How Much Does Asbestos Removal Cost?
Asbestos Removal Cost – What Should You Expect to Pay?
Asbestos is a hazardous material found in many products including insulation, ceiling tiles, floor tiles, sprayed-on plaster for acoustic or decorative walls or ceilings, and many others. Asbestos fibers are very tiny and once airborne can be inhaled deeply into the lungs, causing mesothelioma and other cancerous diseases. When the body’s immune system cells attempt to break down the fibers lodged in the lungs the immune system cells die. Scar tissue develops around the dead cells and continues do to so for many years after exposure. Eventually there is enough scar tissue to cause the lungs to stop working altogether. As deadly as asbestos and lung cancer are, symptoms may not appear for up to 60 years after exposure.
Have a Licensed Professional Do the Removal
If you are planning on remodeling your home or repairing items that may contain asbestos, such as asbestos ceiling tile, floor tiles, or pipe insulation, there are a few issues that you should be aware of. Asbestos, when left undisturbed, will usually not produce airborne dust or fibers. The danger comes when asbestos-containing materials are disturbed, allowing the tiny fibers to be dispersed into the air where they can be inhaled. Never attempt to remove or repair these toxic products without extreme care. It is usually best to hire a licensed abatement contractor to remove these hazardous substances.
Asbestos Removal Cost is Not Cheap
Asbestos removal cost will vary widely depending on your particular circumstances, but it is seldom cheap. Some abatement contractors will have a minimum fee as high as $2,500 or more, even for small jobs. Others will charge as much as $500 or more for a small amount of asbestos ceiling removal or to remove insulation around a 10-foot section of pipe. If you do a little research you will normally be able to find lower prices.
If your home has asbestos in the ceilings, floors, walls, roof, and pipes a complete removal could be as high as $20,000 or more. However, this is an extreme case when asbestos is found everywhere. Complete removal in a 2,000 square foot home will usually be about $2,000 to $4,000 on average because the hazardous material can either be contained instead of removed, or will only be present in a few areas.
It is Important to Hire Two Contractors
To keep prices to a minimum you should first have an independent inspector do an inspection. The inspector will be able to tell you if there is any asbestos in your home, where it is located, and if it causes a potential health problem. This inspection may possibly help you eliminate some unnecessary removal work which will lower the asbestos removal cost. There may be areas that can be contained instead of removed, effectively lowering your cost.
When contracting out the work it is advisable to hire two different contractors; one to do the inspections and another to do the actual containment or removal work. Have the inspector do the inspection before the work is started and then once again after the work is completed. If the same company does both the inspections and the removal there could be a conflict of interest. The follow-up inspection should be in writing and should include lab analysis of collected samples. It should also include frequent visits to your home as the work is being performed to ensure that everything is being done properly. Also make sure that your abatement contractor provides you with a written statement specifying that all required procedures were followed in accordance with the state regulations.
Keep Your Home Safe By Sealing Off the Work Area
Make sure the work area is sealed off completely from the rest of the house during the removal process. It should also be marked as “hazardous” to stop people from entering the area where dangerous dust and fibers could be inhaled.
It is possible to save money by doing the removal on your own, but it can be very dangerous. Before doing it yourself you should check with your local and state health departments to see if they offer any training programs.
How to Inspect Your Home for Asbestos
