Many older homes haveasbestos tilesfor flooring.
As time goes by and more homes are remodeled, fewer homes contain asbestos tiles.
What Are Asbestos Floor Tiles?
Getty / Hisham Ibrahim
For about 35 years, flooring companies included asbestos when they manufactured the vinyl tiles.
Asbestos is a mineral that lends fireproofing qualities to any substance it is mixed with.
Another draw was the appearance: some asbestos tiles had the texture of a hand-crafted stone-chip design.
Asbestos vinyl floor tiles were far from rare.
Asbestos tiles were popular, widely advertised products found in all parts of the U.S. at the time.
This effectively encapsulates the asbestos and renders it safe, as long as it is not disturbed.
Often, covering over other flooring is done out of convenience: to avoid demolition.
By Lab Testing
Lab testing is a far better option than trying to identify asbestos-containing tiles yourself.
Local testing labs willtest your vinyl tilefor reasonable fees.
To get an entire home tested for asbestos might cost in the hundreds of dollars.
For the lab to come to your house and take the sample, you might triple the price.
Only bydisturbing the tileswill the asbestos fibers be released into the air.
If at all possible, leave the tiles intact and avoidremoving them.
In some instances, you may want to remove your asbestos tiles before installing another bang out of flooring.
One notable instance is if you plan to restore the wood flooring underneath the asbestos vinyl tile.
If the tiles have asbestos it is likely the adhesive will also.
Be cautious throughout the process.
Install a cement backer board first.
For laminate flooring, you may wish to smooth out the surface by first installing a thin plywood underlayment.
Hardwood orengineered wood flooringmay be installed directly on the vinyl flooring.
