does anyone know about asbestos?

Asbestos is a natural mineral made of fibers known for its excellent fire-resistant and insulation properties, resistance to chemicals, and amazing strength. There are six recognized asbestos mineral fibers which can be found all over the world and they are: amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite, anthophyllite, and chrysotile.

Amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite consist of needle-like fibers and belong to the "amphibole" type of asbestos. Chrysolite, which is the most common asbestos, is made up of curly fibers from the "serpentine" type of asbestos, and has been banned from most countries except the US and Europe.

Asbestos was commonly used for home heat insulation and for many other purposes up until the late 80's when it was revealed to be extremely hazardous to your health! Today, it still exists in older buildings, making it a wise choice to "test for asbestos" when considering the purchase of an old structure.

Long-term asbestos exposure has been known to cause several types of diseases aside from deadly ones such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer as described above. Asbestos warts can be caused through repeated fiber penetration of the skin, causing hard, unsightly wart-like nodules.

If asbestos fibers become airborne in your home or work area, and you breathe these fibers consistently for prolonged span of days, months, or years, you stand a much greater chance of eventually suffering from one of the three deadly diseases. Merely being exposed once or twice to asbestos is not known to pose an immediate or long-term health threat.

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Since many building materials can contain asbestos, remodel and repair activity in residential and commercial structures which removes asbestos-containing materials may cause the release of asbestos fibers into the air. Asbestos is not required to be removed unless it will be disturbed during the renovation or demolition. There is no known health threat if asbestos-containing materials are in good condition and left undisturbed. An asbestos survey will identify all of the asbestos involved in your construction project and is the first step in receiving a building department permit. Once you have received the survey, you will need to have the asbestos abated by a licensed asbestos contractor and submit the survey and the “Asbestos Renovation/Demolition Survey & Notification Form” to AQMD where they will be reviewed for completeness. Once approved, AQMD will stamp your form (within 2 business days from day of submittal) and return it to you so that you may bring it to the building department and receive your permit provided that you have met their requirements.

"Asbestos? I eat the stuff! I put a little mustard on it and I eat it!"

--The Jerky Boys, pranking an asbestos removal company.

There are 2 different kinds of asbestos: friable and non-friable.

The non-friable stuff is mostly harmless. It's most frequently seen in siding on old houses. Non-friable means that when you break it, it doesn't give off the fibers that can be inhaled. To remove it, just wet it and pull it down.

The friable stuff is more dangerous. When it breaks, it gives off thousands of little fibers than can be inhaled. The fibers do not break down once inside the body, and can lead to mesothelioma, a usually fatal lung disease. Friable asbestos is most often used as insulation.

Removing asbestos safely is very expensive. The area has to be carefully contained and the workers have to wear "moon suits" to keep the fibers from entering their airways. Then, the removed asbestos needs to be properly disposed.

A safe alternative to removing friable asbestos isto encapsulate it in a plastic to seal in the fibers, and just leave it in place. This is usually far more cost effective and safer for the workers.

If you win this then you are fantastic at debating!

"Due to their mineralogical properties of having high strength, being an excellent insulator for heat and electricity, being able to resist heat without damage, being fairly good at resisting corrosion, and also having the ability to be woven into fabric, asbestos has been added to many different materials commonly used in buildings and different products. It can be found in literally thousands of types of products from building fireproofing to hand-held hair dryers."

or try this;

http://www.mindfully.org/Pesticide/Dioxin-Harmless...

Hope this helps

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