# Asbestos in walls and ceiling?



## FearfulOfAsbestos

Hello. I had a question. 
My Dad does lots of repairs around the house. 

I have begged and begged him and my Mom to test for asbestos, since my Grandfather died of Mesothelioma. 

Anyway, a few repairs hes done really concerned me, and he just went ahead with them without testing anyway. Because he didnt wanna pay for testing. He told me there was no asbestos, but I cant help but worry anyway, since you cant visually tell if there is or isnt asbestos. 
Keep in mind this is an old duplex. 

One repair was, he took down all the ceiling tiles in the bathroom and put new ones up. Now I know the old tiles were safe beceause they were made by a company that never used asbestos. Armstrong. 
However, alot of dust came down, and when looking up in there, there was some kind of crumbly looking white rock between our apartment and the apartment upstairs. Is this a common place asbestos would be used since it was just between bathrooms? 

Also, in the living room, there was some water damage to the wall. This wall is a hard rock type material. Not very thick. Maybe a plaster. Doesnt feel like sheet rock. My Mom broke it up and put it in a trash bag, despite my pleas not to. Thankfully I didnt see much dust, and my Dad came and patched it up with joint compound. But visible dust or not, I am worried about the particals. 

I am moving out in 4 months thankfully and dont need to worry about their careless repair jobs anymore. 
But I am worried 4 months from now will be too late. Please let me know if these are things I should be worried about for the next 4 months. 
Thank you!


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## glennjanie

You could always contact Social Services, especially if you are a legal minor.
Glenn


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## FearfulOfAsbestos

Well, I am not a minor. Which is a big reason I am moving out in 4 months. Moving into my girlfriends. Only reason I am waiting 4 months is because she lives in Europe, and I need to get the money together for my visa.

Are these conditions I mentioned high risk for asbestos problems? I cant stop worrying. Wondering if I am being exposed to asbestos fibers daily that were left behind. And so on.

Does anyone know how much asbestos testing costs?


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## glennjanie

If the test proves negative; do you have any idea how much time you have wasted in worry, not to mention the cost of the test? There used to be a show on TV called 'Father Knows Best'. That father smoked a pipe; wonder how badly his children and wife were affected by second hand smoke?
Glenn


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## ToolGuy

I've removed more asbestos than I can remember, wearing only a dust mask.. sometimes. I'm still here to tell about it.


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## inspectorD

I am no expert on asbestos, but my opinion is that most cases where from folks who installed this stuff or worked in the mines for a living.
Spend more time outdoors and you should be better off. Mabey give you some piece of mind before you leave.
Like Glenn said, We are all affected by so much more we do not even know about.


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## booft

Yes we are affected by somethings we dont really notice, but I would still have it tested to be on the safe side. I couldnt imagine leaving a house either to sell to someone new, or having my family still reside there without knowing. Then again, I worry a lot too.


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## mtm

Yes its Asbestos.  Get out of the house immediately.


Now seriously..  The living room was most likely sheetrock.
If it was plaster you would have seen the lathe behind it. Metal or wood. Your mom would need a sawz all to cut it out. You saw dust particles.  Relax you will live a lot longer. 

 By the way you do know they used asbestos in Europe for 10 years after it was outlawed in the US?


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## FearfulOfAsbestos

Thanks for all the info!

The luving room wall is very very hard. Unlike my bedroom where the sheetrock walls have a slight movement if I push on them. The living room walls dont budge.
The only reason she was able to pull some off the wall before repairing is because it was water damaged from the air conditioner.
However I could be wrong. Im no expert in this stuff, other than I know what asbestos did to my Grandfather. Actually one grandfather had mesothelioma, and the other had asbestosis. However they both got that from their days in the Navy and ship yard.

Yes I knew about asbestos being used longer in England. But thankfully, my girlfriend was smart and had her place professionally tested for asbestos before having repairs done, and it was clean of it. Big load off my mind!

Thanks again guys! You are making me feel much better!


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## FearfulOfAsbestos

ToolGuy said:


> I've removed more asbestos than I can remember, wearing only a dust mask.. sometimes. I'm still here to tell about it.




But did you begin doing so 20 or more years ago?


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## ToolGuy

Yep! Been in the trades about 25 years and ran into asbestos pipes early on. 

I think it's like inspectorD says, most of those affected were working in the mines and breathing clouds of the stuff.


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## inspectorD

Cough, cough..........wheeze.
Not to mention all that mouse stuff and the insulation with formaldehyde and.....( insert toxic waste here)........don't forget the...( other household cleaners here)....man that stuff is bad. 
Good luck with your testing if you go that route. 
And good luck with your trip over the ocean.


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## mtm

Can you imagine all the formaldehyde from gassing off this guy will be breathing on the airplane? Imagine sitting in a sealed airplane for 5hrs with all the formaldehyde and the cleaning agents they use to clean the plane?


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