Will me and my family be ok?

2 years ago

last modified: 2 years ago

I tore up half of my 10ftx20 ft room in my basement, just to have my buddy tell me it looked like asbestos tiles.....Well, it is. 9×9 tiles with the black tar underneath. Since then i literally brought my garden hose in my basement and sprayed everything, and i mean everything i could spray without hitting electrical stuff and wiped it with damp cloths. Then i bagged it all up very carefully, i have a lot of land so of took it to the back of my property and barred it in bags that i ducked tape. I did not have proper equipment on at all, no mask, gloves, suit, etc.I was down there for 1 full day and 2 hours the day before with a jack hammer smashing it up. I was going sideways with the jack hammer so some of it actually came up in full pieces. I wasn't just smashing it to bits i was more so peeling it up with the flat part of the jack hammer but there was definitely a lot of breakage.I bought a hepa air purifier and have that going, i put some sealer on the floor basically like a killz but its called zimmers, its a primer as well, and i want to just level it out with cement and put some vinyl flooring over it all, the big roll kind.I had my kids helping me unfortunately and that part truly breaks my heart. I would never have tried to get it up if i knew, i would have just laid right on top of it as is and called it good i just wanted to get the smell up from under those tiles and do it legit.Long story short, my wife and kids are mad at me and freaking out because i told them to stay away that it was asbestos and harmful and now im just pissed at myself for this mistake.Can i get the house back to being safe to live in or did i mess up big time? I don't have money for a professional i got a quote for 11k and that's way out of my budget. I plan on wiping the entire house and getting another hepa purifier for there rooms and ill leave this one in the basement to hopefully clear it up and make it safe.The air was on but only for a bit, and we where no where near the intake or furnace and the door was closed. Its been off since. I was thinking of getting a filter for that, a merv 13 or whatever it's called.Threw away all clothes and shoes we had on and really did the best i could so far. Any reassurance or feedback would be great. Im just trying to be a good father and fix my dumb mistake. Thank you.

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Comments (9)

millworkman
2 years ago
Relax. Limited exposure will not have any effect unless you eat it. Clean it all up well with a HEPA filtered vacuum. Keep it wet or damp while cleaning. I would not bury it on your property as that may get you in a whole other mess for contaminating water supplies, etc.
We As One Rise thanked millworkman
kculbers
2 years ago
It may be helpful to look at the government website: niehs.nih.gov and review the article: homeowners and renters guide to asbestos cleanup after disasters. Looks like you did a lot of what was recommended.
We As One Rise thanked kculbers
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Stax
2 years ago
Looks like he did NOTHING that was recommended, including disposing of the bags of contaminate and not wearing any form of protective equipment.

The fact that this character did much of this after he became aware of the likelyhood of asbestos is absolutely criminal.

Don't excuse him because you think it is likely he got away with it - I certainly hope that is the case. I am a former Shipyard Asbestos Worker, not some bleeding heart.
SJ McCarthy
2 years ago
A few hours of asbestos exposure is very, very, very unlikely to have health concerns. In the grand scheme of things you are into the 1:2,000,000 range for 'health risk'.

Stax has a long history with asbestos which means his/her health concerns are much more substantial than yours.

These things happen. Asbestos is a fibre that gets into the lungs and stays there. That's the danger of it. To do that, the asbestos has to be in the air. You jacked out the tiles. Ok...there was some breakage. And the black cutback adhesive. Right. Some issues there. But as a whole, your exposure is minimal. In fact it is into the minute range. Negligible. Remote. However you wish to say it.

There are people in Asbestos Quebec (yah....it's a town that mines...asbestos) who have never had health issues. And there are others who have lived the worst stories. It is all down to LENGTH of exposure.

Your 2 HOUR exposure risk is very different from the Asbestos Miner who spent 20 YEARS in digging that stuff out of the ground.

Relax. Change the filters on your HVAC, get some proper dust masks and vacuum this up with a HEPA filter Vacuum. You'll be fine. This isn't like atomic waste. It doesn't contaminate the entire house for 50,000 years.
PRO
HALLETT & Co.
2 years ago
Don't bury it- at least where I am asbestos can be disposed of in a normal landfill if double bagged- it isn't nuclear waste. Asbestos exposure is deadly to those who were exposed to it all the time- miners, people who worked in factories, etc. You've had minimal exposure to a very stable form of it (it is pretty well sealed inside the tile versus some of the friable types used in fireproofing)
Izzy Mn
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I would wash all clothing, curtains. Rent a carpet shampoo machine and use the attachment on furniture too. The water will keep it from being airborne (like what you would get with a vacuum cleaner) Wash down all ceiling and walls, maybe fresh paint. That's what I would do. It's water under the bridge at this point but from what I've read it's the chronic exposure is what the most problematic rather than a one time exposure.....Also get furnace air ducts steam cleaned. Also, you may be stirring up dust so wear a appropriate mask. Have kids stay somewhere while you do a long weekend deep clean.
cat_ky
2 years ago
The others are right. Its minimal exposure. There was no reason to throw your shoes and clothing away. It clould have all been washed, and been just fine. Change out your filters, and run the hepa and save some money, to get your air tested, so you at least feel better. Your biggest mistake is burying that debris on your property. It should have been taken to the landfill, where they would deal with it properly. I would be digging it back up and loading it on a truck, and hauling it there asap, before it gets into the ground water. You might also want to do a test for lead. Please do not demo anything else in your house, without finding out, if there could be asbestos or lead. You need to check everything in an older house, before ripping into it.
worthy
2 years ago
Once you knew and continued cleaning without protective equipment would have baffled me---until I advised a lawyer friend not to have her asbestos popcorn ceiling scraped off without special treatment and she went right ahead as her handyman assured her "no problem."

Encapsulation is often the best way to handle asbestos containing materials such as tiles.

A HEPA filter is ineffective in filtering out asbestos. Similarly, washing asbestos contaminated clothes requires special laundering services to be effective. So congrats for discarding the clothes.

All exposed persons can do now is monitor long-term symptoms. Even chronic exposure can take 30-40 years to develop into mesothelioma.
kathyg_in_mi
2 years ago
DH worked for thirty years in areas with asbestos. He's been retired from there for just over 20 years, no issues whatsoever!

Will me and my family be ok?

Comments (9)

millworkman

kculbers

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