a brick sewer/storm combo in Indianapolis Indiana. - Anonymous by private email 2020/01/30

Reply:

Sewer system liner - is this asbestos cement Transite pipe? (C) InspectApedia.com CF

I can't say for sure that the liner in your photo is asbestos cement or transite.

Indeed Johns Manville transite sewer pipe or transite pipe for various uses was produced in diameters from 2" to 36".

Do you know the age of the sewer line?

That would be helpful.

Also Transite pipe may be smooth but often it has a screen-like mesh pattern on the exterior, and the material in your photo looks a bit thin. Still if it's not obviously plastic (e.g. PVC) and if it's brittle and cementious, it'd be reasonable to suspect Transite.

As a point of general information, in most jurisdictions there is no requirement to excavate and replace asbestos-cement sewer lines, though once that excavation occurs - perhaps for repair or modifiction, appropriate handling procedures should be followed.

Below: a reader's photo illustrating transite pipe used as an HVAC duct running parallel to a cast iron sewer line; leaks in the cast iron line sent sewer gases into the damaged transite duct.

Transite air duct leaked-into from sewer line (C) InspectApedia.com reader

An alternative to replacing asbestos-cement or transite sewer lines is sewer line re-lining.

An example of a company offering sewer line re-lining products and tools suitable for re-lining transite or asbestos cement sewer lines

See any of these asbestos-cement / transite pipe articles listed at MORE READING

ASBESTOS DUCTS, HVAC other sources of asbestos in HVAC duct systems.

CEMENT ASBESTOS PIPE MANUFACTURE

TRANSITE ASBESTOS CHIMNEYS, DUCTS, PIPES

TRANSITE PIPE AIR DUCT ASBESTOS RISK

TRANSITE WATER PIPE ASBESTOS RISKS

Asbestos-Cement Transite® Water & Sewer Pipes: leaks, history, hazards

Identifying markings on asbestos-cement (transite) water distribution piping in California -(Bueno ca 2013) cited & discussed at InspectApedia.com

Illustration: an example of identifying stamps on asbestos cement pipe installed in the East Bay Municipal Utility District in California (Bueno ca 2013)

Research on the Hazards of Ingesting (eating) Asbestos - Mixed Arguments, Risk Assessments

The page top photo of transite pipe that was used either as a water main or as part or a sewer line was contributed by reader Ricky and was posted originally

at ASBESTOS PIPE INSULATION.

Asbestos Cement Pipe Testing

Question: hardness of asbestos cement pipe when new & now

2019/05/09 Anonymous

I’m Durometer testing outer casing of 8” size ACP pipe wanting to know approx. hardness when brand new?.. testing pipe #1 after 56 years in ground finding 75 to 85 on Durometer. Test pipe #2 finding 50 average. If you have a chart or recommendations can you forward? -- Anonymous by private email

Reply:

We found several references on tests of the condition of asbestos cement pipe, focusing on water and sewer mains. Those authors discuss several methods of AC pipe testing including hardness, but you'll want to look at the articles directly so that you can be sure that their hardness measurements compare to the methods that you are using as well as the pipe condition and application.

Properties of Asbestos Cement Pipe (& Other asbestos cement products)

 




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Reader Comments, Questions & Answers About The Article Above

Below you will find questions and answers previously posted on this page at its page bottom reader comment box.

Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2022-07-16 by InspectApedia-911 (mod) - possible transite asbestos septic line in northern Califdornia?

@Anonymously,

that does look like transite pipe. though the photo does NOT give a close-enough look for me to be certain.

I can't say anything about the likelihood of other pipes being the same material; I don't know what other pipes you're asking about.

Certainly it's true that in some communities both sewer lines and water mains used transite piping, as you will read above on this page.

But water piping inside of a single family home like that in your photo would more-likely have been galvanized iron or later copper or PVC.

On 2022-07-13 by Anonymously

Wondering if my septic line is asbestos. Installed 1966-1967 in Northern California.
And what would the likelihood be that other pipes are the same?

On 2019-11-05 by danjoefriedman (mod) - tnotest that asbestos in drinking water is unsafe

GW

Thank you for your opinion.

Take a look at the references and citations found at the end of any of these articles and you will see there's been an enormous amount of research on this question.

On 2019-11-03 by G W

Asbestos in drinking water: It is well known that asbestos gives Lung Cancer. This shown by mega million dollar law settlements. It is obvious that asbestos in our intestines etc is very unhealthy. This is like saying smoking is bad, but chewing tobacco is OK. A carcinogen is a carcinogen.

Proposed study on Asbestos Cement pipe: Take Colon cancer tumors and biopsy them for asbestos. Compare samples from patients with asbestos in drinking water to those without asbestos. Asbestos never burns.

So burn part of the sample and analyse the residue. Takes a electron microscope and special light to detect asbestos.

Previous studies are pretty weak. Like tobacco companies in the 1920s till 1965 saying smoking was OK

InspectApedia is really great!


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