Methuselah of the Bunch

Acknowledgements

Let’s be honest: I’m an engineer. I am a nerd masquerading in blue jeans and a tool belt. It’s all good though – I can fake it pretty well as a home inspector.

I got into home inspections in 1993, and have found a good deal of personal satisfaction in helping people make the big decision. It’s a lot more fun than the world of cubicles and neckties.

My start date in home inspections not only makes me one of the old timers in Utah, it pretty much makes me the Methuselah of the bunch. After 10 years as an environmental engineer, 22 years as a registered professional engineer and four years as a meth decontamination specialist, I have learned that sometimes there are fear factor items, and then there is reality.

The purpose of this booklet is to erase some of the urban legends, and to replace fear and uncertainty with knowledge. I believe the following to be true:

More Knowledge = Better Decisions

This booklet is dedicated my beautiful wife, Julie. She is an angel directly from heaven – nobody could love an engineer more. I’m grateful that she has very poor eyesight and that she supports me so kindly.

Julie, you’re the best.

Table of Contents

The $10 / $10,000 Rule ...... 1 Mold ...... 3 Meth ...... 13 Radon ...... 27 Lead ...... 37 Asbestos ...... 45 The Happy Ending ...... 53

The scene has played out many times before: The potential home buyer finds out the home they have fallen in love with has warts. Sometimes the beloved home has mold, or it’s got meth contamination, or there is a radon buildup. You want to panic. The fear boils up like birds trying to escape a starling stew. What should you do?

I’ve been there. I’ve spent that moment with your predecessors in the same situation – thousands of them. They needed this booklet. The good news is that you have it. Read on and replace your fear with knowledge. Really – the land of knowledge is a much better place to live than in fearville.

The $10/$10,000 Rule

The $10/$10,000 rule is this: knowledge wins. With the right kind of knowledge, you can address most homeowner issues inexpensively – often in the $10 dollar price range. By contrast, if you let things go or don’t know what to do, you get a different kind of ten – the $10,000 fix.

In a way, it’s like changing oil in your car. You can save money by not buying oil and filters for your engine, but you’ll pay dearly for it later. Your home is very much the same. If proper steps are taken,

you get to choose between the two price tags. If not, you often get the $10,000 fix branded on your forehead with unkind clarity.

Fear Factor Frenzy

As move forward through the book, be aware that much of what you have heard about lead, radon, asbestos, mold and meth are more urban legend than reality. For example, many believe that any meth contamination in a home means the home must be torn down. Not so. It is possible to get meth out of the walls, mold won’t eat your children’s face away, and radon doesn’t stink. In fact, hypertension and fear associated with these items may be more dangerous to your system than typical contamination levels. Read on to replace fear with knowledge.

Mold

If you were to spend a day with a professional mold remediator, you might learn that mold can be much less mysterious – and dangerous – than some would have you believe. Mold grows in predictable ways, from predictable causes. These can vary from sprinklers spraying the home, to drainage problems around foundations, to plumbing leaks inside the home.

Mold is like a variety of other home inspection issues because it fits the $10/$10,000 rule. Pros know that a small amount of knowledge and a few inexpensive tools can often resolve a mold problem before it starts.

Start With the Bottom Line

The bottom line with mold management is this: keep things dry. Keep your shower area dry, keep your window wells dry, keep your foundation dry, spray the yard – not your house - with your sprinklers, and get on top of plumbing leaks quickly.

Hysteria and Hoopla

According to EPA, molds produce allergens, irritants, and in some cases potentially toxic substances called mycotoxins. EPA also advises that inhaling mold may cause allergic reactions in certain

3 sensitive individuals. Responses include hay fever-type symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose and red eyes. While certain individuals with severe lung and respiratory issues can be severely affected, many healthy adults only report minor complaints. If you have respiratory problems, you should take appropriate steps. If not, take a moment to breathe easier.

Some have been known to complain that mold makes their face tingle, and others have reported that a mold spore has eaten a part of a loved one’s face away. These stories are easy to create and entertaining to pass along, but lack any basis in science or reality. Mold spores are lung irritants - not flesh eating bacteria.

It’s Natural

Like most other living organisms, mold requires moisture to survive. This means that when the moisture is removed completely, only dead spores remain. The New York State Department of Health reports that mold needs only sufficient moisture and organic material such as the paper in drywall, wood or cardboard. In other words, mold grows on anything wet that either is or was wood. While mold does grow on cheese, in rotting food and in a shower surround, this is a different variety of mold.

EPA also reports that there are many types of mold, and reiterates that none of them will grow without water or moisture. Outdoors, molds play a vital part in nature by breaking down dead organic

4 matter such as fallen leaves, dead trees and grass clippings. Indoors, there are similar sources of mold, including benign and common objects such as house plants.

Plants can be a good source for mold in the home because mold has everything it needs to live: constant moisture and decaying leaves. This doesn’t mean you should throw your plants away – it means that you should understand that mold will always be in your environment at certain levels.

Don’t think you can make your home mold-free. Every time you open a door or window, some spores enter and others leave. The reality is that a large percentage of the breaths you have taken in your life have included some mold spores, so any attempt to eliminate mold in the home would be unrealistic.

No Shame in the Frame

You may have driven past new homes under construction – you have probably seen hundreds or thousands of them in your lifetime. As the rains and snows soak the home, the frame construction is subject to all of the conditions that mold needs to survive – except time. The water part of the equation is there, and the wood makes a delicious meal for hungry mold spores, but the wood does not stay wet long enough to build large colonies. As the wood dries, mold spores die and their offspring move to greener pastures. The scenario is similar in a finished home: a single and

5 short-lived water event that dries out completely is not usually cause for undue concern.

How To Get Rid of Mold

Your goal should not be to eliminate spores, but to bring the number of spores to a reasonable level. Indoor mold growth can be managed by controlling indoor moisture, so watch for leaks inside your home and make sure the sprinklers are only watering your grass – not your home. Make sure that your drainage around your home is properly done, and glance at your water heater from time to time just to make sure it’s not leaking.

If there is mold growth in your home, you have a two-step process: fix the water problem, then clean up the mold. If you clean up the mold first without addressing fix the water problem, the mold will return like an old “Poltergeist” movie. Save your sanity and avoid the bad reruns; keep things dry.

Shameless Plug

At CEI, we consult and remediate for homeowners with mold issues. If you want to know what needs to be done so you can do it yourself, we can help you. If you want to have the mold addressed professionally, we can help you. Our phone number is (801) 763- 1932.

Sources http://www.epa.gov/iedmold1/moldbasics.html http://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/indoors/air/mold.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mold

Mold at a shower wall

Mold inside a bathroom cabinet

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Mold originating inside a sheetrock wall

Mold along a baseboard

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Meth

While Mold, Asbestos and the other items listed in this book have had their day in the sun as the “fear factor” contaminant of choice, the most recent material to dominate the headlines is meth. No other material can drive down the price of a home faster than meth, or turn would-be home buyers into panicked ex-buyers. Yet for all of the headlines, it is very difficult to find any research that can pin down exactly what the health and safety effects of living in a “contaminated” home really are.

What is Meth?

Let’s start out with the hard part first: N-methyl-1-phenyl-propan-2-amine is called methamphetamine, or just 'meth'. In its crystalline form, the drug is called crystal meth, ice, glass, or one of a very long list of other names. Meth is a highly addictive stimulant, relatively inexpensive and long lasting in its “high”. This makes it an attractive choice for certain drug users, but what meth does to a user’s face, teeth, heart and other organs is swift, brutal and permanent.

Why Is Meth Used?

One source reports that meth causes numerous neurotransmitters to be released in the brain, producing a sense of euphoria. It gives the user a long lasting source of energy and is very addictive.

Dieters make up another group of users. Certain dieters may take crystal meth because it can cause rapid weight loss - but the effects are short

13 term. The body builds up a tolerance to the drug so weight loss tapers off and stops quickly. Also, weight that is lost is quickly regained when the drug use stops.

Some take meth because of the long-lasting high that it gives. Meth can cause super-human strength through anger – it is not uncommon for meth decontamination specialists to see doors and door frames demolished by small individuals who could not otherwise punch a hole through sheetrock.

Why is Meth a Problem?

This same superhuman strength through anger that accompanies meth use is sometimes directed at other individuals within the house, causing serious bodily injury and sometimes, death. The author is well aware of broken families and attempted murders associated with meth use. There is no doubt that meth is a vicious and addictive drug.

One source reports that meth can cause euphoria, energy, alertness, talkativeness and loss of appetite in the short term– but these feelings come at a heavy cost. Other short term effects include diarrhea and nausea, excessive sweating, insomnia, tremors, agitation, violence, panic and confusion. Withdrawal symptoms include depression and the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable.

In the longer term, the price gets much higher. "Meth Mouth" is a condition where teeth rapidly decay and fall out. Meth use also has been

14 shown to dramatically age a person’s skin, especially in the face. Drug- related psychosis may last for months or years - even after use ends. There is also brain damage, sensation of flesh crawling, paranoia, hallucinations, delusions, tension headache, muscle breakdown and kidney damage or failure. Finally, meth use can lead to stroke and heart failure.

What is “Contaminated”?

The State of Utah passed legislation to crack down on meth labs in 2004. That legislation defined meth contamination as 0.1 micrograms per 100 square centimeters. In layman’s terms, if you take a grain of salt, then carve it up into ten equal parts, then spread one of those grains over an area about the size of your palm, you have legal contamination. This definition of contamination has no basis in scientific study or in assessments of health & safety. Instead, this value was chosen because 0.1 was the minimum level that an accredited lab could detect.

Since that time, there have been enough voices to cause an adjustment to the value. In 2008 the state redefined contamination from 0.1 to 1.0 micrograms. The change was received with varying levels of approval by the local health departments, and they vary in how they interpret the new rule.

Lab vs. Use

To be clear, there are different types of contamination: Labs and Use. The laws written in 2004 had the intent to crack down on meth labs. Labs are

15 structures where meth was cooked - by contrast, if meth was just smoked in a home, that’s called Use. Contamination levels for labs will generally range from as low as 5, up to 100 or more. Contrast that with meth use, which will generally range from 0.1 to 10 or so. In the eyes of the law, there is no difference. Any home that tests above the legal limit is considered meth contaminated and must be addressed according to the law.

What Should I Look For?

Brace yourself: you are about to be given secrets that usually have to be earned in the field. Many home inspectors and some meth decontamination specialists don’t know what you are about to learn. While it is true that meth use can happen anywhere, the most commonly contaminated homes show these signs: • Small homes and apartments • Foreclosures • Homes that are trashed or that were trashed and have been cleaned up • Homes that show signs of anger

Small Homes and Apartments

While there will always be exceptions, it stands to reason that meth users will prioritize their habit over other key expenses - like making a mortgage or rent payment. Meth users are generally not as successful in obtaining or keeping good jobs. This results in greater use in locations where the rent or mortgage payment is less. It is not uncommon to find multiple

16 contaminated apartment units even in four-plex units. Landlords should be advised to check credit ratings and backgrounds prior to renting.

Foreclosures

Foreclosures will be more likely to show contamination for a similar set of reasons. Simply put, meth gets the financial priority over the mortgage payment. That being the case, occupants fall behind on the payment and eventually lose the home.

Trashed

Although not always the case, meth contaminated homes are often trashed. Trashiness usually takes the form of stained and soiled flooring, scrawls on the walls and cabinets, damage everywhere, and poor maintenance. Sometimes meth contaminated homes can have a urine odor. This can originate either from chemicals used in cooking meth, or from occupants urinating or defacating in random locations within the home. Sometimes the urine odor originates from animals that were not let out to make their donations in the grass.

Anger

While the above descriptions are fairly common knowledge among certain circles, the last is not. It comes from the author’s own experience as an inspector and decontamination specialist: look for signs of anger. This can show up as holes punched through walls or doors. It can also show up as

17 damaged door frames. Sometimes doors are trashed because the occupant kicked the door open, or used his or her body to ram it through. The occupant often doesn’t have the money to replace the badly damaged door, so they may often attempt feeble repairs. If you see damaged doors and frames, or walls that have been kicked through, do a meth test.

How to Spot a Meth Lab

The ingredients used to make methamphetamine in clandestine laboratories are generally household products that by themselves present little danger, but when combined can have toxic or explosive effects. The equipment and processes used to produce meth can reveal the existence of a meth lab. According to one source, here are some indicators of a meth lab:

• Propane tanks with fittings that have turned blue. • Occupants of the residence constantly going outside to smoke. • Strong smell of urine or unusual chemical smells such as ether, ammonia or acetone. • An usual number of cold tablet containers that list ephedrine or pseudoephedrine as ingredients. • Jars and bottles containing clear liquid with a white / red colored solid or a fine dark red or purple powder. • Coffee filters containing a white pasty substance, a dark red sludge, or small amounts of shiny white crystals. • Bottles containing sulfuric, muriatic or hydrochloric acid or jars with rubber tubing attached.

• A large number of cans of camp fuel, paint thinner, acetone, starter fluid, lye, and drain cleaners containing sulfuric acid or muriatic acid. • Large amounts of lithium batteries, especially ones that have been stripped.

How to Decontaminate

There are two classes of individuals who can decontaminate a former meth lab. According to state rules, the homeowner can do it – if you do it all by yourself. You can’t hire a contractor, a handyman or an out-of work neighbor. If you don’t want to do it yourself, your other choice is to hire a certified meth decontamination specialist.

If you elect to go with the first route, you will need to work with your county health department. Depending on the county, they will likely require a work plan and an application fee to begin. They may recommend that you use a detergent to decontaminate. They may also recommend that you clean a minimum of 10 times. If so, good luck to you. You will likely find that the detergent method doesn’t work – even if you clean 100 times. Other materials work more effectively, but using them indoors without the right knowledge, training and tools can be deadly.

If you go with a decontamination specialist, there is a state list of approved individuals. All of them know how to pass a test relating to state regulations – some of them know how to successfully decontaminate.

Shameless Plug

If you don’t want to die, and you do want your home successfully decontaminated, call Crossroads Engineering. We know what we’re doing and our experience and methods keep the prices down. Our phone number is (801) 763-1932.

Faces of Meth: http://www.myfox8.com/wghp-pg-faces-of-meth,0,1425347.photogallery

Sources http://chemistry.about.com/od/medicalhealth/a/crystalmeth.htm http://www.superfund.utah.gov/meth_cleanup.htm http://alcoholism.about.com/od/meth/a/methlab.htm

A meth user trashed this door, then bolted it back together

Damaged walls are common in meth homes

A meth user and his bedroom door

This heavy duty metal door was no match for a meth user

This door was also outmatched by a meth user

Trashed carpet in a meth home

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Radon

Radon is a colorless, odorless, naturally occurring radioactive gas. Every breath of air you have taken in your lifetime has contained some radon, and there is no location on earth that does not have some radon in the air. Radon originates naturally in the earth, generally in rocks that contain ores and minerals.

Radon has its origin in metals like Uranium and Radium. The difference between Radon and Uranium is that while Uranium and Radium are metals and cannot move through the air, radon is a gas like nitrogen or oxygen. As a gas, Radon can move from its point of origin, through the soil and into your living space.

Different Levels in Different Areas

Sometimes granite can contain materials that create radon gas. If you have more granite, minerals, or similar materials in the soil around your yard, your comparative risk may be higher.

If your home lies in an outwash area of a canyon or near a river bed, your radon levels may be higher as well. Outwash areas will contain larger rock and a sampling of the ores and minerals that used to be in the mountain.

In Utah, being closer to the mountain also tends to result in a higher potential for radon because the geology is made up of larger rock. When the rock is large enough to allow “pore space”, or air gaps in the soil, it is easier for radon to move through the soil and into your home. By contrast, the closer you live to the lake, your risk is reduced because the home will be built on silts and clays, and groundwater will fill air gaps in the soil.

One individual in a training class on radon correctly observed that radon follows money. If the home is in one of the better locations, the same conditions that make the area nice are the conditions that raise radon risk. At the same time, let’s be honest. Certain radon remediators tend to find radon in the better homes because it results in a better payday.

Why is Radon an Issue?

Radon is one of the links in a long chain of radioactive decay products. Certain radioactive materials start out as Uranium, then decay through a long process that includes radon. The decay process continues until eventually the original material (a form of Uranium) becomes a form of lead.

As a gas, radon can build up its concentration inside your basement (or the lowest point in your home) to a level that EPA

28 considers to be cause for remediation. The gas can move into your lungs, leaving radioactive particles that can be trapped in your lung tissues. As these particles eventually break down, they release small bursts of energy. It is these small bursts that can damage lung tissue and lead to lung cancer over the course of your lifetime.

Radon Can Be Found Everywhere

Radon can be found all over the U.S., and throughout the rest of the world. There is no place that you can go to get completely away from radon – except outer space. Because radon mixes so naturally with air, radon can get into any type of building. According to EPA, you are most likely to get your greatest exposure at home. This is not because your home is more contaminated, but because home is likely where you spend most of your time.

How Do I Get Radon in My Home?

Radon gas typically moves through the ground and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation. Your home traps radon inside the structure, where radon levels can build. EPA publications indicate that any home may have a radon problem, but generally the homes with the greatest likelihood for elevated levels of radon are those with the most uncirculated air in a basement.

Radon from soil gas is the main cause of radon problems. Other minor contributors to radon include the natural gas service to your home, well water, and building materials. According to EPA, building materials like granite can add radon, but these materials are rarely the primary source of a problem.

Let’s state that another way: Granite counters are generally sealed and contribute little to indoor radon levels. In the end, granite and radon are much less of a safety risk than hypertension.

RADON GETS IN THROUGH: • Cracks in solid floors • Construction joints • Cracks in walls • Gaps in suspended floors • Gaps around service pipes • Cavities inside walls • The water supply

Fear Factor and Frenzy Foiled

According to EPA, nearly 1 out of every 15 homes in the U.S. is estimated to have elevated radon levels (greater than 4 pci/l). EPA also reports that while radon problems may be more common in some areas, any home may have elevated radon levels, and the only way to know about your home is to test.

That’s what EPA says. They have to be that way. While there will always be some exceptions, the homes with cracks in the basement or basements on the same level as crawl spaces will have higher levels – especially if you live near the mountains or in a canyon wash-out area. At the same time, if you don’t live in the basement, give yourself permission to worry less. If levels are higher in an area you don’t spend many hours per day in, then your potential risks drop greatly.

Tests can also have their drawbacks. EPA recommends long-term tests, but these tests are rarely done. Most tests are snapshot tests, also known as short term or 4-day tests. According to EPA, these tests can over-report readings up to three times the true value, as they tend to err on the high side. In addition there may be calibration problems in certain testing equipment – if the inspector calibrates the equipment to be high, every home tested may turn out to show elevated radon levels.

What To Do

If the person testing your home is also proposing himself to remediate your home, be wary. Make sure you trust that individual, or try another testing service. There are tests you can get at national hardware retailers that you can use as a second opinion, or there are online sources for testing.

Shameless Plug

If you decide to have radon remediated in your home, get multiple bids and talk to people who know the business. In many cases there are inexpensive fixes for radon problems if you know what to do. Before you spend your hard earned funds on radon remediation, call Crossroads Engineering. We may be able to help you save thousands of dollars. Our phone number is (801) 763- 1932.

Sources http://www.epa.gov/radon/pubs/index.html http://www.epa.gov/radon/pubs/citguide.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radon http://www.radon.com/radon/radon_facts.html

When living space and soil share the same level, radon potential rises

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Diagram of a radon mitigation system

National map showing comparative radon risk by county

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Lead

According to EPA sources, lead is a toxic metal that may cause health problems in young children. Because of its low cost and properties, lead has been used in any number of products including paint, ceramics, pipes, solders and cosmetics.

In 1980 federal and state governments began writing regulations to address lead exposure. Today, the most common source of lead exposure is lead-based paint in homes built prior to 1980.

Why is Lead a Problem?

When lead is eaten or inhaled, it can damage the brain in unborn children and infants. Adult symptoms of lead poisoning include headaches, nausea, tiredness and irritability, but children who are lead poisoned may show no symptoms at all.

What Is It In?

Lead was used for many years in paint and other products found in and around homes. Lead can also enter your drinking water supply from lead pipes and solder. To address this potential source of lead, EPA required drinking water systems to change the chemistry

37 of drinking water to reduce any contact the water may have with leaded plumbing.

Generally speaking, modern day lead exposure is focused on one primary source: lead based paint. Lead from peeling or flaking paint can get into dust and soil. From there, children may swallow the lead during normal hand-to-mouth activity.

How Does Lead Enter My System

While this may sound like a severe case of stating the obvious, you get lead in your system by eating it. You could eat paint chips directly, you could eat soil that contains lead or you could put materials covered with lead dust in your mouth. It is possible to breathe lead contaminated dust, but to make a significant effect experts believe the contaminated dust would have to be high in concentration and long-term in nature.

Why are Children Most at Risk?

According to EPA, lead affects children more because babies and young children often put objects that may contain lead in their mouths. Children tend to grow more than the rest of us, and growing bodies absorb more lead. Adult brains are already developed, where a child’s brain is rapidly changing. This means that an affected child’s brain can be affected more by comparison.

Those of us who are already adults, who stand no risk of bearing children (i.e. guys) can sprinkle their salads all day long with lead based paint. It might be high in fiber.

How Do I Know if My Home Has Lead

Many houses built before 1978 have lead-based paint. To determine if your home has lead, you do it yourself, or you can call a home inspector or lead remediator. If you want to do it yourself, you can get lead test kits at many national hardware chains. Test kits vary from one brand to another, but generally involve placing a solution on a paint chip to determine any changes in color. It is the change in color that indicates the presence or absence of lead in the paint.

How Should I Take Care of Lead in My Home

You have a variety of options for reducing lead in your home. In most cases, lead-based paint that is in good condition is not a hazard, so the do-nothing strategy is often your best choice. If you choose to remove, the way to address lead based paint is to scrape off, capture and dispose of loose fragments of lead based paint, then repaint with a good exterior grade paint. This procedure will need to be repeated every few years as the paint begins to flake.

If you choose to do the repairs yourself, be aware that you can cause a bigger problem if you do it wrong. For example, if you sandblast the paint off the wall, it is unlikely you will capture all of the removed materials. This puts paint into your soil that was safely on your wall. Similarly, if you scrape the paint off the wall but do not capture and remove the scrapings, the material blends with the soil and may affect your children when they eat that soil.

If you want to “remediate” lead based paint, you could hire a professional remediator, or you can sometimes just hire a knowledgeable painter. A good painter will likely do the same steps that a remediator would take.

If your soil is already heavily contaminated with lead based paint and you have children that may be exposed, consider replacing the top few inches of soil in addition to any other tasks that may be necessary.

The Shameless Plug

For most families, large investments for lead based paint repairs may not be necessary. If you have small children that like to eat dirt, if you have peeling lead based paint inside your home, and if you’re uncomfortable doing it yourself, call us. We can help or refer you to someone. Our phone number is (801) 763-1932.

Sources http://www.epa.gov/lead/ http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/leadtest.pdf http://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/lead/ http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/healthy_homes/healthyhomes/lead

Combine an old home with paint that’s in poor condition, and the lead flag goes up

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Old peeling paint should stop you and make you think “lead paint” – that is, if you’re a home inspector

One type of lead based paint testers. When the tip turns pink or red, you have lead

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to download the most recent version of this booklet

Asbestos

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral – a fiber that has been used commonly in a variety of building construction applications over many years. Its properties made asbestos a common choice for thermal (heat) insulation and for fire protection. Because of its strength and heat resistance, asbestos has been used for a range of products including shingles, tile, brakes, heat-resistant fabrics and coatings.

Homeowners most commonly find asbestos on the ceiling, in the walls, or on the duct work. There are endless other potential uses and locations of asbestos, but in home applications these are the most common.

Why Be Concerned About Asbestos?

When asbestos-containing materials are disturbed, microscopic fibers become airborne and can be inhaled into the lungs. Once inside the lungs, they can cause health problems such as asbestosis, lung cancer or mesothelioma.

Asbestos exposure becomes a health concern when high concentrations of asbestos fibers are inhaled over a long time period. Research indicates that short duration exposures to small amounts of fibers are minimal by comparison.

Asbestosis -- Asbestosis is a progressive long-term disease of the lungs. It is caused by inhaling asbestos fibers that irritate lung tissues and cause the tissues to scar. The scarring in the lung tissues makes it hard for oxygen to get into the blood stream, resulting in reduced oxygen content in the blood. Symptoms include shortness of breath and a dry, crackling sound in the lungs while inhaling. There is no effective treatment for asbestosis.

Lung Cancer -- Lung cancer causes the largest number of deaths related to asbestos exposure. The most common symptoms of lung cancer are coughing and a change in breathing. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, persistent chest pains, hoarseness, and anemia.

Mesothelioma -- Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is found in the lining of the lung, abdomen and heart. Almost all cases are linked to asbestos exposure. This disease may not show up until many years after asbestos exposure.

When Was Asbestos Used?

Asbestos has been widely used for any number of uses, but it found its end in home applications in 1978. There may have been some tail-off in use for a couple of years after that time, so if your home was built in 1980 or later, you are much less likely to have asbestos in your home.

Other applications for asbestos continued well past 1978. One of these was the use of asbestos in brakes. This application has only recently ended.

Where is Asbestos Found?

Within the home, asbestos can be found in a variety of locations, but first on the list would be the popcorn ceiling texture. You have probably seen it: a lumpy material placed on ceilings in the late 1970’s, and often decorated with glitter. Some individuals make the mistake of thinking the glitter is the asbestos – this is not the case. Asbestos fibers were added to hold things together.

In pre-1978 homes, asbestos can also commonly be found as duct liner. You will see it covering the joints between duct sections, and occasionally as a heat barrier between the furnace or fireplace flue and combustibles - such as a nearby wall.

What Should I Do if I Have Asbestos?

According to EPA, if the asbestos is in good condition, the best thing to do is to leave the material alone. If you’re not sure whether a material contains asbestos, consider hiring a professional inspector to sample and test the material for you.

Before you remodel your home, you should first determine whether asbestos-containing materials are present. If asbestos-

47 containing material is unraveling or breaking apart, you should take appropriate steps to protect yourself and your family. Appropriate steps may vary with each situation, from covering or protecting the asbestos to professional removal.

If you are a homeowner with asbestos products in the home, you can either remove it yourself, or hire a pro. In some states hiring a handyman or general contractor for asbestos removal can get you in trouble – but not in Utah. Rules have recently changed that allow any individual to remove asbestos in your home.

Shameless Plug

Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know. If you need further consultation, sampling, or if you need someone to just make it go away, we would be happy to consult with you or just to make it go away. Our phone number is (801) 763-1932.

Sources: http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/ http://www.maacenter.org/asbestos/products/brakepads.php http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asbestos

The most common source of asbestos: Asbestos contained within the old popcorn ceiling texture. Not all popcorn textures contain asbestos, but many do

Asbestos duct wrap

For the most up-to-date and full color version, please visit www.crossroadsengineers.com to download the most recent version of this booklet

More asbestos duct wrap

For the most up-to-date and full color version, please visit www.crossroadsengineers.com and download the most recent version of this booklet

The Happy Ending

If you’re the homeowner who finds out you have contamination in your home, it’s never a good day. It is very common for me to answer a phone only to hear a panicked client on the other end. This is a whole new arena for almost all of us – your mom and dad have never been through this, and can’t give you advice based on their own experience. Grandma not only hasn’t been through this, but couldn’t have imagined the scenario you’re in. None of your ancestors back to Methuselah have had any experience with this either. No wonder you’re panicked and overwhelmed – you’re the first in a chain of human beings thousands of years old to have dealt with this kind of “legal” contamination.

The good news is that you can deal with it. In some cases, the solution can be found inexpensively. In other cases, the solution may set you back a few thousand dollars, but rarely does having meth contamination, mold issues, etc., mean you’re going to have to tear the house down. You can deal with this: your spouse still loves you (that is, if she did before the mold), and your children are not going to run away (unless maybe you’d like them to). It’s just a check you may have to write – and sometimes even the size of the check isn’t that bad. If you discover meth, mold, or one of the other items listed here, take a deep breath – then call us. We can help.

Garth D. Haslem Registered Professional Engineer President, Crossroads Engineering PC [email protected] www.crossroadsengineers.com

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