Could this be asbestos under floor vinyl?

adriandilly

Just moved into a house built in 1989 and we are ripping out the kitchen. Under the laminate flooring we found old fashioned vinyl which is stuck down by grey adhesive of some kind. Question is could the vinyl and/or the adhesive contain asbestos? The vinyl tiles are 300mm x 300mm (so metric) but there are even older patches of lino stuck down with brown streaked adhesive on grey flaky material 

I ask because many pictures I've looked at online show *black* streaked mastic indicating asbestos.
Thanks in advance

Hasbeen

it would be hard to say from pics? and without testing etc. But as per quote below:

Asbestos floor tile adhesive is generally regarded as a low-risk product. This is due to the fact that the asbestos fibres are bound to the adhesive and so are unlikely to stay airborne for very long. Asbestos was used in adhesive products up to 1986 but is more typically found in products used in the 60's and 70's.

adriandilly

Could builders have had the stuff until 1989 do you think? 

floppydisk1

One can't tell asbestos by looking at something , regardless of the colour of it ( mastic, tiles or anything ), though it is VERY unlikely that house built in 1989 contains any. As said earlier, even if it did have some asbestos  it would be low risk and just for your peace of mind, yo can seal the floor with some sort of sealant ( PVA or similar ) before putting new floor. Asbestos can only affect you if you breath in fibres and they get lodged in your lungs, walking on solid tiles or knowing that there  might be some asbestos tucked well under your flooring does not affect you in any way.   For your last question - builders normally don't store materials for years  so that is very unlikely.  Put it in perspective, asbestos is probably about as dangerous as smoking, yet some removal companies would want you t o believe that you look at it today and drop dead tomorrow.  Don't take me wrong - asbestos in a nasty stuff that can and does cause cancer once it finds it way to tissues in lungs. There is whole asbestos removal industry out there, in large part playing up on fears and feelings.  Asbestos powder - very dangerous, asbestos containing board or sprayed paint or art on ceiling - quite dangerous as in case of leak and ' or breakage fibres get released, solid asbestos tiles  - even council guidances say - leave and do not disturb.....   In other words - if it can't get in your lungs, it can't harm you. 

adriandilly

Thanks floppydisk1. That offers some peace of mind. I've now removed all the vinyl in the kitchen and to be honest it looks like a small amount of glue stuck on top of floor levelling compound. The grey flakes were the top layer of concrete that has come up in places. 

Risteard

floppydisk1 said:

One can't tell asbestos by looking at something , regardless of the colour of it ( mastic, tiles or anything ), though it is VERY unlikely that house built in 1989 contains any. As said earlier, even if it did have some asbestos  it would be low risk and just for your peace of mind, yo can seal the floor with some sort of sealant ( PVA or similar ) before putting new floor. Asbestos can only affect you if you breath in fibres and they get lodged in your lungs, walking on solid tiles or knowing that there  might be some asbestos tucked well under your flooring does not affect you in any way.   For your last question - builders normally don't store materials for years  so that is very unlikely.  Put it in perspective, asbestos is probably about as dangerous as smoking, yet some removal companies would want you t o believe that you look at it today and drop dead tomorrow.  Don't take me wrong - asbestos in a nasty stuff that can and does cause cancer once it finds it way to tissues in lungs. There is whole asbestos removal industry out there, in large part playing up on fears and feelings.  Asbestos powder - very dangerous, asbestos containing board or sprayed paint or art on ceiling - quite dangerous as in case of leak and ' or breakage fibres get released, solid asbestos tiles  - even council guidances say - leave and do not disturb.....   In other words - if it can't get in your lungs, it can't harm you. 

It's not unlikely at all. Asbestos was used until around the year 2000. You really need to be careful about this.

floppydisk1

Ristead , in 1999 total ban was introduced - e g it was  made illegal to produce  or supply any and every asbestos containing material ( only white asbestos was  permitted in last 15 years  before the total ban though ) . Blue and brown asbestos ( can't think of proper names at this hour )  were really nasty ones, white asbestos is nowhere near as dangerous. Tiles are considered low risk regardless  and this is correct formulation as I have to write it at least 10 times every week - " Asbestos is safe and legal to remain in homes or public buildings as long as the asbestos materials are in good condition and the asbestos can not be released into the air "   Most tiles containing asbestos I can see are well from 70's or older in tiles and sheet flooring brown and blue asbestos were used. I am not saying it's impossible, but it is unlikely .  I never said it can't contain asbestos , I said it is very unlikely to cause any harm.Only way to be 100 % sure is to take a sample and send it for a lab test. Using common sense I would not be that bothered  as long as it is in good condition ( not flaky, powdery or badly damaged - broken to many small pieces) - OP floor looks to be in good and solid condition so I will say it again - it is very unlikely to cause any harm.

Risteard

White Asbestos (chrysotile) is not safe. I'm not sure why you are trying to claim that it is.

Obviously any ACM only presents a hazard when the fibres become airborne. Lifting tiles is certainly likely to make them airborne.