Removing Asbestos Mastic From Concrete Floor

When vinyl asbestos flooring is crumbling or damaged it is considered friable.

Removing asbestos mastic from concrete floor.

If you do have black glue on your concrete floor and you don t know how old it is it could contain asbestos. Sanding is the only aggressive method for removing asbestos containing mastic from floors that the asbestos construction standard explicitly prohibits. Products made from citrus or acetic acid are safer than other mastic removers. If you are removing mastic from wood sub floor look for a product that is designed for use on wood.

Remember to always wear safety equipment when removing flooring and mastic especially if the floor tests positive for asbestos. When you remove that floor covering to make way for new flooring you may encounter the mastic and wonder whether it is safe to remove the main concern surrounding this question is that black mastic often contains asbestos. This prohibition appears in a part of the standard pertaining to removing all asbestos containing materials acm associated with vinyl and asphalt floor coverings. In this case it needs to be removed very carefully to avoid asbestos exposure.

If asbestos is present this process is not recommended because it will release the asbestos into the air which can harm workers and seep into the walls causing long term health issues. Mastic is a type of glue used to adhere tiles and vinyl flooring to the subfloor. Possible signs of asbestos mastic include discoloration and an oily texture. This is available online or at hardware stores but may cost over 100 per 5 gallon 19l bucket.

An example would be a floor slab made from asbestos cement. Some areas come nearly. If your building was built before 1980 mastic mixed with asbestos may have been used to seal your tiles to the floor. What you need to know about black mastic glue pre 1980.

Working on removing black mastic which once likely held down vinyl tiles which were common in this neighborhood probably asbestos. Asbestos mastic will also always be black in color.