Kitchen Vinyl Flooring Asbestos

In many cases the best thing to do about vinyl asbestos flooring is put a new layer of flooring on top of it.

Kitchen vinyl flooring asbestos.

9 x9 12 x12 and 18 x18. What are asbestos floor tiles. For about 35 years flooring companies included asbestos when they manufactured the vinyl tiles. The old tiles are relatively thin around 1 8 inch thick so installing new flooring on top will not appreciably raise the height of the floor.

That means it is safe to walk on but not safe to scrape sand or use power tools on. Our photo left shows armstrong excelon 12x12 vinyl asbestos flooring made in 1972 identified in our floor tile photo guide asbestos floor tile identification photos 1949 1959 detailed photo guide to asphalt asbestos and vinyl asbestos floor tiles and resilient flooring produced in 1900 1980. Even some of the early peel and stick tiles used asbestos as the main ingredient. But the flooring companies aim wasn t so much to make the floor tiles fireproof as it was to make the tiles more durable.

Prior to the 1980s asbestos vinyl sheet flooring was very popular in homes. Unfortunately vinyl sheet flooring manufactured with an asbestos backing poses a serious exposure risk when it is disturbed. If you are removing the original vinyl floor from a home prior to 1980 you will need to locate a licensed asbestos abatement contractor to test your floor. Asbestos removal is a hazardous process best undertaken only by a qualified professional.

Intact asbestos tiles are not a major risk and can in fact be left in place and covered with other materials such as carpet vinyl linoleum or concrete. Asbestos is a mineral that lends fireproofing qualities to any substance it is mixed with. The removal procedures described in this publication address the removal of asbestos backed sheet vinyl only if. Asbestos vinyl flooring was a durable and economical material that offered many aesthetic options to suit a homeowner s taste.

New vinyl laminate flooring hardwood engineered. Examine the condition of the tiles. Asbestos was used in vinyl wallpaper from the 1920s and in the vinyl floor tiles and sheet flooring that rose to prominence in the 1950s. You could also seal it with a coat of epoxy floor paint.

It also was installed over tongue and groove wood floors particleboard and plywood. Asbestos floor tiles were manufactured in three sizes. Like floor tiles vinyl sheet flooring is a long lasting and economical material and it also offers more aesthetic options to suit a homeowner s taste. But when vinyl asbestos flooring is in good condition it is considered nonfriable.