Asbestos Found in Construction Mastics

Mastic is a pasty cement used as an adhesive or filler. In the construction industry, much use is made of mastics as an adhesives and sealant under floor tiles and in ceilings, roofing, walls, and windows. Before 1980, what was called Construction Mastics referred to many products used in home building and remodeling; these contained asbestos.

Asbestos Exposure from Construction Mastics

As a result, many buildings that data back to before 1980 used asbestos construction mastics which causes serious concern in attempts to demolish and rebuild in current times. Anyone connected with this activity is at risk of being infected with floating particles of asbestos fiber, and great care has to be taken in terms of using the right protective gear and ensuring proper disposal methods. Those manufacturers and builders who continue to use construction mastics and other asbestos-laden products, even after the EPA warnings are leaving themselves open to litigation by victims of asbestos caused lung cancer and other illnesses.

Construction Mastics Containing Asbestos Fibers

Construction mastics cover a wide range of products in the category of adhesives and sealants, such as:

• floor adhesives,
• roofing tile adhesives,
• tile and wall compounds and
• many other adhesives and sealants used in the construction industry.

For almost a 100 years, these products found application in commercial and residential buildings across the country and asbestos entered every nook and corner. The danger to us today lies in the dust that any tinkering with old buildings causes. When materials are removed or demolished, they pose a risk of infecting those who inhale the air around the area with asbestos fiber. And asbestos fiber is the silent killer that gestates for decades and when it manifests, it is too late to do anything except provide palliative care. A very heavy price to pay for simply breathing in at the wrong place!

The Environmental Protection Agency, therefore, strongly advises against any kind of renovation that involves demolition or tearing up of older fittings like carpets, floor or ceiling tiles, insulation, wallboard, panels or wallpaper, anything that may contain asbestos. According to EPA, the safest thing where construction mastics are concerned is to simply assume that everything in the building has asbestos and follow the recommended precautions.

Identify asbestos mastic

One way of looking at mastic is to consider everything in the building as having mastic and thereby, asbestos. But when it is a matter of identifying asbestos mastic accurately, it becomes a complex task. As an example, consider the fact that the Minnesota Department of Health lists more than 3,000 different building materials as containing asbestos.

A thumb rule to detect the presence of mastic is to determine the age of the building. Houses built between 1920 and 1960 used floor tiles that not only contained asbestos but these tiles were fixed by using mastics that also contained asbestos. Both asphalt and vinyl tiles that are black, dark brown, dark gray, or gray brown indicate the presence of asbestos fibers.

The most accurate information can be gained by having a sample tested in an accredited laboratory for the presence of asbestos.

How to remove asbestos mastic?

EPA prescribes strict procedures on how to handle the removal of asbestos containing products like mastics. These should be adhered to closely in the best interest of all working on the project.