How To Assess Sheet Vinyl Flooring For Asbestos

Look under carpets in basement or by lifting a floor vent and inspecting how many subfloors exist and if any contain vinyl.

How to assess sheet vinyl flooring for asbestos. Flooring glue mastic underlay down to plywood or concrete. Place the sample into a bag and seal it. Take the samples in random areas throughout the sheet vinyl floor. You can visually identify vinyl flooring materials that contain asbestos by reviewing the vinyl asbestos floor tiles and sheet flooring identification photo guide see resources.

See vinyl asbestos floor tile packaging. That means it is safe to walk on but not safe to scrape sand or use power tools on. In many cases the best thing to do about vinyl asbestos flooring is put a new layer of flooring on top of it. However if the asbestos backing tears away as you peel which is what usually happens it means your asbestos backed sheet vinyl flooring is tightly adhered and will have to be removed in sections with the underlayment attached.

Unfortunately vinyl tiles and sheet flooring that contain asbestos pose a potential exposure risk. This is generally not a problem if they are not disturbed. You will only need a piece the size of a dime. In north america if asphalt or vinyl floor tiles or sheet flooring were made or installed before 1986 treat the floor as presumed to contain asbestos.

Take the samples to an asbestos testing lab. Use a utility knife or a chisel to cut off a small piece of flooring. Most often people will not remove asbestos materials due to cost and encapsulate them my adding additional layers. In cases where vinyl sheet flooring has been damaged to the extent where the asbestos containing material on the underside is disturbed a hazard assessment must be undertaken by a competent person to assess what control measures any risk.

To identify a particular asphalt asbestos or vinyl asbestos floor tile pattern color start in the image group most likely to be the same age as your building. If the material is in good condition it normally does not pose a threat because the asbestos is enclosed in vinyl preventing the fibres from escaping. Historical information about the dates of flooring installation may also be sufficient to rule in or out the possibility that flooring in a building contains asbestos. Where asbestos backed vinyl sheet flooring is to be removed it must only be removed by an a class.

You could also seal it with a coat of epoxy floor paint. It is important to take samples of all layers that you will be removing. The vinyl asbestos floor tile package label information combined with a simple comparison of tiles in the package with tiles installed in the building may be sound confirmation of asbestos containing materials. But when vinyl asbestos flooring is in good condition it is considered nonfriable.