You’ve lived in your current home for 30 plus years and raised all your kids in it and made many beautiful memories there, but now that all the kids have left, you’re staring at 70’s linoleum and a bunch of other dated materials around your home that you no longer want to see. You decide that It’s time for a change. The first project you want to tackle is the old vinyl tile flooring and replacing it with something from the modern era. While getting quotes from stores and contractors, you are asked if you know that your vinyl tiles have asbestos, and you’re not sure. In this article, we will go over how to tell if your vinyl tiles have asbestos.
Asbestos bulk sampling
Before you can know if your vinyl tiles have asbestos, samples must be collected in a process called asbestos bulk sampling. At the minimum, you should wear some personal protection (PPE) gear, such as latex gloves and perhaps even a nylon protective suit and a special mask, but if you hire a certified asbestos consultant, they will have to wear the required PPE. Spraying the area with soapy water first will help prevent asbestos fibers from becoming airborne in the process. You or a certified asbestos consultant will need to cut a piece of the asbestos-containing material using a sharp knife, taking a 3 square inch piece, placing it in a small jar or sealable plastic bag, and labeling it with a number. The EPA recommends taking at least two samples of this material from two different spots if one area tests negative and the other tests positive. Measure the area with the vinyl tile to be replaced. You will need this information to get a quote from a certified abatement contractor if you need to have the asbestos-containing material removed.
Where can I send a sample for asbestos testing?
Once the asbestos-containing material has been collected, you will need to drop off or mail-in your samples to an asbestos testing lab that will analyze the samples you or the consultant collected for the presence of asbestos. The lab will use a method called Polarized Light Microscopy to determine the presence of asbestos in the material, percentage, and type of asbestos fibers found. Depending on the rate of asbestos found, anything less above 1% asbestos will need to be removed by a certified abatement contractor but check with your local building department for regulations regarding asbestos before removing the material. For example, if the asbestos-containing material has 3% asbestos, you can ask if the asbestos testing lab can conduct a higher point count. With this process, you may be able to report a lower limit than the EPA’s 1% limit, which may allow you not to be required to inform anyone of the presence of asbestos since, below 1%, you technically don’t have asbestos. You may also not be required to provide notification of the existence of asbestos and go through the abatement process. Again, check with your local building agency before ordering a high point count.
You can send a sample for asbestos testing to 5 microns Inc. or you can also drop-off your examples to us 24 hours a day using our drop-box outside of our office at 7100 Fort Dent Way in Tukwila, WA 98188. You will need to download and fill out our COC form, follow the instructions on the sheet before you mail in your asbestos samples, or drop them off. If you have any questions or concerns, you can always give us a call Monday-Friday between the hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. I hope this article helped answer your questions. We would love to hear from you soon.
Mail in samples to the following address *at Tabor 100 co-working offices:
5 Microns Inc.
7100 Fort Dent Way #100
Tukwila, WA 98188
IMPORTANT-MUST READ FIRST: All mail-in samples must have a tracking number and include our asbestos chain of custody form to be processed. If the chain of custody form is missing, your sample(s) will not be accepted and processed. Drop-offs MUST have the COC form inside your package but not in the sample bag. DO NOT MAIL YOUR SAMPLES BY FIRST CLASS MAIL. Send your sample(s) via USPS Priority Mail, UPS, and FedEx. It is essential to closely follow these directions so our asbestos testing lab can promptly process your sample(s).
*PLEASE NOTE FOR ALL DROP-OFFS: All samples must be dropped off at the back of the office building located at 7100 Fort Dent Way Tukwila WA outside the Tabor 100 Office and placed inside the black drop-box pictured below. Do not take your samples to the front desk. The front desk will not accept drop-offs over the counter, NO EXCEPTIONS!
How much does asbestos testing cost?
An asbestos testing lab will charge around $26-$40 per sample for a turnaround time of 2-3 business days and an additional fee for rush service, sometimes double the base price. 5 Microns Inc. offers asbestos testing lab services and can provide results within 2-3 business days of receipt. We also offer point counts of 400 and 1000. I hope this article was helpful. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions. We hope to be of service to you.
