The Fireplace and Asbestos Tiles
Since George asked Nancy yesterday if we'd like the dining room fireplace sheetrocked (thereby improving its looks a bit), I decided to help with the process. First, I did a test to see if I could remove the fake brick and its covering of white goop. Since I was very successful with my test, Nancy gave me the green light to continue, so I got to work.
Beginning the Demolition of the Dining Room Fireplace
In this picture, you can see the section of brick I easily removed, as well as a couple of boards I've removed. After this start, I removed all the boards,
The Dining Room Fireplace sans Tongue and Groove Boards
revealing the backing wallboard painted an ugly taupe. After removing the wallboard itself,
The Mess Behind the Wallboard of the Fireplace
I discovered an ugly mess behind it, including the usual bits of hidden garbage. But I also found a mound of insulation lying against the chimney and old framing that wiggled when I touched it.
The Initial Removal of the Fake Brick and the White Goop over Them
Then I began removing the fake bricks. The rest of them didn't come off quite as easily as the test pieces, but I made some progress quickly enough.
One and a Half Hours into Removing the Fake Bricks
After working on the removal of the bricks for 90 minutes, I had finished removing all the brick, but plenty of the black adhesive that held the fake brick to the face of the real brick remained.
The Day's Progress with the Fireplace
After attending a play ("Pippin," with Tim running the lights), we returned home, and I worked on the fireplace a bit more. It's not yet perfect, and the sticky adhesive is getting harder to remove, but it's looking pretty good already.
Asbestos Floor Tiles and Bare Spots on the Floor
After dealing with the fireplace, I removed a large number of loose floor tiles in the basement. I did this because they're loose and made of asbestos. (I learned recently that all nine-inch tiles are asbestos vinyl tiles.) I didn't want Nancy going down until after I cleaned up after this work. There's a lot of dirt and junk associated under these tiles, and some of that might be asbestos fibers. So I put the tiles in a box, and vacuumed over the area of the floor with our brand new HEPA vacuum.
Nancy was worried that this might be dangerous, but I've been doing this for years: removing loose tiles and throwing them away. This time, I've added some cleanup. After Nancy explained her worries, I went downstairs and used a wet towel to clean up all the dust left where the tiles used to be. Then I threw the towel away. Some of this dust was sawdust, most of it was just dirt, but some was probably asbestos, and there's probably some asbestos fibers left in the tile adhesive still on the floor. So we will continue to free asbestos fibers when we walk downstairs. Actually, we've been doing this the entire time we have lived here. The tiles have always been loose. Some have always been cracked.
So now I wonder what my best course of action is. I don't think leaving loose tiles on the floor is keeping us safe, but removing them probably isn't better. The cost of asbestos abatement would be prohibitive. Maybe we can seal the floor somehow, leaving the tiles in place. Strangely, I'd have to close this house down if it were one of our buildings at work. I'll send a message to an asbestos contractor and ask her for some advice. Strangely, none of this would be a concern at all if I hadn't've learned so much about asbestos in the past few months.
Let's end tonight with something a bit more cheerful: a tour of the third-floor bathroom. It's a tiny room, but we're able to squeeze a whole lot of living in it!
honi soit qui mal y pense
Beginning the Demolition of the Dining Room Fireplace
In this picture, you can see the section of brick I easily removed, as well as a couple of boards I've removed. After this start, I removed all the boards,
The Dining Room Fireplace sans Tongue and Groove Boards
revealing the backing wallboard painted an ugly taupe. After removing the wallboard itself,
The Mess Behind the Wallboard of the Fireplace
I discovered an ugly mess behind it, including the usual bits of hidden garbage. But I also found a mound of insulation lying against the chimney and old framing that wiggled when I touched it.
The Initial Removal of the Fake Brick and the White Goop over Them
Then I began removing the fake bricks. The rest of them didn't come off quite as easily as the test pieces, but I made some progress quickly enough.
One and a Half Hours into Removing the Fake Bricks
After working on the removal of the bricks for 90 minutes, I had finished removing all the brick, but plenty of the black adhesive that held the fake brick to the face of the real brick remained.
The Day's Progress with the Fireplace
After attending a play ("Pippin," with Tim running the lights), we returned home, and I worked on the fireplace a bit more. It's not yet perfect, and the sticky adhesive is getting harder to remove, but it's looking pretty good already.
Asbestos Floor Tiles and Bare Spots on the Floor
After dealing with the fireplace, I removed a large number of loose floor tiles in the basement. I did this because they're loose and made of asbestos. (I learned recently that all nine-inch tiles are asbestos vinyl tiles.) I didn't want Nancy going down until after I cleaned up after this work. There's a lot of dirt and junk associated under these tiles, and some of that might be asbestos fibers. So I put the tiles in a box, and vacuumed over the area of the floor with our brand new HEPA vacuum.
Nancy was worried that this might be dangerous, but I've been doing this for years: removing loose tiles and throwing them away. This time, I've added some cleanup. After Nancy explained her worries, I went downstairs and used a wet towel to clean up all the dust left where the tiles used to be. Then I threw the towel away. Some of this dust was sawdust, most of it was just dirt, but some was probably asbestos, and there's probably some asbestos fibers left in the tile adhesive still on the floor. So we will continue to free asbestos fibers when we walk downstairs. Actually, we've been doing this the entire time we have lived here. The tiles have always been loose. Some have always been cracked.
So now I wonder what my best course of action is. I don't think leaving loose tiles on the floor is keeping us safe, but removing them probably isn't better. The cost of asbestos abatement would be prohibitive. Maybe we can seal the floor somehow, leaving the tiles in place. Strangely, I'd have to close this house down if it were one of our buildings at work. I'll send a message to an asbestos contractor and ask her for some advice. Strangely, none of this would be a concern at all if I hadn't've learned so much about asbestos in the past few months.
Let's end tonight with something a bit more cheerful: a tour of the third-floor bathroom. It's a tiny room, but we're able to squeeze a whole lot of living in it!
honi soit qui mal y pense
posted by Geofhuth at 11:21 PM
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